Tap, Hold and Load In 4K

Submission 62

Part of a series on Catchphrases. [View Related Entries]

About

Tap, Hold and Load In 4K is a catchphrase referring to a feature on X / Twitter on iPhones and iOS devices that allows users to tap and hold on certain images to load them in 4K resolution. The phrase is used when someone shares a photo which enables the use of the feature. On Android, the feature allows users to save the photo in 4K rather than load it. While the feature has purportedly been available on X since as early as 2020, the catchphrase "tap, hold and load in 4K was popularized on the platform in January 2025 as a copypasta, particularly among brand accounts.

Origin

Some X users have been able to load certain images in 4K since as early as 2020. One of the earliest known posts to share photos enabling this feature and encourage people to tap and load the images in 4K was made by X^[1] user @ImNathanBennett on April 23rd, 2020, garnering over 9,000 likes in five years. The feature was officially launched on April 21st, 2021.^[6]

On January 9th, 2025, X^[2] user @Advil shared a wallpaper of a starry sky, writing, "tap, hold and load in 4k to see even more stars 🤩," garnering over 248,000 likes and 16,000 reposts in five days. This is the earliest known use of the phrase "tap, hold and load in 4K."

Spread

The phrase continued to spread on X in January 2025, likely as a form of engagement bait to encourage people to interact with posts. On January 13th, 2025, the @NASCAR X^[3] account made a post using the phrase, garnering over 10,000 likes in a day.

On January 14th, the @ManUtd X^[4] account shared a 4K photo of soccer player Altay Bayindir under the phrase, garnering over 20,000 likes in under a day. Some X users started to get tired of seeing the posts as they continued to go viral. For example, on that day, X^[5] user @jc1t0 posted, "Me if I see one more 'Tap, hold, and load in 4k' tweet on my timeline," attached to the Tommy Shelby Holding a Gun to His Head meme.