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7 Weird (And Cool) Features You Didn't Realize Bumble, Tinder, & Coffee Meets Bagel Had
Dating apps continue to up their game, so to speak, as technology gets more and more advanced, and there are many cool dating app features you may not know about. For instance, some let you leave voice messages for one another while others let you send pictures. Now, as of Nov. 8, Coffee Meets Bagel is getting in on the added-features game with the launch of an innovative video feature option, so you'll have a fully dimensional glimpse into potential matches.
Sometimes with online dating and dating apps, people worry about being catfished, where someone does not look the same in person as they do in their photos. But if you have the opportunity to send a video in-app, you get to see them up close and personal, in a sense, which seems like a big positive. For instance, Hinge introduced video profiles earlier this year, and Lively, too, has video wherein you can even blur yourself if you don't want the conversation to just be looks-oriented.
"The Coffee Meets Bagel design has made it really easy for people to share about themselves — this will be a game-changer!" Coffee Meets Bagel's Co-Founder and COO Dawoon Kang tells Bustle. "The future of dating apps is where people experience real connection on the app, not after they meet up in the real world." Kang also said the video feature will help Coffee Meets Bagel users get a better sense of other members on the app, i.e., their potential future dates, since the videos will allow people to learn more than they can from just profile pictures and written messages alone.
It definitely sounds like yet another way to weed potential matches out, which is a big plus. After all, dating apps can get overwhelming, and fast, so when added features can differentiate one from the next, everyone wins. That said, here are even more cool dating app features you probably don't know about, but should start using, and STAT.
1Coffee Meets Bagel: You Can Create An 8-Second Video
As mentioned above, Coffee Meets Bagel just launched their new video feature, which includes a "question of the day" in order to get members talking even more. For each question, CMB members can create a video up to eight seconds long. The daily questions will allow you to see the nuances of someone's personality, and, TBH, nothing can replace seeing someone in a video — except for meeting them in person, of course, but hopefully the video will encourage you to do so even more. Videos can be viewed by members in the area; however, similar to Snapchat, they'll disappear once the topic refreshes. See? Catfishing will be nearly impossible, since CMB members will keep making new videos.
2The League: You Can Skip The Waitlist & Show Up In Your Crush's Feed Earlier
The League, a by-application-only dating app wherein you need both Facebook and LinkedIn to apply, already sets itself apart from other apps in that it limits you to five matches per day. With that algorithm, two out of the five have already liked you, and those two come from each user's "hearted queue," ranked in the likeliness of a match occurring. But if you use The League's "power move" feature, you can dig into the app's algorithm and increase the chances of a match in just 24 hours (for just $7). It's a way for you to cut through the competition and move to the front of the line. You'll be able to skip a potential match's waitlist and show up in their next batch of matches with a special heart icon. After all, your goal is to get offline and meet a match in person, right? And, this way, the sooner, the better. You can also add a message when cutting to the front of the line, which is another bonus.
Get The League on iOS.
3Happn: You Can Send A Voice Message
Happn is the dating app that uses geotracking to tell you where you and potential matches passed by each other — literally. It's spooky yet cool. I actually met my last boyfriend on both Happn and Bumble — and Happn said we were passing each other, physically, 50-some times a week. It turned out the apartment I was subletting was around the corner from his work. Before we met, we messaged a lot, and talked on the phone, but we also used Happn's voice messaging feature, which allows you to leave one-minute message after one-minute message. I can attest to the fact that it's a fun way to get to know someone, and, once he and I actually met, I think it made us more comfortable talking face-to-face.
4Bumble: You Can Send A Selfie/Photo While You're Chatting
Not only did Bumble recently introduce Bumble Bizz to help you network, as well as to find jobs and mentors, but their dating app section has a fun way to get to know your matches better — exchanging photos. You can either take a selfie and send it to a match, or you can choose pictures from your phone's camera roll. I think it does help personalize your messages, so you're not just copying and pasting, "Hi, TBD. How's your week going so far?" Instead, you can show them how your week's going by exchanging pictures of what you've been up to. Using the example of my ex again, this feature helped us get to know each other a lot before we met in real life, and it's another way to see if someone is legit and not just catfishing you.
5Tinder: You Can See Who Likes You
Tinder is another app that's adding new features a lot, including one where you can see who likes you before you swipe right on them, appropriately called Likes You. To use it, you have to have Tinder Gold, a fairly new members-only service. As anyone who uses Tinder knows, the more filtering options, the better. Plus, seeing who likes you first could give you the added boost of confidence you may need to swipe right on them, too. And if you see that someone likes you and you like them back, you can start messaging right away, which is another perk of the Likes You feature — cut right to the dating app chase.
6Hinge: You Can Add Videos To Your Profile
Earlier this year, Hinge launched a video feature, in hopes of users' conversations being increased even more so, and more telling than profiles based on photos and text alone. With Hinge's video feature, while you don't take live video, you can swap any of your profile photos for a video that you have on Instagram, Facebook, or in your iPhone camera roll. Videos will then autoplay on a loop as a potential match scrolls through your profile. Though sound will be muted, you can also enable it. Sounds pretty easy and efficient, right? Not to mention, it gives a whole new dimension to the app, as well as to your profile.
7Badoo: You Can Search For Your Celeb Crush Lookalikes
When you use Badoo, not only can you match with people, but you can match with people who look like your celebrity crush lookalikes. The feature is called Badoo Lookalikes. With it, you can search through thousands of celebs, and then the app does the rest — it'll pair you with the celeb dopplegangers among its 350 million+ users via facial recognition software. Talk about high-tech, right? Then you and your celeb match can start messaging, assuming you both swiped right. And if celebrities aren't your thing, but maybe a Facebook friend is, you can have the app find you someone to match with who looks like a friend of yours. Or, you can upload a picture of someone, anyone, and the app will go to work once again, finding someone(s) that look similar. After all, everyone has a certain "type," and Badoo now has the solution to finding more of your type for you.
As you can see, there are plenty of unique features available on all different kinds of dating apps. The great thing is, you can try out one of the above, or all of the above, and see which ones work best for you.
