It’s widely believed that Facebook will announce a new Android phone UI, called Home, along with accompanying HTC hardware tomorrow. I know, we’re all thinking “ugh, Facebook phone”, but everything we’ve heard so far is really exciting. 9To5Google claims to have some shots of the new UI, and, if they’re real, it’s going to be one of the most beautiful Android user interfaces to date.
From what we can tell based on these three images, the Facebook UI might address one of the biggest problems with Android skins: they get in your way. This is the kind of clean and beautiful we’ve been waiting for all along.
The design appears to be ultra-minimal — even the Facebook integration across the top doesn’t appear at all invasive. They’re smartly placed so that if you want to check in somewhere or update your status, you go to the top. It’s not in the lower half of the phone where these buttons could be a nuisance.
It’s hard to say for sure, but the new UI appears to have a refreshing focus on large photography — much like Facebook’s beautiful redesign of news feed. From a mobile point of view this makes a lot of sense. Think about how much time you spend looking at and taking photos. [9to5Google]