Attention: The screenshots were taken from AndroidPIT.de and the developer holds all the rights.
It doesn't matter what you think about Facebook. The fact that so many people are registered on this website makes Facebook a central meeting point, allowing you to search for acquaintances and friends. Though a lot of naysayers figure that within the millions of users, half of the profiles belong to house pets, Facebook is a circle of friends in itself. A lot ''friends'', who are registered, think about getting rid of their Facebook profile or going by a fake name.
Just recently I was having problems with my Nexus 4 and had it quickly exchanged, thanks to the great service from Google. What had been confusing me at the time with my Nexus 4, then became very clear to me. I always thought that every smartphone had an integrated Facebook ''Sync'', like the smartphones from HTC. Using HTC Sense, you have the option of registering your Facebook Account, therefore synchronizing basic information like birthdays, profile pictures, as well as the last time someone had ''checked-in'' to FB on a smartphone. Unfortunately, Stock Android devices don't offer this possibility, which prompted me to find a suitable replacement. There are a lot of advantages, thanks to the freedom that Android offers. Many missing functions can easily be updated using a third-party application. This is also the case with functions, which require a ''jail-break'' with iOS. But let's not get started on that topic within our test review.
Contact Sync for Facebook offers these synchronization possibilities, which we've just discussed. The application itself is very plain and concentrates itself only on the most important aspects. In the foreground, you have the data synching. The range of functions are comprised of the modification and synching personalization. At this point in time, I'd like to point out my first critique: a higher synchronization frequency uses more battery life. This may seem to be quite logical to most, but it really does use a lot of energy. It will also suck the life from your data usage, so be sure to keep that in check. It's best to synch when using at home WiFi, otherwise you'll quickly exhaust your month's data usage. That's when you start getting bored when one single website takes ten minutes to load.
Contact Sync for Facebook synchronizes the profile picture of certain people. You always have the choice of synching all your contacts or just those who exist on your device. You can adjust the size of the picture and decide whether or not the last status post or birth date will be shown. Contact Sync's functionality is straightforward and fulfills the promised expectations.
There is one thing, about which the potential user should be wary: integrating the last StartApp update into the application. StartApp seems to be some sort of ''monetization'' tool, which doesn't seem very harmful at a first glance. However, the user isn't given the option of whether or not they would like to pay (dear developers: many users WANT TO PAY). The monetization regarding the contents within StartApp isn't very clear, as well as to what extent the user's own information will be accessed. It would be great to have more information regarding the developer.
Bottom Line:
Contact Sync for Facebook does its work very well and up until the latest update, had a secure spot on my smartphone. Unfortunately, because of the integration of StartApp, the option was taken away regarding whether or not you want to pay for the application. This is why I've recently replaced it for another one. The application itself is good and I recommend it. However, not knowing how much StartApp helps the monetization is another question.
Before you make comments about the fact that this information can also be found with Google, I would like you to take the time and think about what the difference between the two really is. The difference is very clear. With Google, I know how and where my information is being used. I pay with my own personal information and in exchange, get a considerable return service. I chose to avoid this with other providers and I don't want to be forced to accept this type of business model.
.........?????????????yep