In the beginning, iPad users were probably a little surprised to find that their new tablets didn’t have an official – or any properly functioning, for that matter– app for their social networking fix. The original iPad never had its own version of a Facebook (News - Alert) app. Users had to turn to the App Store and find subpar, third party apps that barely did the job, some of which were even questionable.

That’s about to change.

The New York Times is reporting that a Facebook app has been in development for almost a year and Mr. Facebook himself, Mark Zuckerberg (News - Alert), is taking a personal interest in its design.

The report, citing unnamed sources who have been briefed on the app, said that it will make full use of the tablet’s cameras and will display full-resolution videos and photos.

Unlike the web version of Facebook, the app is expected to focus on taking advantage of the large screen touch interface as well as the camera on Apple’s (News - Alert) tablet. That means chat, images, videos, and groups will all be handled in an iPad-friendly and new way.

Facebook’s communications manager Jaime Schopflin declined to discuss any future products.

The article says that in addition to the native iPad app, Facebook also plans to introduce a better version of its website for the iPad.

Facebook has taken so long to develop an official app, so others have appeared to fill the void and offer something better than the Web version. Perhaps all of these third party apps will see their userbase decline considerably as the endorsed and optimized official Facebook app gets launched and marketed heavily.

This is good news for many, as a recent study by Pew (News - Alert) Research has recently reported that Facebook users have a higher degree of social well-being.

Among the findings of a phone survey of 2,255 American adults conducted by Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project last fall: Facebook users are more trusting of other people, they have larger numbers of close friends, they exhibit a higher level of civic engagement and they get more social support from their friends.

The survey's findings challenge the common perception that social networking sites isolate people or undercut their real-world friendships and interactions, said University of Pennsylvania professor Keith Hampton, the lead author of the report.

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