After much speculation and anticipation, it seems apparent that Facebook is finally be ready to give iPad users their own app.
According to The New York Times, The social-networking giant will introduce a free app in the coming period which will be tailored specifically for the large screen interface of Apple’s highly popular tablet, the iPad. Reports suggest that the app has been in the development stage for more than a year, but now it is in final stages of testing. The app completely revamps the Facebook Chat and Facebook Groups portions of the site, according to the NYT. It is believed that the app will allow users to upload photos and videos shots by the iPad.
Most users have for long been demanding for a native iPad app since the tablet went on sale in April 2010.
In most likeability the association between the two will benefit the two companies. So much so that the app might help sway new tablet buyers towards Apple’s highy popular gadget. Facebook on the other hand will get a suitable chance to win over Apple users. It will also provide the possible boost in Facebook’s much needed mobile growth as out of 700 million worldwide Facebook users, nearly 250 million login through mobile. Apple has sold more than 25 million iPads since the device was introduced last year.
Both the companies were recently in the news following Apple’s inclusion of Twitter in iOS 5, given it had a similar deal talk with Facebook.
So far iPad users were unsatisfied with the way Facebook’s site functions on a touchscreen-based device and have to depend on third party apps for accessing Facebook such as Friendly, Facely and Facepad. This also led to huge popularity of these third-party apps, but now the company can overcome this situation by launching their own app.
Initial reactions suggest that it is going to be a nice and easy to use app, but the final word will only come from the users.