Facebook updates iOS app with quick chat tab, multiple photo sharing [updated]

Facebook has just updated its iOS app with a couple new features that make it easier to chat with your friends and share multiple photos. You can now swipe left anywhere in the app in order to see who’s available versus hitting the icon in the upper left to bring up the slide-out interface to hit Chat. Even more importantly, the program finally lets you share multiple photos at once and add friends you message most to the top of your Favorites.

UPDATE: As noted by many of our readers in the comment section, there seems to be a problem with this Facebook update. We recommend you stay away from it until Facebook can figure out what the problem is…

When sending messages, the program also indicates who’s online. Finally, you can gift real gifts to your Facebook friends, though this feature is U.S.-only.

Here’s multiple photo sharing.


Image via MacStories

These features bring the Facebook client on par with the company’s Messenger and Camera apps.

From iTunes release notes:

• swipe left anywhere in the app to quickly see who’s available and send a message
• add friends you message most to the top of your Favorites
• share multiple photos fast
• give real gifts to your friends using Facebook Gifts (US-only)
• when sending messages, see who’s active so you and your friends know how soon to expect a reply

As always, Facebook is a free download which natively supports current iOS device form factors.

In other news, Facebook-owned Instagram this morning finally rolled out long-awaited profiles on the web.

Looks like a solid upgrade, no?

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