Facebook to Remain on BlackBerry as Web App
Facebook to Remain on BlackBerry as Web App
Facebook for BlackBerry will survive…sort of.
After the recent announcement that the social network, and its WhatsApp messaging client, would drop support for BlackBerry’s OS, the phone maker on Tuesday announced a new Web-based app.
“Our fans are fighting for us (#WeAreBlackBerry), and we love their support (#ILoveBB10Apps),” BlackBerry developer Lou Gazzola wrote ina blog post. “That’s why we have worked hard with Facebook to address some technical challenges and the best solution was to move forward with a Web-based app.”
The new Web app—technically just an update to an older program—will replace native BlackBerry 10 and BBOS apps on March 31.
“The experience will be slightly different, but you’ll still get the same Facebook features you love,” Gazzola said.
Users can also tap into additional features that were previously unavailable in the app, including the ability to reply to and see other users’ replies to comments. Plus, Gazzola said all posts should now load: “No more ‘News Feed could not be retrieved’ or ‘Post could not be loaded’ messages (unless the post was actually removed),” he wrote.
Basically, all features available to website browsers will also be available on the BlackBerry.
The full Facebook app, meanwhile, is still accessible on the Android-based BlackBerry Priv smartphone.
Last month, Facebook-owned WhatsApp said it would end support for BlackBerry by the end of the year. Also on the chopping block are Nokia S40 and S60, Android 2.1 and Android 2, and Windows Phone 7.1.
Sarmad Gardezi
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