Facebook Chat Re-Enabler brings messaging back to the original Facebook app

Ditch Facebook Messenger and bring chat back to the original app. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

Ditch Facebook Messenger and bring chat back to the original app. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Android

If you’re one of the many who hate having to use a dedicated app for Facebook chat, you can bring messaging back to the original app with Facebook Chat Re-Enabler. It’s a free download and easy to install, and it lets you do away with the standalone Facebook Messenger app.

Developed by “AntaresOne” of the XDA Developers forum, Facebook Chat Re-Enabler is a simple tweak that does not require root, and works on any device running Android 2.3 and up — including Android 5.0 Lollipop. Once installed, it unlocks the chat features still baked inside the original Facebook app, negating the need for the dedicated Messenger client.

The tweak works with the latest Facebook release (version 21.0.0.23.12), as well as version 22.0.0.8.13, and versions 20.0.0.25.15 and below. Setup is as simple as uninstalling the Facebook Messenger app, and then side-loading the Facebook Chat Re-Enabler APK that’s available in the XDA thread.

“AntaresOne” notes that future Facebook releases could break this trick — and Facebook will likely make an active effort to prevent it if the tweak becomes popular — so you’ll need to watch out for updates if you don’t want to lose chat functionality inside the Facebook app. You may wish to disable auto updates for the Facebook app inside Google Play.