There"s more chatter on the Internet today about a possible Facebook smartphone project in the works. The New York Times reports via unnamed sources that the company has hired a number of hardware and software engineers from Apple to work on the smartphone, including some who have worked on the iPhone and one that has worked on the iPad.
The article adds that Facebook has been trying to keep this project a secret. Instead of listing open positions for the smartphone team on its website, the company is reportedly making personal door-to-door offers to join the project. The phone could become a reality sometime in 2013.
The article quotes one of its unnamed sources as saying Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg really wants to get into the smartphone hardware business. The source adds that if the company doesn"t make this move Zuckerberg fears " ... Facebook will simply become an app on other mobile platforms."
This is not the first time we have heard rumors about such a project. In November, it was reported that Facebook was working with HTC on a Facebook phone, code named "Buffy". Facebook has also been releasing stand alone apps for its service, including Facebook Messenger and most recently a Facebook Camera app. A new rumor hit the Internet this week that claimed Facebook could acquire the Opera web browser company.
Source: New York Times