We’re not building a phone and we’re not building an operating system: That’s what Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Thursday as his company launched Facebook Home, something that essentially turns any Android phone into a Facebook phone, and keeps you inside the social network in such a way that it might feel a little bit like an operating system.
The app that takes over the front screen of a smartphone, is a bit of a corporate home invasion. Facebook is essentially moving into Google’s turf, taking advantage of software the search giant and competitor created.
‘People first’
Facebook Home is similar to Android launcher apps. It presents Facebook status updates, messages and other content on the home screen, rather than making the user fire up Facebook’s app. When installed, it shows the Facebook updates from your friends on the home screen. It also allows users to update their Facebook status directly from the home screen.
Zuckerberg said, “Facebook Home puts people first instead of apps and makes an Android phone a social device.”
It will be available for free from April 12 to Android users running the latest version of Facebook app in the coming days. The tablet version, said a Facebook official, would come within several months.
Facebook also announced a new phone -HTC First - that will come with Facebook Home preinstalled on it. The phone had been announced for the US market and might not be launched in India.
What about privacy?
FB’s reputation for questionable privacy control doesn’t stem from frequent hacks or security issues - most of the privacy issues center around user data. As you can tell with the targeted ads on the site, Facebook is paying close attention to your user information. You shouldn’t really consider anything you do on Facebook private, so the idea of eschewing stuff like SMS and voice calls in favour of Facebook as your primary platform for communication is troubling if you want those things off the Facebook record.
The Facebook Home platform features an app launcher that lets you access all other programs on your phone. Digital Trends spoke to FB spokesman Frederic Wolens to see whether FB will collect extra data from users related to this new feature. “While we will be logging some data associated with the app launcher, we are using it for internal diagnostics only, and only from a small randomized rolling subset of users,” he says. Wolens stressed that FB did not need to get an extra go-ahead from app providers for it.
Facebook Home will update every month, so you will never feel frustrated about having an outdated version. But you have to wonder if the frequent updates give Facebook a window to introduce new privacy changes under the radar. After all, if something on your phone gets a new version every month, you’re not as likely to closely look at the details as you would an annual update.
Taking on google
Google gives away Android, the most popular smartphone software in the world, in the hope that it will steer phone users toward Google services, such as Maps and Gmail, and ads it sells. With Home, FB is inserting itself between users and Google, diverting them to the social network’s own ads and services.
At the launch event, asked if Zuckerberg believed Google could change tactics and restrict apps like Home, he said it was possible, but highly unlikely for Google to do a “180 - degree change” in its stance on Android’s openness.
Feel at home
Cover feed
When you turn on a phone running FB Home, the lock screen and home screen default to something called Cover feed. This is a stream from your News Feed, putting the focus on what your friends are currently sharing, including photos, status updates and links. You can flip through stories on the screen and double tap a story to like it.
Chat heads
Chat Head gives you a smooth messaging experience by cobbling together FB messages and SMS, and appearing as a pop-up. We don't know if people without FB accounts will show up as Chat Head when they text you, but if you're talking to an account holder, your SMS will get Facebook-ified. And the policy may soon apply to phone calls, too.
Notifications
Facebook will push notifications across FB Home, too. These include updates from FB and other apps on your home screen. You can choose to move notifications away until you want to access them later or you can flick them away from view.
App launcher
While FB wants to focus less on other apps and more about making Facebook the centre of your phone, Home will still have an app launcher. Swiping your Facebook profile photo will open the app launcher. You can customise your favourite apps into their own areas and pages.
Source: Mumbaimirror
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