Facebook phone

The latest rumor that such a smartphone may be on the drawing boards comes from All Things Digital. The process is in the early stages, and it's unclear whether the phone would ever advance past that stage. If Facebook is smart, it'll put this project down as quickly as possible.



A Facebook phone may sound like a great idea, but consumers are accustomed to devices that can handle multiple tasks, access any service, and tap into all social networks--which may not fall in line with the company's agenda. The core dilemma for such a phone is that few people actually use Facebook enough to justify buying a device solely focused on one social network.

I'll admit that I'm an avid Facebook user. I spend a nice chunk of the day on Facebook in the office (maybe too much, if you ask my boss). I don't even spend a lot of time on social games, which I know suck up a massive amount of time.

But when I'm on the go, I barely look at Facebook. I'll occasionally pop open the app, if there's an interesting update from a friend, update my own status, or upload a funny photo. I assume that there are a lot of people like me: Facebook campers at work or at home, but casual users when it comes to their mobile devices. Those aren't the kind of people who would buy a Facebook-centric device.