Facebook's Team of Former Apple Engineers Focused on Improving iOS App
Last month, The New York Times reported that Facebook has been working on a major overhaul of its iOS app, seeking to improve performance by transitioning from the current HTML5-based app to a native Objective-C one. At the time, Facebook was said to be releasing the app the following month.
Facebook's current iPhone app now follows up with a
more extensive report looking at Facebook's mobile efforts, which reportedly include work with HTC on a Facebook smartphone targeted for mid-2013. That effort has been previously disclosed, with the company reportedly having
hired former Apple engineers to drive the project.
Today's report indicates that this team of former Apple engineers has actually been focused primarily on the iOS app rebuild, although the company's timeline appears to be a bit longer than suggested last month.
This team from Apple has been primarily focused on rebuilding Facebook’s iPhone application, which has been criticized by users for being slow. An initial release could be announced within a couple of months, with another broader overhaul of the iPhone app coming next near, one person said.
Facebook's team of former Apple employees includes Mike Matas and Kimon Tsinteris, two iOS interface designers who left the company to start digital publishing company Push Pop Press, which Facebook acquired last year.
Former Apple staff hired by Facebook to work on mobile are: Greg Novick, who helped develop the touch-screen user interface; Tim Omernick and Chris Tremblay, who also worked on the device’s software; and Scott Goodson, who helped create the stock-market application, according to people with knowledge of the hires.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has acknowledged that transitioning to mobile devices is among the most difficult tasks for the company, given the differences in user experiences between mobile and desktop. While the company has embraced mobile with apps for iOS and Android, it is still seeking ways to improve the user experience on those devices and bring new features to those platforms.
Popular Stories
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 next month, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as well....
Apple's camera module supplier for the upcoming iPhone SE 4 is set to begin mass production of the components in December, according to a new report coming out of Korea.
Economic newspaper Ajunews reports that LG Innotek will supply the front camera module for the budget-friendly fourth-generation device. Final tests are now said to be underway, with mass production of the module following...
Wednesday November 13, 2024 11:01 am PST by
Juli CloverA trio of Apple customers this month filed a class action lawsuit against Apple, accusing the Cupertino company of violating California consumer protection laws and false advertising for continuing to sell AirPods Pro models that had ongoing issues with crackling or static sounds.
A few months after the AirPods Pro came out in October 2019, buyers began to complain about crackling, rattling, ...
Apple today released firmware updates for both AirPods 4 models (version number 7B20) and the AirPods Pro 2 with both Lightning and USB-C charging cases (version number 7B21). All of these AirPods models were previously on firmware version 7B19.
It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in firmware versions 7B20 and 7B21, but we will update this story if we find...
The M4 MacBook Pro models feature quantum dot display technology, according to display analyst Ross Young. Apple used a quantum dot film instead of a red KSF phosphor film, a change that provides more vibrant, accurate color results.
Young says that Apple has opted for KSF for prior MacBook Pro models because it doesn't use toxic element cadmium (typical for quantum dot) and is more...
Wednesday November 13, 2024 11:59 am PST by
Juli CloverApple last week replaced the M3 Max MacBook Pro with the new M4 Max MacBook Pro, and we picked up one of the new high-end MacBook Pro machines to see how it compares to the prior model with both benchmarks and real-world tests.
We tested an M4 Max with a 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, and 48GB RAM against an M3 Max MacBook Pro with similar specs. The two machines look similar, but the display on...
Apple today announced the launch of major updates for its Final Cut Pro video editing software designed for Macs and iPads. Final Cut Pro has been version 10 since 2011, but after 13 years, Apple is finally ready to debut Final Cut Pro 11.
Apple first teased a new version of Final Cut Pro when introducing the new M4 Macs in October, and now the updated software is available for download with ...
