There’s a lot of stuff Apple didn’t get a chance to tell us about in iOS 11 during Monday’s WWDC 2017 keynote. Most of the new iOS 11 features look awesome, but you might not be so keen on a couple of changes — like the disappearance of a number of popular social media services.
Apple made sharing easier when it started integrating social networks into iOS by default. It started with Twitter in iOS 5 back in 2011, then expanded to support Facebook in iOS 6 in 2012. Flickr and Vimeo followed later.
But instead of continuing to add additional services, Apple is ditching social media integration altogether in iOS 11. Developers who got their hands on the update’s first beta spotted the change after it rolled out Monday.
“Social accounts have been removed from Settings iOS 11,” Apple confirms. “Third-party apps no longer have access to those signed-in accounts.”
But social media integration isn’t really needed in iOS anymore. Since Apple introduced share sheets, it’s never been easier to upload photos and videos to your favorite social media services, and to share content between different apps.
The change might take a little bit of getting used to after upgrading to iOS 11, then, but it certainly shouldn’t make life any more difficult.
Killian Bell is a freelance writer based in the U.K. He has an interest in all things tech and also covers Android over at CultofAndroid.com. You can follow him on Twitter via @killianbell.
11 responses to “iOS 11 ditches Facebook, Twitter, Flickr integration”
I’m not a developer, but I guess I don’t understand how the share sheets access the social media accounts if the accounts are no longer in Settings.
Apps. Facebook uploads will use the Facebook app extension instead of the iOS one.
Messed up when replying to you, my comment above.
I works a similar way as when transferring something to Dropbox and the likes. You have to install the Facebook app then it will get an entry in the so called ‘share sheet’.
Sounds good to me; never liked having Facebook or Twitter being granted special access to my iPhone
Its just not built into the OS any longer. Think of it in this manner, if you don’t have FB or Twitter installed, you can’t share to those services. Once installed, they will install their own extensions that allow you to share.
Actually, I don’t like the move. I kind of like to have possibility to post a photo or a weblink on Facebook without – gasp – having Facebook installed. I got rid of it when it was eating my battery with silent audio. One of the best decisions of my current life.
Why not stop Facebook altogether and live a real life?
Well I travelled a lot and have a lot of international friends, so FB is a convenient way to keep in touch. Or perhaps if I was single, but as I have family and kids, it actually is the best way how to share photos (privately). I do consider it once in a while, but right now it is the convenience. Needless to say, I have created a combination of Twitter and Facebook back in 1996 while at Uni – I wish I was more persistent – and still have a plan in my head about a sort of private TwitterBook for friends and family. And BTW I also use FB for business, so I do need a FB account.
No great loss. Facebook app is a hog on resources and a browser is much better.
Everyone seems to be talking how this a good move because Facebook is gone, but Twitter is gone as well. It will be annoying logging into it every single time I reinstall the app of downgrade to an older version (because Twitter updates often bring unnecessary features).