If like me your Smartphone is slowly grinding to a halt under the weight of all your memory draining apps then you will be happy to hear that Facebook Lite is nearly here! Facebook Lite to the rescue because with just 252 KB as opposed to the 27 MB of the main app your phone will breathe a sigh of relief!
The bad news is that for now the app is only available in developing countries across Africa and Asia where devices are lower end and internet connection is poor. It will run on any Android devices from 2.2 upwards and meet the needs of millions of users in underdeveloped countries.
Why Facebook Lite?
Out of the 1.3 billion Facebook users worldwide, 100 million mobile users are in India, 60 million in Indonesia and 57 million in Brazil. Facebook is committed to focusing on growth in emerging markets and in fact the app forms a part of Mark Zuckerbergs “Internet .Org initiative.
The goal of Internet.Org is to bring Internet access to people around the globe by increasing affordability and improving functionality. Internet.Org includes the apps “Facts For Life”, “Google Search”, “Wikipedia” and “Women’s Rights” to ensure that educational information is reaching previously untouched places around the globe.
What Can You Do With Facebook Lite?
For the end user (not businesses and page managers) the functionality of Facebook Lite is much the same as the traditional memory heavy app.
• Post status updates
• Upload photos
• Comment
• Message Friends
• Start Group Conversations
At present Facebook are inviting feedback from selected users with the message “Facebook Lite is a faster, simpler way to keep in touch with your friends… we still have work to do before it’s done but we’d love to get your feedback on what we’ve built so far.”
What do you think of the concept of Facebook Lite and do you want it in your country? Tweet me at @charli_says and let me know.