More than a year and a half after the launch of Apple’s original iPad, the official Facebook application explicitly designed for the device was released, according to an Oct. 10 CNN article.

So far, students at Syracuse University have expressed positive thoughts about the app.

In a Facebook blog post published Oct. 10, Leon Dubinsky, Facebook software engineer, touted some of the features of the app, including improved navigation and the ability to display photos larger.

‘The app comes with a bunch of other new features: You can chat with friends right from your iPad, for example, or play games and use apps in full-screen mode,’ Dubinsky said in the post. ‘You can also watch high-res videos online, record HD video and stream to Airplay devices.’

The reason for the delay is unclear, but it has been speculated that it was due to conflicts between Apple and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, according to the CNN article. Jeff Verkoeyen, former Facebook engineer, said development for the app was finished as far back as May, in a blog post that has since been removed, according to the article.

In July, technology website TechCrunch discovered the code for the iPad app was embedded inside the iPhone version. The app could be executed with a jailbroken iPad, according to the article.

Andrew Benerofe, a freshman information technology major, was pleased with the Facebook app’s release. He noted how the app contained a native messaging client and said it was easier to navigate than the mobile version of the website.

‘I think it’s much faster than using it in the browser,’ he said.

Ashley Nieves, a sophomore biology major, said she felt as though the app was very similar to the one on her iPhone.

However, Nieves was able to notice several differences after looking at the two open side by side. She also said that its performance was superior to that of the unofficial application, MyPad, which she previously used.

‘When you go to the newsfeed, you have your chat, so that’s cool,’ she said.Other students were not aware that an official client had been released, such as Lawrence Tsui, a junior finance and accounting major.

‘I didn’t know they even had that,’ he said. ‘I’m glad they finally made it, though.’

Tsui had been using Friendly, one of many third-party applications, to access Facebook before the app was released. This solution was satisfactory at first, but after a major update to the Facebook interface, he was not able to log in for more than half a month on the iPad, he said.

After downloading the official app, he was able to notice a difference immediately. The app was easier to read, organized better and slicker, he said.

Said Tsui: ‘It responds quicker, and it looks much nicer.’

dmsegelb@syr.edu

Published on October 15, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Dylan: dmsegelb@syr.edu | @dylan_segelbaum