Here we go again. Even though HTC launched phones like the HTC Status with a dedicated Facebook button, we have yet to see an official Facebook phone. That could change as early as next year, complete with a totally custom operating system.

That’s the word coming out of Bloomberg. They’re saying that Facebook is once again “working closely” with HTC, except this time they’ve also put together a team of engineers from Palm and Apple to develop a “modified” Facebook OS. In all likelihood, it’s still some variation of Android at the core, but it’s hard to say just how far the modifications will go. Hopefully it’s not the HTC Status all over again.

Bloomberg isn’t saying anything about how the hardware will look, whether it’ll have a physical keyboard, or anything like that. Considering that the rumored launch is being pushed back from the end of 2012 to the middle of 2013, a lot can change on the hardware front in the meantime. I don’t know. Would you really want a Facebook phone? We thought it was a little odd when Google got into the smartphone game too and look at where we are now.

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Instead of waiting for the package to be complete, it looks like Facebook is going about this by releasing bits and pieces at a time. You probably noticed the launch of the Facebook Camera app, for example, and this could simply be ported over as the native camera app on a Facebook phone. It just tacks on the Instagram filters and social sharing that everyone wants anyway.

There’s also a Facebook Messages app that is separate from the core Facebook app and this could bode well as the core messaging app on a smartphone, branching out to include SMS and possibly working as a powerful alternative to BBM or WhatsApp. And there’s already a Facebook app store too, so they’re fully prepared to tackle the iTunes App Store, Google Play, or Windows Marketplace.

The way things are shaping up, the Facebook phone will not be utilizing Android. Instead, it’ll be running its own dedicated OS, complete with its own app store, own messaging app, and so on. In fact, it’s rumored that Facebook wants to buy Opera, possibly to acquire the mobile browser for its new smartphone OS. The new OS will easily tap into existing Facebook frameworks for contacts, calendars, and other similar functions.

It’s hard to say when and if a “true” Facebook smartphone will hit the market, but it sure looks like they’re inching in that direction, one acquisition and release at a time.

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