Facebook is rolling out a new feature that personalises the navigation bar shortcuts of users depending on what features they use the most on its mobile app.
Have you noticed something different on your navigation bar in the Facebook mobile app? A new icon perhaps? Or two? Up until now – and depending on your build of the app – you probably saw a combination of News Feed, Friends, Marketplace, and two or three others. Now, Facebook is rolling out a change that personalises part of the navigation bar depending on the features you use the most on the app. i.e. News Feed, Friends, Marketplace, Groups, Watch, Notifications, etc.
Some always remain the same, while the others will change depending on usage.
In case you’re wondering, the navigation bar appears at the top of your Facebook app on Android, and at the bottom on iOS. It’s your main way to switch between main features that can also be found through the “burger menu” on the right.
The new feature was spotted in July and now many users are reporting it (and other changes like icon colours, look and feel, number of shortcuts, etc) which means that Facebook is rolling out more widely. It is obvious as that Facebook is testing various iterations of the feature as it rolls out.
Historically, Facebook has used its navigation bar to push new features on its app. For example, Marketplace was made a prominent shortcut when Facebook wanted more people to use it. The latest change makes the navigation bar more of what it should be: A useful way for users to navigate the Facebook app, which has become rather crowded with new features lately.
A Facebook spokesperson commented,
“We want the shortcuts available in the navigation bar to reflect how an individual uses Facebook. To that end, we’re customizing mobile shortcuts so everyone can more easily connect with their most frequently used products, such as profile, Marketplace, groups, Watch and friend requests.”
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