The latest Facebook app update has become a source of frustration for Google Pixel users and the Android fraternity at large due to the back button not working properly. According to reports on Reddit, Twitter and the Google Play reviews, pressing the back button when using Facebook doesn’t take you back to the previous page like before.
The issue seems to have popped up after a recent update to the app that bumped the version from 438 to 439. Through my own testing, the back button works fine on v438, but once you get to the newer v439, the glitch pops up. Unfortunately, this issue isn’t limited to those using the 3-button navigation system. It’s also present when using gestures for navigation.
Typically, when you open a Facebook post, you can go back to the previous page using the phone’s default navigation (buttons or gesture). This is usually a one-time tap on the button or a swipe from the left or right edge of the screen. However, it now appears that you must long-press the back button in order to trigger the action. For those using gestures, there’s no way to implement this same workaround.
This wasn’t the case prior to v439, and, in fact, it’s not the case in v438. But with the phone’s back button or gesture not working, people have now turned to the app’s back button to go back to the previous page. This is located in the top-left corner of an open Facebook post, something that’s causing friction among Android users.
Reports on Reddit go as far as several days ago, with some Facebook users confirming that the back button is also not working on some beta versions. Fortunately, unlike the stable version, the beta channel gets more regular updates to quickly address such issues. In fact, we can confirm that an update to v440 beta should address the issue with the back button not working on the Facebook app, so be sure to make the switch. But as noted earlier, you can also roll back to the previous v438 that worked without any problems.
Hillary Keverenge
2117 Posts
Tech has been my playground for over a decade. While the Android journey began early, it truly took flight with the revolutionary Lollipop update. Since then, it's been a parade of Android devices (with a sprinkle of iOS), culminating in a mostly happy marriage with Google's smart home ecosystem. Expect insightful articles and explorations of the ever-evolving world of Android and Google products coupled with occasional rants on the Nest smart home ecosystem.
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