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Today Facebook has unveiled their first major foray into mobile (let’s ignore the HTC Statua/ChaCha/Salsa for now) with the introduction of Facebook Home. Home is a new Android skin/launcher that will be available for all Android devices, transforming the smartphone from an apps-first to a “people-first” experience.
Home is based around several key features, starting with the Cover Feed. Cover Feed is the mobile re-imagining of your Facebook News Feed, featuring rich content from your friends and those you follow including images and status updates. It takes the place of your phone’s traditional homescreen. You can easily comment, like, and interact directly from the Cover Feed.
But the interface still makes app easily accessible through a revamped app drawer. This is done so by dragging out from your profile picture at the bottom of the screen. The UI uses plenty of swiping interactions like this to reposition content, minimize stories, and chat with friends.
Speaking of chatting, Facebook Messenger is right out front, accessed again with another swipe from the profile photo. Messenger integrates with regular SMS and Facebook messages and is collated in a new feature called Chat Heads. Chat Heads overlay over other apps, allowing you to quickly access a conversations with friends without having to leave your current app or task.
Facebook Home will be available as a download for smartphones directly from the Play Store with plans for monthly updates. April 12th is the launch for a select group of Android devices. Tablet support should follow a few months down the road.
so a social skin for android…
This might have been useful three years ago but no one I know , including myself, uses Facebook anymore. Everyone is either posting on Twitter or Google+.
Yeah the facebook trend has died a bit but facebook still has the most users by far.
I bet I’m still considered a user even though I use the thing maybe four times a year. Only reason I still have it is if someone from my family has to contact me and Facebook is their only means of communication. This is of course talking about distant family that I don’t see often.
Honestly, I have grown tired of social media websites… The only reason why I still have Facebook is to keep in touch with some of my friends… As for Google+, the only reason why I “use” it is because Google is forcing it on me…
Right… how many fb accounts are out there that are just dead accounts.
And it’s good to hear that I’m not alone in feeling that Google+ is being rammed down our throats.
Google+ is going to be fully integrated into Android with the launch of Key Lime Pie. Also i have no problem with it. I hated Facebook, and am not into all of the personal posts, but the Hangouts and the messaging on Google+ is great.
And if you love it, that’s cool. But for those of us who don’t, why should we HAVE to sign up if we don’t want to? That’s all I’m saying… I’m not used to my beloved goog doing stuff like that….
Google also forced me to have a YouTube account just because I use their email and calendar. Talk about your 800 pound gorilla in the room!
Who Cares!?!?
some people will hate what i say, i do not like facebook much. But they are clever. Android is so flexible and open. This is why making a os would not work for facebook. That is why i feel firefox, maybe ubuntu and blackberry(uses android apps) will not do well. Because so many devs out there will make apps that allow you to have a similar homescreen.
With how horrible their app is, I don’t know why anyone would want this or trust them.
Too bad Facebook still sucks…
only comparable phone is a blackberry
Actually turns only 6 phones into a social media machine when released.
How many taps to get to the, you know… phone!?
2 swipes. One to your favorites. Another to tap on the Phone icon.
What’s a phone?
What do you mean “talk” to people?
man i’m a complete fool to think that Facebook was going to show a new facebook app that runs smoothly and uses Google’s holo guidlines. Shame on me.
Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
You know what IS cool about the Facebook phone? It’s running stock Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean. Pretty sweet :)
Are you at the actual event? If so in opinion, is Home any good?
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Lmfao their app sucks so this won’t be any better. Facebook first correct the app.
Facebook and HTC are scraping the barrel of ideas with this.
This is good for 15 years olds I guess, but Social media sites have worn out their welcome IMO.
I don’t have a Facebook acct. Lucky me
I don’t understand why anyone would intentional download an app that will put advertisement on their homescreen. Not to mention you might as well through your privacy out the window given the permission this app is going to require.
FB Home. haha. Ain’t gonna happen for me.
I dont even have the FB app installed on my GS3…and even have the battery-sucking G+ disabled. I can be “virtually social” when I’m home.
Gmail, Talk, and Phone. That’s all I need to communicate….
And if you really need to check Facebook or Google+, there’s always the web browser.
True dat. But, even so, I can’t think of too many scenarios where I would NEED to check FB.
Strange, because I’m an educated 30 something whose friends are the same and we all use Facebook pretty heavily as a friend network…planning get togethers sharing photos of each other at various events. Most of my relatives and favorite companies, breweries, and restaurants are on it. Don’t know what if do without it!
The title states ” any android phone”, the article reads “a select group of phones”. Did they discontinue all other android phones…I wasn’t aware.
Sooooo I bought a Galaxy Nexus to free myself from slow bloated custom skins. Fat chance I’m gonna us that POS the Android Facebook app is slow/buggy enough without a skin dragging the whole system down with it. My prediction? this crap’s gonna crash&burn.
one of the rwasons I dont have Facebook and Twitter widgets on my home screen is because of the constant updates of information it does kills my battery. if a facebook launcher has news feeds and updates integrated so its the main part of the “experience”, what will this do to battery life? Not that id ever user a shitty Facebook launcher mind!
Who needs facebook when we just post our status updates every 5 minutes here on Phandroid?
hmm imagine what the phandroid phone would be like…
That idea sounds like a gold mine ari_free!