Now Mr Right is just a tap away

PLAYING the field is part of being young and single and apps are an extra dimension to dating. Convenience and efficiency are hot commodities, so an online catalogue of potential mates is the ultimate tool for workaholics and lazy students.

There are thousands of dating apps, including ones dedicated to gay networking, single parents and even the Indian community.

The boys at @EverythingGay created #Grindr profiles for Disney villains. LOL! Which is your favorite? http://t.co/E9hewQSZgO

— Grindr (@Grindr) August 29, 2013

Four million men in 192 countries are on Grindr, with 10,000 new users downloading the app every day. I test-drove one of its rivals, Tinder, which can be downloaded free for all iPhones. This app allows you to choose males or females, or both.

The application links you to nearby users via an anonymous approval system and with a GPS locator.

Individuals in close proximity are flashed up on screen, with the option to approve or reject.

You express anonymous interest, and the other person is given the option to approve or reject your profile.

If it is a match — two Tinder players approving of each other — a link is made between the profiles, and messages can be sent back and forth.

It is not possible to communicate with anyone unless a mutual attraction has been anonymously signalled by both parties. You must allow your location to be used and your profile is created by extracting information from your Facebook account.

With the rise of Tinder, is technology helping or hindering our quest for love? We speak to founder @Justin_Mateen - http://t.co/i8Qt9HIdyC

— Metro (@MetroUK) September 4, 2013

Beware: the app displays photos from your Facebook account, and suitors are shown your first name and age.

There are clever quirks to the simple app; mutual Facebook friends and shared Facebook interests in the form of page ‘likes’, movies, books, TV programmes, etc, are displayed.

This information is vital. If you are on the app for random hook-ups, it is wise to avoid anyone who has associations with your network of friends; and you know what you have in common.

There are also age and mileage filters, which narrow down the search to a reasonable distance and age.

Tinder is popular with 17-26 year-olds, on this side of the Atlantic. In the US, the age profile is older. A word of caution: because Ireland is small, I met a number of individuals I know through work, which is amusing, but also awkward.

The ability to have numerous conversations with strangers means it can be confusing and tricky to manoeuvre.

From the many conversations sparked on my Tinder app, not one led to a spark of interest, on either side.

After the initial novelty of smartphone shopping for a hunk faded away, I found online hook-ups not that much fun.

It’s like letting a child loose in a sweet shop; you go all out for the first half-hour, and then you overdose on the sugar hit and feel a bit sick.

Compared to the traditional methods of hooking up, I think technology has not improved the tried-and-tested method of alcohol and eye contact.

Apps rob you of the thrill of the chase, and the ease of the method of hooking up speaks volumes about those who are too lazy to try reality dating.

I am a fan of modern technology, smartphones and the convenience they bring. Like most people my age, I tweet as I talk, Facebook as I listen, and take a photo as I eat.

I bank on the bus, shop on the train and get the news on-the-go; but when it comes to finding chemistry and charisma, I think face-to-face is the only way to know.

Liam Cahill: Best of Both

Looking for a warm and loving guy, or just a hot body? Grindr, a GPS-based app that allows gay men to connect, chat and flirt — four million men — has cult status amongst the tech-savvy generation seeking conversations and casual hook-ups. A play, showing at the Dublin Fringe Festival this week, has been written about it.

The GPS element of Grindr makes this app unique. The app locates you and identifies how far someone is from you. The location identifier facilitates sex — it’s less troublesome to meet someone down the road than to travel on two buses to the outskirts of Kildare. It’s also useful if, like me, you’re a hopeless romantic and hope to meet ‘The One’. On Grindr men want all forms: from a basic conversation to a full hook-up.

Grindr’s connectivity has allowed it to become a key player in the dating game. Before Grindr, I had to stand in a dark corner of a nightclub and pout; or meet a friend of a friend who wasn’t as good-looking as his pictures.

Now, I log on and I’m talking to local guys in minutes. It gives dating a new buzz and people a chance to make informed decisions about the guys they want.

Photographs are part of Grindr’s selection process. Some people refuse to upload a photograph, which is unhelpful. Other photographs are false: one lad was passing himself off as a Hollister model.

Some guys are quirky, some are nuts, and some are there for love. Conversations can move into nastyville, about nothing but sex and weird habits.

This has led critics and the media to debate the app’s depiction of LGBT people. If you’re on Grindr, are you craving love and conversations or are you a sex-crazed horn-dog?

For me, Grindr is a bit of both. If you want sex, you can get sex. If you want a nice date, you can get that, too.

* Grindr — A Love Story at the Dublin Fringe Festival, Sep 11th-14 6.30pm; preview Sep 10, 6:30pm, (matinee Sep 14, 2:30pm) at Players Theatre, Trinity College, Dublin 2.