Facebook Lite For Android Uses Less Data, Works Across All Network Condition But Doesn't Offer Data-Intensive Features Like Videos!

In a bid to make its service more accessible to users in emerging markets, Facebook rolled out a stripped-down Android version of its main Facebook app on Thursday, June 4.

The popular social networking service, Facebook took the wraps off Facebook Lite on Thursday, June 4, a new slimmed-down version of Facebook for Android.

The Android version of the main Facebook app uses less data and works despite of network conditions. The app is built especially for parts of the world where accessing Internet is not as easy as it is for the rest of the world.

Vijay Shankar, product manager for Facebook Lite, announced the launch in a Newsroom post further noting that, "In many areas, networks can be slow and not able to support all the functionality found in Facebook for Android. Facebook Lite was built for these situations, giving people a reliable Facebook experience when bandwidth is at a minimum."

Facebook began testing Facebook Lite version back in January. The bare-bone, low-resolution version was designed keeping in mind those on slow 2G networks in emerging markets. The app is finally ready for primetime and will roll out in Asia and later come to parts of Europe, Africa, and Latin America in the coming weeks, Tech Crunch noted.

"Facebook Lite is less than 1MB so it is fast to install and quick to load. It includes Facebook's core experiences like News Feed, status updates, photos, notifications and more," Shankar explained.

In addition, Facebook Lite does not boast data-intensive features such as videos or Nearby Friends. It also features lower-resolution image thumbnails.

That being said, Facebook users can access the service quickly, smoothly and without burning a hole in their pockets from the most remote corners of the world with Facebook Lite.

Check out the video demo of Facebook Lite below: