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Facebook Starts Testing 'Buy' Button

 & Angela Moscaritolo Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

Our team tests, rates, and reviews more than 1,500 products each year to help you make better buying decisions and get more from technology.

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Facebook on Thursday confirmed that it is now testing a "Buy" button on ads and page posts.

The button, aimed at helping companies "drive sales through Facebook in News Feed and on Pages," will let you purchase products directly from a business, without leaving Facebook. At this point, Facebook is testing the new feature with just a few small and medium-sized U.S. businesses.

"We've built this feature with privacy in mind, and have taken steps to help make the payment experience safe and secure," Facebook said. "None of the credit or debit card information people share with Facebook when completing a transaction will be shared with other advertisers, and people can select whether or not they'd like to save payment information for future purchases."

Facebook isn't the only company testing out this type of feature. Twitter has been quietly testing a new "Buy now" button that apparently lets you purchase items featured in tweets without leaving the site. Re/code earlier this month spotted the button in tweets from the shopping app Fancy. The buttons could only be seen on Twitter's mobile app, and were not working when Re/code tested them out.

Meanwhile, Facebook has been busy beefing up its ad options as of late. The company last month rolled out new ad preferences, giving users more control over what products and services they see on the social network. Facebook also recently launched Premium Video ads, which automatically come to life as users scroll through their timeline, and a mobile ad placement system called Audience Network, which lets advertisers extend campaigns beyond the site and into other mobile apps.

About Our Expert

Angela Moscaritolo

Angela Moscaritolo

Managing Editor, Consumer Electronics

My Experience

I'm PCMag's managing editor for consumer electronics, overseeing an experienced team of analysts covering smart home, home entertainment, wearables, fitness and health tech, and various other product categories. I have been with PCMag for more than 10 years, and in that time have written more than 6,000 articles and reviews for the site. I previously served as an analyst focused on smart home and wearable devices, and before that I was a reporter covering consumer tech news. I'm also a yoga instructor, and have been actively teaching group and private classes for nearly a decade. 

Prior to joining PCMag, I was a reporter for SC Magazine, focusing on hackers and computer security. I earned a BS in journalism from West Virginia University, and started my career writing for newspapers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Technology I Use

My little Florida beach bungalow is brimming with smart home tech. I have a smart speaker or display in every room, allowing me to control other connected devices by voice. The Nest Hub on my bedside table lets me set wake-up alarms, control my smart light bulbs, and set the temperature on my smart thermostat. I use the Amazon Echo Show 8 on my kitchen counter to browse recipes, reorder protein powder, check the weather, and watch the news while I do dishes. 

Because I suffer from allergies, air purifiers are essential. My favorite model is the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07, which doubles as a fan and continuously sends indoor pollution data to its companion mobile app. 

My pitbull Bradley sheds, so a good robot vacuum is a must. I currently use a premium Ecovacs Deebot that can both vacuum and mop, empty its own dustbin, and wash its own mop cloth. 

For fitness, I like to mix up my routine with cycling, indoor rowing, running, and strength training in addition to yoga. I take classes on the Tonal 2 smart strength training machine, I row indoors on an Aviron machine, and track my beach runs with an Apple Watch while listening to music on my Apple AirPods Pro. On the weekends, I love riding e-bikes like the rugged, beach-friendly Aventon Aventure for fun and fitness.

My job involves a lot of virtual meetings, so a quality webcam, microphone, and ring light are important. I use the Jabra PanaCast 20 webcam, the Elgato Wave: 3 microphone, and a Yesker tripod ring light. 

As for my preferred phone platform, I'm an iPhone person, but I've also extensively used Android for product testing.

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