Let’s face it, the standard Facebook app for Android is subpar. However, you needn’t worry because Fast For Facebook exists. Fast For Facebook is a Facebook client, and a very speedy one at that. There are tons of options to play with, and there are very few Facebook clients that reach the caliber that Fast For Facebook does.

WHAT IS IT AND WHAT DOES IT DO

Main Functionality

It’s no secret that the official Facebook app for Android is sometimes sluggish. Fast For Facebook however, is centered around being a decent and speedy replacement to the official app. Fast For Facebook has all of the bases covered, and even lets you access and manage your Facebook pages.

Pros

• Low battery consumption.
• Low data usage.
• Takes up remarkably small space on phone.
• Extremely responsive.
• Can send and share contents.
• Access to Facebook notifications.
• Private messages access.
• Facebook instant messenger ready.
• Access to Facebook groups and pages.
• Allows for searching of friends and Facebook pages.
• Able to view Facebook photo albums.
• Able to download single pictures from Facebook albums.
• Widget and quick links support.
• Optional security pin.
• Push notifications (by way of installing an add-on in the play store)
• Option to purchase an ad-free version.

Cons

• Free version had built-in ads.
• Client color can be customized but not fully.
• Layout customization could be better.
• Horrible photo zooming function.
• Links often do not open up in their respective apps (clicking a YouTube link sometimes does not open the YouTube app)
• Turns YouTube embeds into pictures that you can barely see.
• ‘Pull to refresh’ function is slow.

Discussion

I’m almost positive that 6 out of 10 Android users (that are also Facebook users) have at one time or another, been very annoyed with the official Facebook app and have wished there was an alternative. Fast For Facebook is a viable alternative. It is very intuitive, easy to comprehend, and has a somewhat familiar look to it that is reminiscent to that of the usual Facebook app.

I have to admit, I am a bit conflicted. On one hand, Fast For Facebook is blazing fast, has tons of features, has a low memory footprint and is very fluid. On the other hand it is hideous. Some might even go as far to say that it is atrocious. Everything is so white and bland. Sure, you’re allowed to customize it with a custom color or many of the presets, but the top bar is always white no matter what. When Fast For Facebook is customized it looks less polished than if you were to just stick with the default white.

With all the user interface gripes aside, I’m actually really impressed by Fast For Facebook. It’s something that after writing this review, have decided to use in place of the official Facebook app. Sure, most people that are looking for a faster Facebook app are generally on low powered phones, but even with my moderately powered device I feel that I would much rather use Fast For Facebook than the official app.

CONCLUSION AND DOWNLOAD LINK

To conclude this review, I have to say, you need to at least try this app out for all of your basic mobile Facebook needs before you dismiss it. It might not be the prettiest app on the block, but it sure gets the job done. In fact, it performs a lot faster than the very site its using for its own infrastructure. Fast For Facebook comes highly recommended from me, and trust me, I don’t just say that about every app.

Price: Free

Version reviewed: 1.9.8.4 Beta

Requires: Android 2.1 and up

Download size: 3.0MB

Fast For Facebook On Google Play