It Totally Takes Over Android

Facebook Home transforms the experience of running Android. Although it’s still possible to add applications, take calls and place text messages, Facebook Home is everywhere. From the screen that comes on to the way messages are handled, Facebook Home totally changes the look and feel of Android.

It’s nice to see that Facebook is making it easy for Home to be integrated into a device. As long as a device is capable of running Home, which means it has the right screen resolution and doesn’t have another application running directly on its ROM, it can be downloaded from the Play marketplace, installed and run. Simplicity means everything.

Although the HTC First will be the first device to run Facebook Home, it appears that a large number of hardware vendors are looking to place the social platform on their devices. That should make it even easier for folks to get their hands on the social experience and ultimately increase their engagement on the social network—something Facebook desperately wants.

It’s important to remember that while Facebook Home takes over the Android operating system, it’s not actually a new version of the mobile operating system. Quite the contrary, Facebook Home is what one would call a “forked” version of the interface software that runs on top of Android. So, don’t worry about more Android fragmentation—Facebook Home doesn’t add to that problem.

Currently, folks who want to check Facebook will need to open an application or browser to do so. But with Facebook Home, it’s always on. So, users can instantly see a news feed photo on their device’s wallpaper or quickly upload a photo from their device to their online profile. Speed is really the name of the game with Facebook Home.

Chat Heads are a feature built into Facebook Home that attempts to change the paradigm of communication across the mobile landscape. Like other multiplatform communication tools, like WhatsApp, Chat Heads allow for cross-platform messaging through Facebook. Look for Chat Heads to dramatically change the number of SMS messages sent out each month.

When users open up their Android wallpapers right now, they see whatever screen they set up. With Facebook Home, the wallpaper is based on their news feed. So, if a friend put up a new picture on the news feed, that’s the one that might show up. The wallpaper cycles through pictures and allows users to interact with them without leaving that screen, which is nice and convenient.

Although Facebook notifications, like a new message or wall update, will definitely makes their presence felt in Home, it’s important to note that the social network’s platform will also display information on missed emails and text messages. Facebook Home might seem like it’s intrusive, but it won’t actually interfere with the device’s current flow of information.

In order for Facebook Home users to actually find the many features available on the platform, they need to have a strong navigation feature. Luckily, Facebook Home delivers. Users essentially need only to slide their profile picture icon around the screen to open apps, go to Facebook or check out their messages. It should make navigation quite simple.

Although Facebook Home is a major step forward for the social network, it’s entirely possible that it could be the beginning of something even greater. Never before has such an ambitious mobile application project been attempted in the mobile space. Facebook has the power (and cash) to deliver something even grander than what’s currently being shown off. It’s possible that Home becomes the first step in what could be a huge mobile-experience improvement.