AP
We reached out to Josh Matthews, CEO and co-founder of Apkudo, a company that helps developers improve their Android apps and has done the testing and optimization for companies like Samsung and Sony, to talk details on the impending phone.
He obviously had some strong thoughts on the challenges facing the social giant as it enters the hardware space.
1. The
Facebook has yet to prove it can deliver a stable Android experience. Users see consistent problems across devices. And the bar of stability for a device is much highers than for a standalone app. All the blame or credit for the phone's stability will go straight to Facebook.
2. Facebook needs a clean solution to fragmentation.
Will all apps work on the Facebook phone? Just some? If Facebook is going to fork the Android operating system significantly, it's at the risk of certain apps potentially not being compatible, and this might be a dealbreaker for a lot of users.
3. The phone needs a long battery life.
If people are going to interact with the phone in the way Facebook wants – in perpetuity – the phone must be able to support constant interaction with the user. Not only will it need a powerful battery, but it will need to effectively sap away any heat that builds up.
4. Facebook needs to make the phone appealing to the casual user.
Not all of us are Facebook warriors. So why should we want a Facebook-specific phone? If Facebook can bake in a truly killer feature that's unignorable (think Google Now) while making it provocative and easy to use at the same time, then that will go a long way toward building and sustaining a solid user base.
5. Be unambiguous about privacy.
Facebook has a less than stellar reputation when it comes to user privacy. Settings have historically been clunky or awkwardly worded, which can confuse and frustrate users. People form emotional bonds of sorts with their phones, and they'd like to know that they can rest easy knowing that they aren't blasting personal info into the universe against their wishes.
6. Attract great developers.
If Facebook aims to replace the entire Android experience, it's imperative that it gets some hot developers on board with its vision to start churning out awesome apps.