Facebook’s chief product officer Chris Cox is insisting that an unspecified but substantial number of staff switch from iPhone to Android, in order to have an experience of the service more typical of that in emerging markets, reports Wired.

“I am mandating a switch of a whole bunch of my team over to Android, just because people, when left up to their own devices, will often prefer an iPhone,” said Chris Cox, who said the move is “so that they can be reporting bugs and living in the same experience that most Facebook users experience today” …

The initiative follows on from ‘2G Tuesdays,’ where each Tuesday employees are asked to allow their Facebook app to behave as if it were on a slow 2G network for one hour, giving them an appreciation for what the service is like to use in many developing countries.

Both moves reflect the fact that with 1.5 billion users to date, and near saturation point in most markets, Facebook’s future growth depends on countries where technological development is at a much earlier stage.

Unlike 2G Tuesdays, which are voluntary, the wording of Cox’s announcement on Android suggests that the move from iPhone to Android is not. Among the things staff will miss out on when they give up their iPhones are the Notifications the company recently introduced to the iOS app.

Via TNW, photo Digiday

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