Facebook’s first major update in over a year will be released in waves to mobile users in the coming weeks. Nearby Friends is a feature that can be enabled through the Facebook app on a mobile device.
Once enabled, users will be able to view a map and see which of their Facebook friends are nearby.
Recently, Facebook has been buying companies and developing new apps separate from the Facebook service. This year alone, the messaging service WhatsApp and the virtual reality system Oculus have been bought by Facebook for over $20 billion combined.
There are some restrictions with Nearby Friends, and users can control exactly who can see where they are. Users can choose lists of which friends that can view their location (i.e. close friends). Users also can only see the approximate distance to other friends, unless their friend shares his/her exact location, that’s when the map will appear with their location.
The feature also shows which friends are traveling and might be headed towards you. This is for people to have the ability to suggest places for their friends to go to, or to plan to meet up.
Matthew Anness