MySpace and Facebook are not only battling it out for users on the internet, they’re now in a face-off in regards to iPhone users. Both are already among the most frequently downloaded apps in the App Store since the store’s inception, and there’s been a heated discussion as to which one shines over the other ever since.
According to Mashable, the demographic that occupies the Facebook network makes it clear who will rank higher in stature within Apple’s new mobile software emporium. Download counts aside, however, there is still the question of which application is in fact the best. So, irrespective of popularity, Mashable compared the two down to the nitty-gritty.
Feature for feature, they have their similarities, but they also have some significant differences, some of which will prove crucial to users’ decisions of which utility to pay more attention and which to pay less. Facebook’s iPhone application arrives with “Facebook Chat” on board, which gives it a leg up on MySpace. It also sports an email inbox and page that asks you the simple question of “What are you doing?” You and your friends’ activities are published in chronological order as well, which is pretty basic stuff, but again, quite useful when on the go.
Both MySpace and Facebook integrate themselves with the iPhone’s camera, allowing users to snap and upload images. These are definitely nice options to have offered by each company, since digital photography has all but taken the social Web by storm the last year or so. The future of mobile social networking will rely on the ability to snap and share photos instantly, along with the location-aspect as well. The applications display photos a bit differently, however. MySpace has a standard menu button reserved for photo album browsing and organization. The Facebook application “The-New-Faces-at-Facebook” is geared towards publish photos in line with postings on the activity wall. Of course this doesn’t mean any one is better than the other, rather than each company simply taking a different approach to what they see as most important through the eyes of their users.
MySpace claims to have served some 1.7 million “daily unique mobile visits,” while Facebook reports having seen regular use by some 1.5 million people. MySpace has also made it known that it intends to offer support for 12 languages by the end of the month, so it might be a toss-up on a global scale for the rest of the summer. When all is said and done, both applications are quite strong introductions. Because they’re free, there’s really no reason not to try both. What do you think?
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