Critical.
Authoritative.
Strategic.
Subscribe to CIO Magazine »

Facebook reportedly readying iPad app ... finally

Social network's first dedicated app for Apple's iPad will arrive more than a year after the tablet was unveiled

The Internet is abuzz with reports that Facebook will finally come out with a dedicated iPad app.

According to a report in the New York Times that cites unnamed sources, the world's largest social network is preparing to release a free app that's optimized for Apple's iPad tablet.

The app is said to enable users to shoot and upload photos and videos to Facebook directly from the iPad's built-in cameras. According to the blog posted on the newspaper's Web site last night, the app has "been in production" for about a year, and is now going through "the final stages of testing."

Unveiling the app a year after the release of the iPad has raised questions among analysts. Foremost among them: Why has it taken Facebook so long?

Zeus Kerravala, an analyst with Yankee Group, said the reason for the delay in offering a stong iPad app is unclear.

"It could be a 'there aren't any other [iPad app] options so why bother' attitude," he added. "Facebook has had an app that could run on the iPad but it's lame. It wasn't developed for the iPad -- it's an iPhone app running on the iPad. There is nothing iPad-unique about it."

Kerravala said the iPhone app doesn't take advantage of the larger size of the iPad's screen or its ease of use.

"I'm hoping the new app gives the ability to create a customized look and feel," he noted. "I'd like to see the screen used more smartly so you have the ability to do more on the same screen."

In a email to Computerworld, a Facebook spokesman said the company has "great relationship with Apple," and noted that the two companies worked together "to develop the very popular Facebook for iPhone application. With regards to a Facebook application for iPad, we have nothing to announce at this time, and don't comment on the development of future products."

Sharon Gaudin covers the Internet and Web 2.0, emerging technologies, and desktop and laptop chips for Computerworld. Follow Sharon on Twitter at @sgaudin , or subscribe to Sharon's RSS feed . Her e-mail address is sgaudin@computerworld.com .

Read more about mobile and wireless in Computerworld's Mobile and Wireless Topic Center.

Join the CIO Australia group on LinkedIn. The group is open to CIOs, IT Directors, COOs, CTOs and senior IT managers.

More about: Apple, etwork, Facebook, Topic, Yankee Group
References show all

Comments

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
Users posting comments agree to the CIO comments policy.
Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.
Related Coverage
Related Whitepapers
Latest Stories
Community Comments
Tags: Apple, Facebook, mobile, Mobile and Wireless, Mobile Apps and Services, Telecommunication, Web 2.0 and Web Apps, Yankee Group
Latest Blog Posts
Whitepapers
  • HP Managed Print Services solutioning methodology
    Many organisations launch initiatives to increase the efficiency of their imaging and printing environment—only to quickly find that maintaining those improvements is the real challenge. Sustainable, long-term efficiency gains require that imaging and printing be approached as part of your organisation’s overall IT strategy. Read more.
    Learn more »
  • Unified Monitoring™ A Business Perspective
    The enterprise computing landscape has changed dramatically. Virtualisation, outsourcing, SaaS, and cloud computing are creating fundamental changes, and ushering in an era in which enterprises distribute increasingly critical IT assets and applications across multiple service providers.This paper explores today’s computing trends and their monitoring implications in detail. In addition, it reveals how a new monitoring paradigm architecture, that uniquely addresses the monitoring realities of today’s and tomorrow’s enterprises—whether they rely on internal platforms, external service providers, or a combination of both.
    Learn more »
  • Optimizing Data Quality in the Enterprise - How to Tackle Your Bad Information
    Data quality – the measure of data accuracy, completeness, and consistency across a business – has become the core focus of information management efforts among many of today’s organizations. Problems with data quality continue to plague corporations of all types and sizes. In this paper, we will discuss some techniques companies can implement to enhance data quality across the entire enterprise. We will also highlight data quality management solutions, which provide businesses with the ability to effectively and economically enhance the correctness, completeness, and consistency of information in each and every system within their technology infrastructure.
    Learn more »
All whitepapers
rhs_login_lockGet exclusive access to Invitation only events CIO, reports & analysis.
Recent comments