Facebook is releasing the new "Home" launcher today. Although the app pack is now in Google Play, only the HTC One, HTC One X, Samsung Galaxy Note II, Samsung Galaxy S III, and Samsung Galaxy S 4 will be supporting Facebook Home for now, with the launcher coming to more devices soon, and the tablet version arriving in "several months." Fans of the social network who want a device that's 100% optimized for, and first to be pre-installed with, Facebook Home can grab the HTC First at AT&T for $99 on a two-year contract. Facebook Home replaces the stock launcher on the device with one that presents Facebook content, such as the news feed, on the home screen.
What Else You Need To Know
- Specs-wise, the HTC First is a mid-range device: 4.3-inch 720p display, a Snapdragon 400 1.4GHz dual-core chip with 1 gig of RAM and a 5-megapixel camera.
- Facebook says that its new custom overlay for mobile devices claims to bring people rather than apps to the forefront of the smartphone.
- Announced at Facebook Home's launch was chat heads, which allows messages to pop-up over your current app and for users to access an SMS or Facebook messenger conversation by tapping on small circles that contain profile pictures of their friends.
- Facebook recently updated the Messenger app for Android to include chat heads, thus pop-up messaging service is now available to Android devices that don't have Facebook Home.
Other sources
I have to wonder how other developers will feel about Facebook interrupting their experience with customers within their own apps.- Darrell Etherington, Mobile Crunch
After using Chat Heads as both a Facebook Messenger client and as my default SMS app, I can say that categorically it is one of the best features the company has ever shipped.- Daniel Bader, Mobile Syrup
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