Twitter has been spotted testing a Twitter Lite app for Android in the Philippines, which is very likely a part of the social media platform's quest to further expand its user base.
Twitter has launched and is planning various updates for its service, including new filter settings, improved harassment policies, and an upcoming Tweetstorm feature. How does a Twitter Life for Android app fit in to its plans?
What Is Twitter Lite For Android?
Earlier this year, Twitter rolled out the Twitter Lite website, which is a version of its social media platform that can be accessed on the internet browsers of mobile devices. Twitter Lite is faster, lighter, and data-friendlier compared to accessing the platform through its main website or through its apps.
Twitter Lite is designed to make the service accessible to users with unreliable mobile networks and with low storage space on their devices. However, it seems that the mobile browser version of Twitter Lite will not be its only form, as a Twitter Lite app for Android has been spotted being tested in the Philippines.
The Twitter Lite Android app is real, as Twitter confirmed with TechCrunch that the app is currently running in test mode in the Southeast Asian country. It shows up as a separate app from the Twitter app in the Philippines' Google Play Store, and is described to be compatible with devices on Android 5.0 and higher. Twitter Lite for Android supports the English and Filipino languages, and can be used on both 2G and 3G networks.
The Twitter Lite app retains most of the basic functions of the full Twitter app, but contains a few additional options such as a media-free mode that allows users to select the images and videos that they want to see. This helps the app save valuable data by not downloading content that the user is not interested in.
Will Twitter Lite Arrive To The US?
The Twitter spokesperson said that Twitter Lite is being tested in the Philippines due to the slow mobile networks and expensive data plans offered in the country. In addition, mobile devices featuring limited internal storage are popular.
The spokesperson claimed that Twitter Lite will help overcome these challenges so that more users in the Philippines will sign up for a Twitter account.
As to whether the app will ever arrive to the United States, the spokesperson only noted that the Twitter Lite for Android app is currently an experiment. The company is still evaluating the possibility of launching the app for other markets, though if it decides to do so, Twitter will likely release Twitter Lite to countries with similar situations as the Philippines first before rolling it out to the United States.
