The Facebook Home HTC phone goes on sale Friday as the HTC First (for clever puns, see Google). The Facebook Home HTC phone is the first smartphone to come with Facebook Home preloaded, although the app/skin will be available for select Android devices, including the Samsung Galaxy S3 and HTC One.
The HTC First is currently being offered through AT&T for $99 and as far as specs go, the Facebook Home HTC phone can throw down with the best of them. Early reviews for the HTC First have compared the Facebook Home HTC phone to hardware powerhouses like the Samsung Galaxy S4.
The HTC First lacks the impressive 1080p HD screen of Samsung's new flagship Galaxy device, but it still boasts a respectable 720p on its 4.3-inch screen, which is larger than an iPhone 5. The HTC First sports a 5-megapixel rear camera and 1.6MP front-facing camera for teleconferencing and checking yourself out. The standard storage complement on the Facebook Home HTC phone is 16GB and it has a 1GB RAM allotment. The HTC First runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon dual-core processor with an Adreno 305 GPU.
According to PCWorld, AT&T plans to make the HTC First its flagship smartphone, with prominent in-store shelf space and big, impressive ad campaigns. While AT&T is surely in need of a new white-knight smart device, finding it in the Facebook Home HTC phone seems at best a dubious prospect.
The calculus is simple: what's the value proposition? The HTC First is essentially a midrange smartphone that comes with an overzealous Facebook app that takes over your entire device. Don't look for solace on your home screen — that's a Facebook feed now.
If you're really, super into Facebook, though, chances are you'll find merit in the Facebook First. And that's what Zuck and HTC are counting on.
Check out this unboxing video, courtesy of Phandroid, that shows a Facebook Home HTC phone taking its First baby steps. Sorry — we had to throw in at least one pun.
