Facebook testing Graph Search for mobile now

Going Mobile??

With Facebook deciding that the future is mobile, it is planning to seal the transition completely with a release of a mobile version of Graph Search. If reports are to be believed, Facebook is currently testing an app version of its smart search feature for smartphones and tablets.


During the Q4 earnings call last week, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg spoke about releasing a suite of apps for the benefit of smartphone users. Facebook then went on to announce the impending release of its new news aggregator app for iOS, Paper. However, during the course of the earnings call, Zuckerberg had also hinted at Graph Search coming to mobile.


While he did not mention when it is to find a release or how the development of Graph Search for mobile is coming along, Zuckerberg had said that it was definitely on Facebook’s agenda. “I think you should expect us to roll out the mobile version of this,” he had said.


Now, news has it that Facebook is already testing Graph Search for mobile on a really small scale. Mashable’s Seth Fiegerman tweeted about the new change he noted on the Facebook app. He noted that the app introduced Graph Search for the iOS version of the app and even showed a couple of introductory screens on how to use the feature on mobile.


“Find friends by name, or use simple phrases to find something specific,” read the introduction. For those not in the know, Facebook’s Graph Search is a great new way to find people, places and other topics on the social networking website. You can use simple phrases like “Friends of friends who live nearby and like Heavy Metal”or “My friends who have been to McDonalds”. A whole new page will pop up using which you can refine search results to find exactly the people and places you’ve been looking for.


The Search option has not rolled out completely to all Facebook users right now, but it is being made available slowly over the past year. Meanwhile, Facebook has been adding features to Graph Search, enabling it with the ability to search for locations and posts according to time.


If the screenshot is anything to go by, Graph Search will not be making its debut as a standalone app but will be incorporated within the Facebook application itself. While there is no word on an Android version of Graph Search yet, it should only be a matter of time before a tester from the small segment of users getting access to the Search comes up with another screenshot. Like the desktop version of Graph Search, we expect the mobile version to be a slow rollout too. Don’t hold your breath.