Facebook Lite to launch in developed countries, app will be avialable for download from Friday

Facebook Inc on Thursday said it will roll out the stripped down version of its social media platform, Facebook Lite, to more countries including developed ones, to attract users struggling with slower mobile data connections.

Facebook Lite, presently available in over 100 countries, was launched in 2015 targeting developing markets and designed to work in areas with slower or limited internet connections.

The new rollout will now be available to users in more countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, and New Zealand.

"We've seen that even in some developed markets people can have lower connectivity, so we want to make sure everyone has the option to use this app if they want," the company said.

The app will be available for download from Friday.

Facebook is easily one of those must-install apps that every phone user has on their home screen. And while this app gives you the full-service Facebook experience of accessing posts, commenting, uploading photos and the like--all in a rich user interface--it does come at the cost of a heavy install (about 35MB on Android and 70.1MB on iOS), and continually high memory and data utilization.

In the long run, this can take its toll on both your battery life and your cellular data usage. We’ve all experienced this at some time or another.