What do I need?
As mentioned previously, Facebook Home is Facebook's new app launcher UI that integrates Facebook features and overlays onto your Android smartphone operating system (OS). Just to repeat what was said earlier, it isn't a fork of the Android OS and all you need to install it is the right hardware and some Facebook apps such as messenger already installed. Facebook Home will be available for all Android devices (meaning you can download it from Google Play) on or after 12 April 2013. According to Facebook, Facebook Home will be updated regularly and monthly.
The new Facebook Home Chat Heads messaging system in action
How is it different from the Facebook for Android app?
Rather than have an app to go into, your smartphone's home screen has your Cover feed screen, complete with people and connections. Full details are provided such as images, comments and text updates. Integrating the Facebook messenger with the interface, is the new and more robust messaging system called Chat Heads. The background messaging system could be your phone's built-in SMS or Facebook Messenger but the interface would be the same accross apps. Keeping you constantly connected, messaging conversations are instantly (depending on your settings of course) overlaid over whatever is currently on screen so you don't have to shut down the app just to continue messaging. The Facebook Home app launcher also includes a more robust notification system which pops up over your Cover feed, complete with pictures and it doesn't just handle Facebook notifications but also notifications from other apps as well.
A more robust notification system overlays your Cover feed
Should I install Facebook Home this 12 April 2013?
Whether you should or should not download and install Facebook Home is more of a personal question than anything. For the person who already uses his or her smartphone to check Facebook 10 to 12 times a day, it is a natural progression of things, allowing them to make a step up and embrace Facebook more fully. The Facebook Home team fully intend to integrate other social media with the Facebook Home app launcher including other social media such as Twitter, Tumblr and Pinterest. Personally, we're not such heavy users but for myself (and quite a few others), if it means I can finally play Facebook apps or games on my smartphone, I may just download and install it. No news yet if that is an upcoming feature but with a monthly update schedule in place, we should know more about such things soon. The bottomline is if you liked Facebooking on your smartphone then yes, you should be downloading and installing Facebook Home. If you didn't like Facebook or only check it once in a while then perhaps you don't need to install it. Keep checking back for more updates.
How to use Facebook Home in 1 minute
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