The New iPhone Facebook Icon Swims Against the Tide of “Flat” Design

The new Facebook icon is so ugly wtf pic.twitter.com/nghPE4CfuD @GE0RGEGARRETT

Facebook’s new app icon? WTF were they thinking. Web 2.0 called they want their icon back - @iamkawsar

Might delete Facebook from my ipad because of how stupid the new icon looks - @JackSmith_8

The new Facebook icon is perrtyyy snazzy - @ethan_bliss

The new iOS icon for Facebook is causing quite a stir online. It appeared last night to iOS 6.1 users sporting a new silver border and a meshed background.

Is this whole thing just a mistake? Or is it here to stay? In the dawn of a world on the brink of change from “skeuomorphism” to “flat” does this icon represent the huddled few fighting against the tide of the masses? Does it hold any significance at all or is it just an accident?

In my opinion this silver border and mesh background make it very visually similar to an iOS folder.

Will you be deleting it from your device? Let me know what you think by commenting here.

This post will be further revised as more information and your comments are known.

UPDATE: May 17th

And just like that it was gone! And before I could even update this post.

According to several sources this was simply a case of accidentally letting the beta icon go out to the public just like when they released their Messenger app go out with its beta icon in March. Well, nobody’s perfect.

Oddly enough there were actually some who liked the beta icon.

Installing the update just to see this. EDIT: I actually like this one better! - Nahum365

Holy crap that looks good!! - Zyiros

The new Facebook icon is perrtyyy snazzy - @ethan_bliss

Any chance we’ll see this icon, or something similar return as a part of a fully shipped product? With iOS 7 around the corner, only time will tell.