Spark - Video Speed Dating

Overall, I really want to like this app. The concept is a great idea, and I like that it’s pushing you towards an actual video date. But…after only one week of use, the app is now sending me the same matches over and over so I’m seeing people I have already clicked pass on. I’m also not seeing a lot of variety in possible matches either. I’m white female, but I set my preferences to accept almost all ethnicities so I could meet a wide range of people. But I’m basically only seeing black and Indian guys on here. The app has specific communities one can join, like for example, Indians or Orthodox Jews, which is a good idea but the app needs to have more for there to be enough variety in users. I do like being able to match with people from around the world though, as this seems missing from other dating apps that are more location-based. Overall, I like the app but I wish I were getting more variety in the possible matches. So far no one has really interested me much.

I just downloaded this app this week, and, so far, I like it. It’s very different from other apps. Other apps tend to turn into a never-ending swipe session. I typically don’t connect with people. The speed dating allows you to actually speak with someone, so it doesn’t feel like you’re completely wasting your time. The downfall is the profile requirements allow people to be extremely vague making it difficult to determine if you actually would like to speak with a match you receive. Also, since the app is new, I’ve found that most people are on the east coast (I’m in the US); however, I am not. I think once there are more people in the app, this will be a winner. To the developers, I know at some point you’re going to want to profit off of the app as it gains popularity, please don’t make it at the expense of the actual speed dating option. That’s what makes your app different. The random up charges are what have made other apps less appealing.

I think most dating apps allow people to filter straight down to their exact type and I see my friends and myself get stuck in a cycle of dating people who are perfect to us on paper but are far from so in reality. But how else were we able to gauge who we’d get along with? There was a significant hole in dating apps that couldn’t replace the natural intricacies and delights of meeting someone in person — where you can be attracted to someone who can surprise you and be a better fit than your ideal mold of a person. I think Filter Off provides that bridge, where you can get the close to that magic of meeting of someone in person. Of course it’s a hit or a miss, and it can be frustrating not knowing if someone checks off your boxes, and the app itself can use some upgrades and has some ways to go, but I can totally see this app becoming the new frontier of dating in the future and perhaps replace the monotony and paradox of choice in the current leading dating apps. I’m excited to see where this app goes, and hope that it can help shift the current culture of casual dating that has needed a revolution since Tinder hit the markets.