Facebook is one of the earliest online social networks, founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with his co students at Harvard University. It grows so big now that reported 30% of internet users use Facebook at least once a day.
In 2009, Facebook launched the so-called Facebook Touch after smartphones became popular in 2007. It is an alternative version to the normal Facebook app with different easy to navigate layout and interface, less cluttered design and uses less data and storage.
So what exactly is Facebook Touch? Should you use, what is the difference, how to access it, what are the features? Read more for all the answers below.
Why Facebook Touch?
Because it is a simplified version of a mobile Facebook app offering much faster user experience especially for old devices, feature phones or alternative touch screen devices such as Linux or Windows touch screen laptops.
And some people with modern Android or iOS devices prefer this stripped-down version because it is simple & uses less system resources compared to the full version mobile Facebook app with all added unnecessary features most people don’t even use.
How to access it?
It is very simple, no app to download and software to install – simply go to any browser and type in touch.facebook.com and you’ll be all set.
For easy access, you can just add the link as a bookmark or add it to your favorite site. Obviously you’ll need your Facebook username and password and click save when prompted to save the password.
Pros and Cons of Facebook Touch
You might wonder why I would use this ‘old’ Facebook instead of the full featured modern mobile Facebook app. Well, here are a few advantages and disadvantages of Facebook Touch, read through below and you can decide which one suits you better.
User Friendly
Facebook Touch is user friendly because it has a less cluttered design that users will find easy to navigate. You will remember the old days of Facebook which were simply for connecting with your friends and families.
Faster and Lighter
As a browser based application and its light version, Facebook Touch loads pages and images faster because it is much lighter compared to full featured Facebook. There is no issue loading high resolution images and videos as well. This is definitely a plus for users who have slow internet connection.
Save Battery and Storage
Facebook Touch generally consumes less power because it is light and doesn’t require much system resources. And it runs on any browser, it consumes much less storage of your device. So it’s win-win for people who have devices that keep running out of space and batteries.
Less problems
Because there is no app to install thus no ongoing app update, this creates easy maintenance and user friendly access for most people. And for people who use multiple devices, there is no need to have multiple installations of the app, simply login via a browser.
Full screen mode
The touch version of Facebook covers the whole screen, it has the full screen mode that is capable of displaying high quality images and videos.
So what about the drawbacks of Facebook Touch, here are a few of them:
- It is considered an outdated version of Facebook with less features although some people that way
- Generally less secure because it lacks of SSL encryption feature
- It was not designed for high resolution larger display thus it’s compatible only for small screen devices
- Many users reported at times the performance since to be laggy
- There is no filtering for adult content, violence or any other safety related features
What is the alternative
With all the pros and cons mentioned above, if you have Android and iOS modern devices but would like the simplicity and light version of Facebook then Facebook Lite is probably a better option.
It is a stripped-down version of the standard Facebook app with less features, however it is fast for low-end devices and users with slow internet connections.
You can download the Facebook Lite app from both the Apple App store here and Google Play here.
Who should use Facebook Touch
Back in 2009 when Facebook released Facebook Touch, most people will be happy to use it; however with most people using smartphones, the touch version has become less useful for most users.
Here are few exemption of typical users that will be benefit of using the Touch version:
- Non Android or iOS devices users such as Windows Phone or Ubuntu
- Users of features phone, the classic old generation mobile phones
- Any smartphone users who do not have enough storage to install the app
Conclusion
Facebook Touch is a great alternative for people who want to access Facebook via web browser because of limitations on their mobile devices or simply want a lighter and faster version of accessing Facebook. However, worth noting that for most people, Facebook Lite app probably is a better alternative.