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Topic: Social Enterprise

Would you buy a Facebook phone?

Summary: All this talk about a possible official Facebook phone makes me want to ask one simple question; if it ever sees the light of day, would consumers even be interested in buying one?

Emil Protalinski

By for Friending Facebook |

With the Facebook phone rumor coming back in full force last week, everyone wanted to know why Facebook might bother. So I'm asking you, my readers: would you buy a Facebook phone? Please vote in the poll below:

[poll id="2"]

Palo Alto's official stance on the growing number of unofficial Facebook phones is that they are a prime example of a manufacturer using the company's public APIs to innovate in the mobile space. The social networking giant won't let any mobile manufacturer market any of their devices as a "Facebook phone" but at the same time it quietly hopes more Facebook-integrated devices will be rolled out.

Nevertheless, the rumor of an official Facebook phone keeps coming back. Publicly, the company insists that its strategy does not have anything to do with building its own phone: instead, it is happy helping everyone else leverage the social network on their platforms. That could one day change, though it's still unclear why Facebook would want to offer its own phone.

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Topics: Social Enterprise, Mobility, Telcos

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73 comments
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  • Facebook intergrates with WP7 realtime, but I don't use that feature

    instead I use the Facebook App, which I go in and out as needed

    I'm not that hooked to facebook that I need it 24/7
    William Farrell
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @William Farrell I am thinking anybody that is hoping for a "facebook" phone needs to get a life but hey, that's just my opinion :-)
      non-biased
      Reply Vote

  • Facebook phone = Kin 2.0

    Need I say more?
    Snooki_smoosh_smoosh
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @Snooki_smoosh_smoosh

      My initial understanding and reaction, exactly. Anyone saying 'yes' had their chance about a year or so ago.
      FuzzyBunnySlippers
      Reply Vote

  • WHY????

    What is wrong with the FB app? Are people that addicted that they need a phone dedicated to this evil empire?
    Bates_
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @Bates_ first word that popped into my head!!!
      J Michael Ireland
      Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @Bates_ They're just protecting their core product from the evil claws of Google's trojan horse of free(?) Android.
      Schmidt_
      Reply Vote

  • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

    i have a samsung galaxy s and it integrates extremely well with facebook. a facebook-centric phone would have even less to offer than the current android phones. cant wait to switch to wp7.
    Th0mas
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

    At this point, most smart phones integrate with Facebook pretty heavily, so I would say that most(if not all) smart phones are Facebook phones.
    Shmythey
    Reply Vote

  • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

    Absolutely not. In fact, I have basically dumped Facebook in favor or Google+

    Now, before you ask, NO, I would also not buy a Google+ phone...
    slambert1971
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @slambert1971 No need Google+ phone. You already bought a scheming Android phone.
      Schmidt_
      Reply Vote

      • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

        @Schmidt_ ...why are you assuming everyone is on Android?
        kymac
        Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @slambert1971 <br><br>No need Google+ phone. You already bought an amazing Windows Phone. (hehehe)
      FuzzyBunnySlippers
      Reply Vote

  • With Facebook's privacy record?

    With Facebook's privacy record, why would you want a Facebook phone to make it worse? They would simply suck more of your private info.
    welcomecreek
    Reply Vote

    • Yeah, absolutely not. Bad reputation for low privacy and for exploits.

      @welcomecreek
      +1 privacy
      Also, expanded Facebook API support on the phone = possibility of Facebook exploits on the phone too?
      voltrarian
      Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @welcomecreek
      Exactly! No way would I want them harvesting my contact info, calling records, and any mobile browsing to do whatever they want with that info.
      jreuter
      Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @welcomecreek I laugh every time someone talks about "oh my privacy, dont invade my privacy." You do know that just being on the internet you are foregoing some privacy. You do know that there is already a data base with your information already on it. So if you are really THAT worried about your privacy you need to move out to the woods with the amish. They will still know where you are but it will be harder to track you. Also, what are you doing that you need all this privacy anyways? If anything these are the first people I would look at to find out why they need so much privacy. Face it people in the 21st century privacy is not real. If you can look out and see your neighbor, where is the privacy there? When you walk down a parking lot and look into a persons car, where is the privacy there? You people just need something to complain about that is all. So you have my permission to complain about your precious privacy if that helps you sleep at night.
      xangpow
      Reply Vote

      • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

        @xangpow There is a huge difference between basic privacy and having a company harvest information from your phone. Of course to use your examples, I have tinted windows on my vehicles which gives me a certain amount of privacy from somebody looking in the window as they walk by and if I want more I can put whatever items I don't want them to see in the glove box or trunk. It's not like I leave a list of all my contact plastered on my window for everyone to review as they walk by. As far as looking out and seeing my neighbor, I have curtains and blinds which prevent them from looking in, that creates privacy.
        non-biased
        Reply Vote

  • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

    I know my wife would be first in line. Internet went down for about fifteen minutes one day and I thought she was going to go nuts.
    jplumbob@...
    Reply Vote

    • RE: Would you buy a Facebook phone?

      @jplumbob@... your wife doesn't have a life?
      serenakwa
      Reply Vote
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