Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Is Tinder too timid? Try Clover, the speediest, most reckless dating app yet

Looking for a date tonight? Clover adds on-demand dating to its app

AJ Dellinger
By

clover dating app main
Tinder doesn’t have a lot of pretenses. It has all but outwardly embraced the fact that it’s a hook up enabler, and it doesn’t appear to care about the “find the love of your life” schtick that most dating services stick with. For another app to wind up and take a swing at the few barriers Tinder does put in place is downright ballsy.

That’s exactly what Clover is doing.

Related Videos

Clover (available for iOS) is one part Tinder, one part OKCupid — and with its most recent update to version 3.0, it’s thrown in a dash of the now defunct Crazy Blind Date. The new feature, referred to as On-Demand Dating, promises a date in two tabs. Users pick a time and location for a date and Clover finds them a partner. It’s an experience best served with cheap champagne.

Clover CEO Isaac Riachyk promises, “You’ll be able to find a date as easy as it is to order a pizza or a cab,” which sounds great! No one has ever had a bad experience with an Uber driver so what could possibly go wrong with this? You can of course review the person you’re paired with before confirming so if you browse a dude’s profile and all his favorite movies are documentaries about serial killers, you can cancel the meet up.

Clover-app

Outside of the new On-Demand feature, Clover does its best to encourage you to talk to as many people as possible by removing the barrier between users. Where Tinder only matches people who both declare interest, Clover shows you everything; Everyone you like will see that you liked them and you will see everyone that likes you.

This can really go one of two ways: The first possibility is everyone drops their inhibitions and embraces their attraction based on little more than a stack of pictures and an incredibly small amount of data points. Clover doesn’t share a whole lot about users unless you decide to pay, so physical attraction is the primary motivation for most interactions on this app. Which is totally cool – embracing that is great and probably leads to some fun times.

The other scenario is that Clover becomes the virtual version of your middle school dance, with girls and guys all standing on opposite sides of the room waiting for someone to make the first move. Knowing that expressing interest in a person will automatically alert them to your desires creates a difficult barrier in behavior. It’s pretty much everything that apps like Tinder have tried to, removing outright rejection from the equation.

Then again, Clover is far more open ended than Tinder. You aren’t forced down a linear path, required to make a yes or no decision about every person the app presents before you meet more potential matches. Clover lets you scroll through every possible partner. Give them a yes or a no if you feel strongly enough one way or another, or just leave them in your feed and come back later. Clover is all about creating as many opportunities as possible.

That’s why it shows you people that like you even if you didn’t return the gesture initially. It gives you a second chance at considering someone, and you can restore someone you accidentally passed on by shaking your phone to undo the action. It’s nice if you happened to bypass someone who may have more in common with you than you think. It’s also great if your goal is to feel wanted and receive attention with little concern for who provides it.

Clover-app-2

The good part about the nonlinear setup of Clover is that you can basically use it however you see fit. If you want to exert a little more discretion in your courtship, you can browse people without making immediate decisions. If you’re looking for just about anyone to grab a drink with on demand and see what might come of it, you can do that too.

Clover definitely enables more casual encounters if you choose to throw caution to the wind and start tapping the like button, knowing those people will see your curiosity. If you’re comfortable with that, then there is probably some fun to be had for you with Clover. The tagline for this app is “Get Lucky,” after all.

The On-Demand dating feature will debut for users in version 3.0 of the app, available before the end of 2014.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Apple’s iOS 16.4 beta brings new emoji, web app notifications, and more
Sample of new emoji coming in iOS 16.4

Apple has just released the iOS 16.4 beta for developers and anyone else who wants a really early look at the new software. This is the first beta for iOS 16.4, following numerous releases for iOS 16.3.

The first highlighted items for iOS 16.4 are the new Unicode 15 emoji. These are the first new emoji in over a year. Some of these new emoji include a shaking face, pink heart, light blue heart, goose, donkey, angel wing, jellyfish, pea pod, ginger, folding hand fan, maracas, flute, and more. These new emoji additions were originally proposed in July 2022, and they were added to the Unicode standard in September 2022. It has taken a few months for these to get added to iOS because designers at Apple needed to create the icons with the information provided by the Unicode Consortium.

Read more
This Valentine’s Day, experts have 4 tips on how to avoid dating app scams
Dating scam.

The fest of love is nigh, and so is the risk of becoming the next victim of a dating app scam. Social media is brimming with videos of how you can get the best out of this Valentine’s Day, but only a few are talking about the bad actors that are ready to scam some gullible lovelorn soul on online dating apps.
It’s a huge business, and every year, people do end up heartbroken -- along with having a significantly lighter bank account. If you’ve been waiting for some credible research and scientists to give you valuable counsel, your wish has been granted. The folks over at Georgia State University teamed up with experts in criminal justice and cybersecurity to study the world of “romance fraud.”
All the research data was collected from victim testimonials and online platforms, amounting to over 10,000 such reports. What follows are some of the key findings that came out of the research.

Hold on to your emotions
Created using Dall-E 2

Read more
Tinder Incognito Mode: what it is, how to use it, and why it’s important
Settings in the Tinder app, showing Incognito Mode.

Navigating the world of online dating can be tricky — even with the best dating apps readily at your disposal. With the number of horror stories based on matches gone wrong, feeling safe while looking for a partner online can sometimes feel like a fantasy, especially for those who have already had bad experiences.

Luckily, Tinder has stepped up its safety features with Incognito Mode, along with a handful of other great additions that ultimately aim to make users feel much safer as they try to find partners. Here's everything you need to know about Tinder's Incognito Mode and the other safety features available in the app.
What is Tinder Incognito Mode?

Read more