Were you worried there wasn’t enough social prejudice in the world? Luckily, a new dating app has arrived to solve that problem.
If you’re on dating app Tinder, you are *so* 2014. A new dating app has arrived in Sydney that is bigger and better than all other dating apps before it, promising to give you a relationship rather than a hookup. And it’s a relationship with a special kind of person.
The app is called Hinge, and is being described as “the app for those that don’t want to meet people outside their social circle or anyone who isn’t just like them”. By me. I’m describing it as that. Because you’ll be pretty much dating yourself.
Hinge really wants you to meet people who are in your circle already. It uses Facebook info to show your workplace, education, height and hobbies, as well as your 25 most recent profile pictures. And you’ll only ever be matched with someone you have a mutual friend with. Apparently the app also learns the kind of people that you prefer, so if you like bankers from Bondi, it will keep sending you in that direction.
But if you want to find someone who lives a bit out of town, you’re stuffed. In an inclusion seemingly directed at matching you up with someone with cash, the Sydney Hinge will only match you with people who live within 40kms of the beach. Which is just weird.
For the uninitiated, it seems exactly like an elitist version of Tinder. But CEO Justin McLeod assured Mashable it was really really different, OK?
Read more: Rosie Waterland tried Tinder dating. It was not pleasant.
In an interview with the website, he mused, “People compare us naturally, because our interfaces look similar, but we are very different. The main differences are: People think of us as a way to meet people rather than a game to play with, and people use us to meet up in real life, not just to chat and flirt.”
Considering that I know many people who have met up in real life from Tinder, I am still slightly perplexed as to the difference and what it actually is. So, I decided to road-test it.
Related: 12 stupid mistakes people make on Tinder.
Here are the five things that you need to know about this new dating app.
1. How do you get it?
You simply download ‘Hinge’ from the app store then sign up using your Facebook account.
2. How do I use it?
If you like someone, swipe left, if you don’t, swipe right. Don’t say that sounds just like Tinder because…well….
3. Can I change my profile?
Yes. Yes, you can. I obviously wanted to present the best version of me, so decided I would be a 180cm version of Kristen Stewart.
And because this is a website designed to find people who are just like you, I decided to make my description a series of facts about myself.
4. Really, is this just Tinder?
No, not at all. This one one tells you where someone works and where they went to Uni. So you can double and triple check they are exactly the same social status as you.
Also, you only have a set number of people who are shown to you. So if you don’t match with any, it’s time to buy a cat, I suppose.
5. How do you get a relationship out of this?
Once you’ve matched with someone, you will be informed by the “Matches” icon down the bottom. Unless no-one matches with you. Which may or may not have been my experience.
Who doesn’t like cheese and is too busy to clean up their dishes? Sheesh.
And that’s everything you need to know about Tinder! I mean Hinge. Hinge.
Good luck and happy hingeing, Sydney.