New Facebook-Branded Android Coming?

Earthquake Retrofit writes "The Register reports that 'Facebook has sent out invitations to an event at its Menlo Park headquarters next week that many believe will see the launch of a new, Facebook-branded smartphone...' I have lately become disillusioned with Google having so much power over my phone and the usual privacy concerns, so this announcement means I now have a choice. Oh, wait..."

So,

[Georules]

who actually wants this?

The worst thing

[bobstreo]

It will probably be one of the only qwerty keyboarded android phones available.

And the usual privacy concerns?

[Anonymous Coward]

Hilarious, a lot of the creepy Google privacy concerns are there because they've seen how far Facebook pushes the envelope and think they can too.

I'm under no doubt Facebooks phone will be sending constant tracking data to Facebook and they'll sell that data to anyone who wants it for any reason, and simply bury some button down in the privacy settings that defaults to consent.

TWEENS!!

[Bananatree3]

Seriously though, any young teen who's already Facebook obsessed probably wouldn't think twice....not like some graybeard's privacy concerns matter (until they're that age, sigh..)

Re:TWEENS!!

[hedwards]

I'm sure that MS thought the same thing about the Kin when they tried that. Didn't work out so well, I'd be surprised if a FB themed item did very well.

Re:Google should be concerned...

[fermion]

It is said that people are buying samsung phones, not google phones, so if Facebook can talk the android stack, take out the google assets, and put facebook tracking, then yes google will have competition and something to worry about. Facebook is at a disadvantage because it does not have a mobile profile. Google is at an advantage because millions of users are paying it to track and collect personal data that it can then sell. Millions of users are learning that the web is not google, as it so clearly was 5 years ago, but Facebook. And if you think that fortunes cannot change quickly, just look at AOL. At one time a dominant force, but it fell quickly.

The only thing that google has, frankly, is the best mapping service on the planet. This is the only thing that keeps a smart phone from going google free.

Re:So,

[symbolset]

Microsoft has a significant investment in Facebook. It's kind of like Netflix avoiding Android right up until they just couldn't anymore - and then Netflix founder and CEO Reed Hastings leaving Microsoft's board of directors shortly thereafter to "focus on his own company's needs".

Re:TWEENS!!

[Johann Lau]

That's the the point, you mindless parent, read statistics, not "the news". The news don't give you a reasonable overview over what to worry about, they mostly hype random stuff while distracting you from things that actually matter. That you're a parent doesn't entitle you to be stupid, it's actually the other way around.

You'd rather hand over ALL children to the predators that is marketing, just so you know where the kidnapping of a select few (in comparison) took place? Let's just throw the kids to the lions, on the off chance they might be kidnapped, because journalism can't be arsed to inform citizens on the stuff they need to keep their democracy intact and movies are so scary. That's nuts to me. It's not like it can prevent anything, or will magically make them easily retrievable, you know, it just might help a bit after the fact.