Twitter Lite Android App Being Tested In The Philippines

Twitter Lite was introduced to us earlier this year. It’s a new version of Twitter’s mobile site that’s meant to be used by people in parts of the world where internet connectivity is limited. It’s a lightweight version of the mobile site that provides access to the microblogging network while using less data to increase load times. It appears that the company also has a Twitter Lite Android app in the pipeline.

Twitter has started testing a new Twitter Lite Android app in the Philippines. Similar to the leaner mobile site, the mobile app is also going to use less data to increase load times for users in areas where internet connectivity is limited.

A spokesperson for Twitter confirmed to TechCrunch that the company is testing this app in the Philippines. It’s listed in the Google Play Store there as a separate app available for devices running Android version 5.0 and up. It supports English and Filipino languages and can be used on 2G and 3G networks.

“The Philippines market has slow mobile networks and expensive data plans, while mobile devices with limited storage are still very popular there. Twitter Lite helps to overcome these barriers to usage for Twitter in the Philippines,” the spokesperson added.

The app has many of the functions that you’d expect in Twitter’s main Android app. Users have the option to switch to a media-free mode so that they can select specific images and videos for downloading. This will help reduce data usage and enable them to access Twitter faster using the app.

The spokesperson also mentioned that this app is an “experiment” so it’s unclear if Twitter is going to launch Twitter Lite in other markets across the globe.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: Cellphones
Tags: Apps, Twitter