Facebook phone may run on Linux and Opera

AFacebook phone is coming soon, as early as next year and there have been reports that it will run on Linux and Opera. Facebook did hire a couple of Apple engineers in order to design hardware and software and with the rumoured buying of Opera, it’s pretty easy to put two and two together to concoct up a new Facebook Phone. The XDA Developers site is laying its bets that the official Facebook handset will be running a Unix OS and will feature Opera’s mobile browser. Taking a look at Facebook’s current inroads in the technology genre, this could well be quite true. 

Facebook phone, coming soon?

The number of users accessing Facebook on their mobile phones and smartphones has surpassed those who access it on their computers. This trend, however, gained momentum only over the last couple of years, especially since smartphones featuring a dedicated Facebook app came into the picture. These allowed one to easily access the social networking site on-the-go with all the possible features neatly packed into what most would consider a user-friendly app. Facebook, has made a few attempts already to introduce a social networking-friendly handset in the past and tied up with a few companies, like HTC to develop and release "Facebook Phones". Devices like the Android-powered HTC Salsa and HTC ChaCha, didn't quite receive as much success as hoped and so it was back to the drawing board. The most recent attempt at cashing in on their mobile fame came in the form of the Vodafone Facebook Phone the Blue 555. The Java-based QWERTY device, although not a smartphone, integrated a great deal of the social network into a simple, yet chic looking handset. Unfortunately it seemed that its popularity too had passed. 

With this new project, Facebook is not publicizing this smartphone project and everything is being kept under wraps, instead of going ‘door-to-door to find the right talent.’ HTC might be on the list as well as the manufcaturers again, with the code name "Buffy" project. The news about project Buffy surfaced last year, when reports came in stating that Facebook was planning to launch a smartphone with social networking at its core and not merely a handset with a dedicated Facebook button, as found on the HTC ChaCha. Following the acquiring of Instagram, Facebook recently announced the Facebook Camera, which in retrospect appears to be the brand's attempt at paving the way for a heavily customized camera app for smartphones. (Via Tech2)

One thing is clear, Facebook isn’t stopping any time soon, something important is definitely cooking up behind those blue walls and in all probability it could be the next Facebook Phone.