On Thursday, Facebook has finally rolled out the “lite” version of its Messenger app in India. Called Messenger Lite, the free app is now available for Android smartphone users in the country which can be downloaded from the Google Play Store.
Social media apps have become an important part of our lives. They have plenty to offer to us but with every new feature, the apps become heavier and more resource intensive. And a significant number of users in India are still experiencing slow Internet speeds and owns entry-level mobile devices that are far from being perfectly suited for running those demanding apps. So, this has led social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter to come up with a lighter version of their apps, which not only have a smaller footprint but also run better on basic devices.
“Messenger Lite” is a lightweight, fast and simpler version that offers the core features of the app for markets with slower than average internet speeds and a prevalence of basic Android smartphones, the company said in a statement.
With a size just under 10MB, Messenger Lite offers the same basic functions as Messenger, enabling users to send and receive texts, photos, links, emojis, and stickers. The more resource-intensive features such as video streaming, games and video calling have been left out completely in the Lite version. Users will have to go to the original app to access them. Though you miss out on some of the key features, the fact that the app loads a lot faster than the original on slower networks makes it great.
If you have the Facebook app on your smartphone, you can log in to the Messenger Lite directly without having to enter the password or username separately. And the app loads a lot faster than the original on slower networks.
The Lite version for the Facebook app has been available to Indian users for a while. Now, the company has finally brought the Messenger Lite app to India, months after its launch in countries such as Germany, Japan, Netherlands, Nigeria, Peru, Turkey, and the Vietnam.
India has also become the biggest market for Facebook with a total 241 million active users monthly, compared to 240 million in the US.
A report prepared by HootSuite and WeAreSocial for advertisers, noted that Brazil is the third biggest market for Facebook with 139 million active users monthly, followed by Indonesia with 126 million; Mexico with 86 million; the Philippines with 69 million; Vietnam with 64 million; Thailand with 57 million; Turkey with 56 million and the UK with 44 million active subscribers.
