Bumble, like Tinder, is a dating app that matches couples based on physical attraction. Upon opening the app you’re met with a series of photos of potential suitors, and you simply swipe to the left if you’re not interested, and to the right if you are. Tap the speech bubble in the top right corner and, if you’ve liked someone who also likes you, you have 24 hours to start up a conversation before the connection expires. Those chats will then appear below under Conversations until you delete them.
Although the two apps look very similar and work in much the same way, there is a catch with Bumble: only the girls can start conversations. Even if a guy really wants to talk to you, all he can do is extend the connection by an extra 24 hours in the hope that you simply haven’t launched the app that day or worked up the courage to chat to them. Even then, he can do so with only one match per day. The exception to this rule is with same-sex couples (you can change your preferences in the settings) and people with whom you are Facebook friends (Bumble requires you to log in via Facebook). Bumble hopes that by allowing women to make the first move it will reduce the number of creepy and cheesy pick-up lines used in conversations. (The developers have obviously never met any creepy, cheesy women, of which there are plenty.)
Joining Bumble is easy, but for now it’s available only for iOS, and on iPads and iPhones running iOS 8 or later. You can download the free Bumble app from the App Store here. Optimised for iPhone, the app looks a little odd on the iPad at 2x magnification, but it works just fine. Once installed, launch the app and sign in with your Facebook account details. Bumble’s only other demand is that you are 17 or older. It’ll take your profile pictures from your Facebook account, or you can upload a new image from your iPad or iPhone or camera.
We’re not going to lie: there is no word on when Bumble is coming to Android – or even if it is coming to Android, although we expect that it will if it proves popular. Also see: Best Android apps </a. Potentially more than you are happy to reveal. Bumble takes your profile photos from Facebook, and it displays your age, location, job title and education history. It’s up to you to fill in any extra information within your profile, but Bumble won’t allow you to reveal sensitive information such as contact or banking details. It warns that anything you upload will be visible to all other users on this public network.
Bumble isn’t as good as Tinder in this respect. You can specify an age range, and whether you want to see men, women or everyone, but that’s all you can tweak in the Settings menu (tap the cog icon in the top left and choose the Settings tab). Whereas Tinder lets you specify distance, with Bumble you’ll be shown the closest matches first and when you start running out of suitors they’ll get further and further away. In that sense, if you find yourself spending hours lusting after potential companions on Bumble, you may later find yourself spending hours travelling just to meet them.
Like Tinder, Bumble is a two-way street. You can’t just set up a profile and expect the men to come running. Firstly because they can’t (the girls must show an interest first), and secondly because connections automatically expire after 24 hours. If that guy you have your eye on hasn’t opened the app today then you’re out of luck. No. Connections appear only when both parties have liked each other. If you like someone and a connection doesn’t appear, it’s possible that they’re not interested, or perhaps they just haven’t opened the app. A few hundred swipes later and you’re unlikely to remember individual likes in any case. You can report abuse or complain about other Bumble members by contacting the company and outlining your problem. Within a chat or someone’s profile you can also select the ‘Block & Report’ link. Deleting your account is easy, but Bumble will store your information for 30 days just in case you change your mind. To delete your Bumble account just tap the cog icon at the top left, select the Settings tab and scroll down to and choose ‘Delete account’. Follow Marie Brewis on Twitter. Marie is Editor in Chief of Tech Advisor and Macworld. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she’s worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our English language, French and Spanish consumer editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry’s transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.
