Facebook for Android update brings new features and a 'surprise' notification bar

Facebook today rolled out an update for its Android app. The app refresh is big in the way that it updates not just the standalone Facebook app, but also Facebook Home for devices that already have it installed.

This new update adds several new features to the Facebook app, including bringing those cute critter stickers for Messages. Rolled out earlier for Messenger apps for both iOS and Android as well as the Facebook app on iOS, these large versions of emoticons have made their way to the Android app as well.

New features for Android

The redesigned business pages aims to be far more prompt with essentials like phone numbers and directions. Check-ins and Like buttons are also far more accessible now, in the style of Yelp, Foursquare and Google Maps. Looks like these business pages are finally going to go beyond being just about updates and interesting pictures. Enabling mobile apps with these quick features is bound to help Facebook with drawing more attention to the business pages.

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The update brought along bug fixes and performance enhancements for phones that run Home as well. There is a bevy of updates lined up for Facebook Home in the upcoming months, including adding a Dash Bar buddy list for starting chats, an improved dock for all your favourite apps, as well as a better user experience onboarding flow.

Interestingly, we noticed another feature with the app update that hasn’t been detailed in the change log. Here at tech2, we found that a Samsung Galaxy S3 had been updated to have an ongoing notification bar in the pull-down drawer of the phone. We also updated a Nexus 4 and an HTC One at the same time, but failed to find such a bar. Weirdly enough, the bar had disappeared from the S3 soon too.

Have you noticed such a notification bar with your update? Let us know what you make of it in the comments sections below.