Facebook could very well start his own Android version at an event next week. But instead of the more mobile Facebook, we just need better mobile Facebook.
On a quiet Good Friday, speculation about an Android-themed event that Facebook is scheduled for next Thursday, April 4.
Of course the most low hanging rumor fruit is that the company really means it this time the endless discussed "Facebook phone." This is one rumor mill that makes me sick so I'll defer to BGR's Zach Epstein to explain what I think the chances are of such a device (spoiler: there is not a chance).
Please, God, no
Now I could be wrong. And if I am, I will say so next week. But, seriously, Facebook is not necessary to do it. Introducing a brand new phone with a few dedicated Facebook button or doodad would not bring anything to the mobile experience. Facebook and HTC already tried with the HTC Salsa and HTC Status / Chacha two years ago. Remember them? Not? Well, do not feel bad, because almost no one.
No, all about what happened inside smartphones. By all means design business - HTC, for example, use every opportunity to promote One's shiny metal skin - but the last time we heard about a mobile experience. It was definitely Samsung's Galaxy S4 launch event, the BlackBerry Z10 debut, and the showdown for the iPhone 5 (and most iPhone models).
I really do not mean
This is why I think the predictions of Nick Bilton of the New York Times and JR Raphael Computer is much more believable. Bilton says that Facebook will introduce "a special version of Google's Android software system" that "changed the social networking front and center" on an HTC device. Meanwhile, Raphael goes a step further and say we will "will position a custom Android launcher that Facebook's various services (chat, messages and warnings) see on the home screen.
What's more, and maybe I'm analyzing semantics here, but remember that Facebook's invitation promised a "new home on Android," a "new home for free." Sure, we will see a phone next week - Facebook not properly demo software without one - but I do not think it will be a new HTC device. Maybe it will be a variant of the One. This may be a reason why it was delayed so many times. But even if the news is just about the software, I just love the whole idea remains. Better apps are welcome - Facebook's current Android app is still iffy, but we do not have an Android version. And more important, we need to have an "easier" way to use Facebook.
Enough choice as it is
To be honest, we need another Android version like I need a hole in my head. Why? Because we already have enough. Samsung's laces its Android phones with TouchWiz, HTC Sense (probably the best of the bunch), and Motorola now uses a lot less offensive version of MotoBlur. Although we came to live with these versions, while not totally love them, at least each version is unique to a hardware manufacturer. If you TouchWiz, you know it's on a Samsung handset and not one made by HTC or Sony.
A Facebook-specific version of Android, however, if the water even muddier. Only where it would fit in the current Android landscape? Want the mystery HTC phone both Facebook's software and sense? Or would Sense completely replaced? Frankly, it just makes my head hurt. I'm not arguing that we live in a minimalist Mies van der Rohe world indeed only stock Android, Android would not be the same in the true spirit of the OS - but sometimes too much choice can be a good thing be.
I am also concerned with how a Facebook Android version will OS update cycle influence (Do not worry, I'm not the beginning of another Android fragmentation argument). Although there is a debate about whether or custom Android versions significantly slow the update process, you can not argue that they affect. Jelly Bean was available, for example, manufacturers had to make sure it runs as it should on their devices. I think that a Facebook version would add a layer of complexity. And if a mobile Facebook's Android and TouchWiz, then we are in a mess.
Better, more
I realize that technology is all about making us do more and do it more efficiently, but we really that desperate for Facebook's content we need to be more front and center than it already is? No, we already get push notifications for things such as wall posts, comments, and event invites in the Android app. They may not always work, but the option is there. So what more can we do need ... our phone to give us an electric shock when someone comments on your witty status update? Our confidence so tied to our Facebook-life, or is it just that we are lazy?
I also do not see why we need better access to to Facebook products like chat, messages, and events. Maybe it's just me, but I will always use text instead of the Facebook chat on my phone and I will always e-mail rather than send Facebook messages unless I have no other alternative. And those Facebook event invite? Please, those who forget. But most of all, after a phone asks me, "What's on your mind?" every time I look at the home screen will conquer.
I suspect that Bilton and Raphael correct, but I hope we have a better Android app next week rather than more Facebook on my phone. Even a simple Android widget will be good, but a full Android version would be too much. Facebook and its services are already available in enough ways. This is a big part of my phone, it's on my computer, and embedded on my tablet. So, really, what more do we need?
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