If you’re planning to install Facebook Home — the latest push from the social network giant to enter the mobile space –, as soon as it comes out on April 12th, you should think twice before making the move. Here are five reasons why you shouldn’t install Home:
#1 At launch Facebook Home will be a version 1.0 software and you know what that means, right? You’ll be entering in the early adopter journey where pretty much every user is a tester, and errors, bugs and other compatibility issues may occur. I’m sure the company has done extensive testing, but having to roll out a new piece of software to millions of users is a big challenge with unexpected results that Facebook has yet to “face”.
You should wait at least until the first Facebook Home update due in May
#2 Also, we already know that the social network company is planning to release new updates every month with new features and bug fixes. As such it would be a wise idea not to install Facebook Home until, at least, the first batch of updates — if everything goes according to schedule, it’ll happen on May 12th –. Besides if the company already has lined up monthly updates, it makes sense to think that they have planned out what features will be releasing in the next 6-12 months. All this leads us to assume that in version 1.0 you won’t be getting a massive set of features, just the basics and a bit more to get things rolling.
#3 Another thing to keep in mind is that Facebook Home will collect some personal information and other activities related to the software in your Android phone. You should understand the information you’re giving away and then make a decision to install the software. Luckily, the social network has already published a set of answers addressing most of these concerns.
On another note, if your privacy is big a concern, think that you’re using an Android phone with Google software already — You’ve have been giving away personal information for quite a while.
#4 In case you still not convinced, consider this tiny issue: did you watch the Facebook ads about Home and how beautiful pictures look in the lock screen (Cover feed)? Well, the ad experience does not reflect the reality that the pictures you’ll see relies on images your friends upload. This means that there is a chance that embarrassing and undesired pictures, or comments may come up every now and then.
Facebook hasn’t built a tool to choose which specific friends you want to display in your Cover feed. It only uses an algorithm to guess which photos should display without the end-user having to do anything — and that goes without saying if someone wants to play a prank on you, so watch out!
#5 Finally, don’t forget that even though there isn’t ads in Facebook Home, the company has already noted that in the near future, advertisements will be coming to the software suite. And these will be in addition to the ads you already see in Android.
What do you think thus far? Are you still installing Facebook Home on April 12th?
