For the third time in as many years, reports of a Facebook smartphone have surfaced, and this time they are accompanied by quotes from engineers who are said to be working on the device. The New York Times reported Sunday that the newly public Facebook (FB) has hired more than half a dozen engineers who worked on Apple’s i-devices and has put them to work building hardware to feature the Facebook application.
With more than half its 900 million users accessing Facebook from mobile devices, the company’s future is clearly tied to mobile. Archrival Google (GOOG) is in the smartphone business now, having closed its purchase of Motorola Mobility last week. Google wanted Motorola’s patents and hardware expertise to protect and expand the reach of its Android operating system, the choice of roughly 60% of new smartphone buyers in the first quarter. But despite its success, Android still faces clear competition from Apple’s iOS and Microsoft’s Windows Phone, while Facebook’s competitive landscape is less clearcut. One thing that is clear: unlike Android, Facebook is easy for consumers to download, if it is not already pre-installed on their devices. So Facebook does not need to make the products in order to be part of them.
For Facebook, the more pertinent question may be what additional features would attract consumers to a Facebook-branded smartphone? And of course that’s where the former Apple engineers come in. But even if Facebook does come up with something compelling in the smartphone space, the company will still have to spec it, source the parts and partner with a manufacturer and carrier(s). So if there is a Facebook phone in the works it will probably be a while before its status is updated to ready.
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