Facebook Home

Facebook Home is neither a mobile operating system nor a traditional app.

THEN WHAT IS IT?
Home is the new "mobile experience" from Facebook, which is less an app than a skin for your Android phone. It displays photos, messages and updates from your friends on your lock and home screens, so you can instantly see who's doing and saying what, without needing to launch apps or even touch your device. It's supposedly designed to put people rather than applications at the heart of your phone.

HOW EXACTLY DOES IT DO THAT?
Partly through a feature called Chat Heads, which brings profile pictures of your friends to non-Facebook activities. For example, if you're watching a video, playing a game or browsing the web, and someone sends you a message, their face will pop up in a small bubble at the side of the screen. You can tap this to talk to them or drag the bubble off the screen to discard the message.

SOUNDS ANNOYING. CAN YOU TURN IT OFF?
Yes. In fact, you don't need to have Chat Heads in Home at all; it will only work if you also have Facebook Messenger installed on your phone. Chat Heads has also just been added to the new OS version of the Facebook app (http://bit.ly/16g80Tj), although your friends' photos will only appear within the app, rather than elsewhere on your phone.

WHAT OTHER FEATURES DOES HOME HAVE?
Not that many, to be honest. There's the Cover Feed feature, which shows posts from your News Feed and lets you comment on them. You'll also see notifications on your home screen, which remain there until you have time to read them. And there's an App Launcher, which lets you open your favourite phone apps as well as Facebook tools such as Check-In from the same spot. But you'll need to have the main Facebook app installed to make the most of Home, otherwise it's just wallpaper.

HOW DO I GET HOME?
You can download Facebook Home for free from Google Play. However, it's currently only compatible with a handful of Android handsets, including the HTC One and One X. Samsung Galaxy 53 and 54, and the Samsung Galaxy Note 2. Facebook Home comes pre-installed on the HTC First (the so-called 'Facebook Phone'), which will be launched in the UK this summer on EE. Support for more devices will be added in the next few months.

WILL IT WORK ON ANDROID TABLETS? 
Not at the moment, although Facebook may bring Home to tablets in the near future. According to Mike Schroepfer, the CTO (Chief Technology Officer) at Facebook. Home has been tested on tablets, but "we think we may have to make some adjustments to make it work".

DOES HOME HAVE ADVERTS?
Not yet. but it seems highly likely that adverts will appear on Home in the future as Facebook finds ways to capitalise on mobile advertising. Schroepfer said that: "We're looking at all different formats for ads. Video is a very interesting way to build an emotional reaction".

IS IT ACTUALLY ANY GOOD? 
Reviews have been mixed so far. 11 especially on Home's Google Play page. where it currently has a rating of only 2.2 (out of 5). Some users have complained that Home makes it more difficult to launch your other apps and effectively grants Facebook access to them. And for every "excellent" and "has potential" positive comment, there are four negatives that say "pointless" and "needs work".