Facebook for iOS has received a major update today, bringing the promised redesign to both the iPhone and the iPad, along with a major feature from Facebook Home, Chat Heads. The redesigned news feed emulates the new look of Facebook on the web, with content becoming more prominent and sporting an overall cleaner look.
Chat heads, one of the major features shown off in Facebook Home, has also come to iOS, allowing users to chat anywhere within the app. Unfortunately, the feature is not available for all users, and Facebook will be rolling out chat heads to everyone over the next few weeks. Facebook has also added stickers for use in chat, but these, like chat heads, will be rolling out to everyone over time. These features work on both the iPhone and iPad versions of the app.
The update is available now on the App Store. We don't have Chat Heads yet, but let us know if you do, and what you think of them!
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Facebook for iOS updated with news feed redesign, brings Chat Heads to limited number of users
I noticed chat heads last night. I like this feature, it's cool to be able chat from anywhere. Also the news feed options are nice. Great update IMO.
I got chat heads! (Los Angeles)
Love them!!!!
I updated and had chat heads work on my iPhone and iPad and the very next day it was gone. Tried uninstalling and reinstalling the app for both but chat heads did not come on. But stickers are working though... Dunno why it came on and then just disappeared on its own...any idea? I am from India ...
anyone know of anyway of disabling chat heads (not just swipping them off the bottom of the screen) because I have zero interest in them. If I'm on my phone I use messenger, rarely am I in the FB app. I use the FB app on my iPad but again mainly for messaging (I'm not a big FB user but it's the easiest way to keep in contact with people atm) but I'm going to continue to do it the traditional way ... So yeah, any idea how to disable them?
I would love to know how to disable them too, especially because they are redundant to the existing chat window on the iPad. They just get in the way and are annoying, especially when I start a chat/message with someone on my macbook, and they are automatically showing up on my iPhone/iPad when I start up Facebook. Needless to say, I'm looking for the same answer as quinn_drummer.
Got on mine today :) (I'm in the Philippines)
And good thing you can have more options to share posts (via a group or a friend)
I got it today, and it is ok, dont really care for the stickers, it is like the emoticons that is already on my phone and makes not that much of a difference, but the chat heads is ok, but i should be able to delete my chat heads messages if i press on it or something
I have it and I like it!!!
got them on both our phones
just reset your phone after download
Any way to set "Most Recent" as the default option. Mine keeps reverting back.
i have chat heads, also my friends have it to.
more mobile newss check www.inewss.com
no chatheads yet on my 5
I updated my girlfriend's 4 and over 12 hours and still no newsfeed just the spinning wheel...she's about ready to kill me....
anybody else experiencing this problem??
I'm enjoying the update. Chat heads is useful. Really enjoying it.
I wish they would fix the damn issue with notifications before adding new crap to the already failing app. :(
Why is it so buggy on iPhone 4
Well, it looks nice and better than the other one
Got the chat heads (in the US). They look great. All I have really used on my iPhone lately is fb messenger but this update may pull me back to the full app. Surprisingly, I do think I would like them if they were persistent which will probably never happen
I deleted messenger after using Chat Heads. It would seem Facebook WANTS us to return to their main app. But then I remembered why I never messages from the main app: Its push notifications rarely work...
Now that Chat Heads makes messages a breeze on the Facebook app, will the Messenger app still be getting updated?
What is the point of the Messenger app now (besides the fact that is seems to get push notifications more reliably)?
Did the app icon also change a little as well? Looks different( the f anyways) than before.
Would be great to have Facebook chat integrated with iMessage. Probably could communicate with others.
I don't really messenger a lot but chat heads is a welcome feature (I'm from India). The UI changes in the app have certainly made it better and quite smooth as compared to the previous versions.
Um okay, so how would I actually know if ChatHeads and/or Stickers are active on my iPhone…?! Do I have to start a chat with someone or would it show up as an additional feature or what…?!
So the Stickers suddenly showed up today but no ChatHeads…!? Weird…
Anyway, I guess it's just a matter of time then…
Got it, seems ok but not a massive difference to the old iPad app where open chats appeared at the top right in landscape anyway?
Better than nothing I guess, kinda glad it's confined to the app so I'm not getting spammed every 5 seconds
I have the Chat Heads. It's kinda neat.
Chat Heads here in Portugal! :)
Re-installed the app and still no chatheads :(
No one is worried that with this app and the use of chat heads all your SMS messages are going through Facebook servers. This company has a horrible reputation when it comes to personal privacy and is more that happy to sell your info to 3rd parties for add targeting. Their are a lot of trusting people I guess. I hope Facebook doesn't burn everyone with this.
This only effects Facebook messages.
I have chat heads but missing stickers anyone else !??
same here no stickers yet
Stickers?
Chat Heads in New Jersey. I had to delete and re install 6.0 to get it though.
I don't use facebook chat/IM at all. So...I won't know. I just use the messages (inbox) and the feed stuff.
Chat Heads on my iPhone, Virginia.
Who's got two thumbs AND Chat Heads??? .....This guy in Florida, USA!
And, I'll have to admit.... it's actually pretty cool. Can we call this a FaceBook Home for iOS?
....Also- Got Chat Heads on my iPhone, iPad and MacBook Air.
I'm not much of a Facebook messenger user or even Facebook in general but chatheads seems pretty interesting but not as nice as in Android. It's an improvement for Facebook in ios but also seems half baked due to the restrictions placed on it. I like how they implemented it in Android especially with the tie in to the SMS app and not having to leave your app to have a conversation. It's something we won't get to experience in ios land.
Maybe Facebook chat integration in iMessage will happen. Who knows what Apple will do with Facebook integration in iOS 7.
That's true. I could see them allowing some extra privileges for Facebook only as a way of keeping the experience comparable to Android. I could also see them saying we don't want chatheads all over our OS which is probably more likely. I do think opening up the sandboxing of apps a little bit would be a good move. There has to be some middle ground there since by its very nature makes the OS more productive for the user.
I just used the chat heads thing. I think the real problem is that the iPhone's screen is too small for this kind of thing.
Anyone know how to change the news feed to most recent on this new app update?
Tap settings wheel on right side of news feed
It's not there on this newest update
Oh sorry your right, it is on ipad but not on iphone
Dead center where it shows news feed, friends etc, hit the very small downward facing arrow and it brings up more feed selection options. Newest is there.
Oh crap your right! How did I miss that smh
Pull to refresh. Then an option appears that says "News Feed" with arrows on the side. Click the arrows and then choose the Most Recent option
At the very top of the news feed now you can click that bar that says "News Feed" in bold and sort options are there now.
When you click on News Feed on the top, you scroll down and select Most Recent.
Updated right after it was announced but no Chat Heads yet or updated News Feed on desktop. Come on Facebook...
Remove the app and reinstall it, and you will get ChatHeads
It worked. Thanks!
It's decent.
Since this update now when i tap top of page on my ipad mini it won't shoot back to top of page, but still works on my ip5
I have chat heads on (Uruguay here). They look nice and seem useful. It was kind of annoying chatting with several people in the app (standard app, I don't use Facebook Messenger app). Actually chat heads was the only feature I liked about Facebook Home, I hope they don't turn iOS app into a Facebook Home app that shows a stream of "stories" instead of the current interface, specially since they'll most probably add ads to Home.
Everything is working ok on my iPhone (chat heads, no stickers) ...But I seem to have lost chat on my iPad? There's no button on the top right any more? Please any confirmation of loosing the slide to left to chat option on the iPad version?
I don't understand this chat heads thing....but I do like the news feed sort options being right in the news feed now always at the top instead of on the side bar.
Agreed
I was just messaging some people and the chat heads thing came up. It seems...in the way. But the app is still horrendously spotty on push notifications.
I got Chat Heads :) (I'm from India) and they are nice.....I'm waiting for the new news feed on desktop but i didnt get that yet :(
Feel your pain, dude. Still waiting for the web refresh. Shouldn't be too much longer though.
Hope it wont be much longer and also Facebook team need to make messenger available for ipad right now it is only for iphones and ipods
I've got the Chat Heads.
Try to remove the app from the iphone and reinstall it all over again.
Worked for me
It's a buggy feature, the app just froze, had to kill it
Thanks !!!
Got chatheads.. (located in Canada)
pretty cool. don't use fb messenger really though.
Still waiting for this News Feed refresh on my Mac. Also, still wish Facebook Chat could be integrated into iMessage.
Not one mention in the article or comments about the fact that chatheads only working while in the app and how android allows it to pop up over any app. Chatheads on iOS is just a redesign of the messenger while on android it gives it a purpose. To be able to receive messages while using another app, get a brief clip of the message, respond or not and get right back to what you were doing without having to switch apps is the whole point. Not to mention on android you can also receive SMS messages through chatheads if you choose. iOS is too limited to allow things like this on their devices. When I read the article I thought to myself "How did they manage to get chatheads on iOS?" Then I read that it was only in the FB app and it made more sense.
Well, the article says within the app and nothing else, implying that it is only within the app.
Yeah but it is a little deceiving. It is not exactly what chatheads was fully supposed to be and the gimped aspect of it was practically not even noted. I was kind of looking forward to using this on my iPad until I found out that it is only in the app. I really don't mean to troll but it is a major difference between the android an iOS version and it wasn't really brought to light.
Well this is what you get within the walled apple garden.
So you can't chat on iOS? Android is limited because you can't send iMessages. See, I can do it too.