Facebok Phone: It’s real, codenamed Buffy

Facebook’s teaming up with Taiwanese phone manufacturer, HTC, to release the Facebook phone in the next 12 months.

AllthingsD reports that Facebook has finally partnered with with HTC, after the social giant has been pondering how to enter the phone business for several years.

Apparently codenamed “Buffy”, the phone is expected to run a very heavily modified version of Android that fully integrates Facebook’s features into the phone.

It looks like Facebook has only recently made the decision – word on the street is that Facebook Also considered going with Samsung.

If you’re desperate to get your hands on a heavily-integrated-social-networking device, you might want to chill out for a bit – we aren’t going to see this phone for well over a year.

Facebook has proven how successful it’s mobile ventures have been so far, with its apps on most smartphone offering’s being among the most popular to date – sorry Angry Birds.

There’s clearly a market for any Facebook device. The social giant is already catering for over 350 million active mobile users, but this will be the first time Facebook has stepped away from its supporting role as an app developer.

A Facebook spokesman didn’t comment on “Buffy”, but here’s what he had to say to AllthingsD:

“Our mobile strategy is simple: We think every mobile device is better if it is deeply social. We’re working across the entire mobile industry; with operators, hardware manufacturers, OS providers, and application developers to bring powerful social experiences to more people around the world.”

This isn’t the first time Facebook has partnered with HTC. In the past year, the companies have announced phones with dedicated Facebook buttons.

Facebook appears to be picking up the pace in the ‘face’ of stiff competition from Twitter and Google+.

Google’s working hard to plaster its new Social network all over its Android devices, while Apple has adopted Twitter into its iOS.

What do you think of a Facebook phone? Do you like the fact you can escape from the all-seeing platform, or would you prefer to be more connected? Let us know below, or on Facebook/ Twitter/ Google+.