Los Angeles — For the Facebook enthusiasts, BlackBerry-maker (RIM) has just rolled out the first beta release for the next major version 2.0 of Facebook for BlackBerry, which is bundled with a refreshed user interface and incorporates a host of new features, including deeper Facebook Chat integration.
The social media Facebook app group at RIM has been cooperating for long to incorporate feedback from users to make version 2.0 the biggest update to the Facebook app since the version 1.0 release more than three years ago.
The group at RIM has also put a lot of effort into improving the News Feed and how users can interact with it. The new Facebook Chat feature combines both the app and the unified mailbox, which you can access from the Facebook application or launch from within your BlackBerry contact list. You will also get notified of new Facebook chat messages in your message list.
Summarizing the app, RIM states: “Facebook for BlackBerry smartphones is the only Facebook app where you can link to a profile that appears in a friend’s relationship status.” I’m not even sure what that means, but there you have it … you sick people.
Perhaps the biggest makeover is the overall look and feel of the Facebook for BlackBerry 2.0’s app. Instead, the upper part of Facebook for BlackBerry 2.0 displays a new notification bar that summarizes your Facebook account and activities, like wall posts, messages, and friend requests.
The navigation control panel now resembles that what you see on iOS and Android. A drop-down navigation bar has now also replaced the static bar in the old app. Moreover, some other smaller, but equally essential additions incorporates something as simple as scrolling the news feed and commenting with a single click or tap on the screen.
Additionally, RIM has also designed an intelligent new way to get to all your menu items, in the form of a navigation grid of icons overlaid on the screen to help you move around (pictured above). This menu used to appear in previous versions as a strip of menu icons at the top of the app.
This is in addition to the device notification bar that you can use to see other alerts pertaining to your BlackBerry, like BBM messages and device alarms. For as long as your status is set to “online,” friends can send you notifications even if you are not using the app. The action fits right into the natural social media Facebook flow. BlackBerry claims this will make it easier to add new features in the future.
The additions are definitely welcome in the long time in coming. Even better, within Facebook for BlackBerry 2.0, posts can be distributed or liked from the feed and users can also publish their own photos and status updates or check into a Facebook Place directly from the News Feed. Also, users can still get alerted about new BlackBerry Messenger messages or see when a new e-mail hits the inbox.
Overall, the latest Facebook for BlackBerry looks impressive. It is clearly a major upgrade that helps bridge the gap between the BlackBerry client and those on other mobile platforms. If you are tempted to check out the new beta, head over to the BlackBerry Beta Zone. There are a limited number of spots available, so be sure to check it out.
Nevertheless, the initial beta release is only available to BlackBerry 6 users, although support for BlackBerry Device Software 4.6 and higher will be added in subsequent beta releases and will be available in the official version.