Take your love to cloud nine with an app

29 March 2018 - 10:07
By Somaya Stockenstroom
Modern young lovers can meet via dating apps, and keep their relationship alive via other online platforms.
Image: 123RF Modern young lovers can meet via dating apps, and keep their relationship alive via other online platforms.

Cheaters' lives changed the day cellphones were invented. Suddenly, the missus could call at any given moment.

Then there was the advent of Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and a host of other apps that changed our romantic relationships forever.

Making friends with your ex or uploading a profile pic other than your significant other has caused break ups.

Fast forward to 2018 and there's hundreds of apps that can now be downloaded to help nurture relationships.

So just what are some of these apps and what do they do?

The Instant Chemistry Compatibility Kit are for those second guessing if they made the right choice in choosing a partner. It offers two biological tests, one that measures the current satisfaction with the relationship, and the other examining the long-term chemistry.

Tango is popular among long-distance couples.

It is said to be a messaging app with the best video calling, where messages and calls are free. With 350 million users it allows you to call people anywhere in the world, hear their voices and see their faces.

But an anonymous user says its "annoyingly intrusive". Your partner always knows where to find you.

If she thought that was intrusive, she hasn't come across Pathshare GPS Location Sharing app.

The app uses a phone's GPS to share its real-time location with one or more parties and includes a map so you can pinpoint their exact location and scheduled time of arrival.

But thankfully, Pathshare also allows you to stop everyone from seeing your location.

An upgrade that seems to be popular among those who indulge in extramarital affairs is Telegram app.

It's a sophisticated upgrade from WhatsApp. Here messages are heavily encrypted and can self-destruct. They are cloud-based so it let's you access your messages from multiple devices fast.

So now you can send personal and business secrets, destruct your messages with a timer or store those nudes in the cloud.

As much as we have have seen couples display their love on Facebook and Instagram, we have also seen friends fight because a random guy commented how hot your girl is.

But there's now an app that is said to bring harmony back. It's called Fix a Fight. It's for couples who struggle with physically kissing and making up. The app will assess the situation, then get you back on track through discussion of your feelings and ways to solve the disagreement.

Appy Couple. An app that is certainly going to put wedding albums out of business.

It is marketed towards soon-to-be-married couples. It allows the pair to share their concerns, wants, ideas about the wedding day as well as anecdotes to keep the love alive.

The Honeydue app is said to be the go-to personal finance app for couples.

It can track your bank balances, bills, keep track of messy papers and confusing spreadsheets. It reminds you when it's time to pay your bills.

With less fighting you can download Raft, which is loaded with gift and date night suggestions.

A more sensible app is One Love MyPlan. The free app determines if a relationship is unsafe. It will create an action plan based on the individual's characteristics and values.

The app provides access to trained advocate support 24/7 through live chat.

The Couple app keeps all your special moments saved privately in one place. It is perfect for both long distance relationships and couples in the same city.

With Thumbkiss you can share to-do lists, set reminders, make phone calls, send messages, share your location, suggest places to go out to on dates nights, and more.

Kouply allows you to award points to your partner whenever they do or say something sweet or thoughtful. Also, when they forgot to pick up their dirty clothes off the floor, you can award negative points.

There is also a Spreadsheet app for the kinky couples who want to track how often, how long, and how loud their sex sessions are.

This app analyses movement and audio data to give you statistical feedback on your performance in the bedroom.

It also tracks sexual engagements right down to the date and time.

If that's not exciting enough, try Kindu. It has over a 1000 examples of turn-ons, fantasies, and sex time activities as well as romantic ideas to try.

It allows partners to talk about their fantasies discreetly. Theicebreak app is made for couples to know each other even better.

The app also provides "health checks in 7 key areas" to make sure you're on the right track.

Even more erotic is the MysteryVibe app and Lovense app. It controls the Crescendo, the world's first body-adapting six-motor smart vibrator and other teledildonic' sex toys with your phone to spice things up from afar .

Your partner can control things in the room or even further depending on the WiFi.

With Lovense you can sync the movements of the sex toys (which come in male and female versions) to music, and send each other messages as you go. The sex toys are priced separately to the app.

The Feel Me app turns age-old texting into a touching experience. You and your partner simultaneously touch the small red dot on the screen, a vibration occurs. Marco Triverio, the app developer from Copenhagen reckons that it introduces a new way of emotional connection, the closest to actual touching when being apart.

A personal favourite is My Love app which shows you how long you and your partner have already been together.

So no more excuses on "forgetting" anniversaries and birthdays.

It creates new anniversaries like the 333rd day, the 50th month, and so forth.

Image: Supplied Criselda Dudumashe

Can tech foster happier relations?

Criselda Dudumashe, a guest of The Love Festival , a relationships summit to be held next month, has been married for three years and says every day it still feels like the honeymoon stages.

She has a peaked interest in the app that helps couples deal with fights in a love-filled manner.

"Most couples get stuck in fear, anger and preconceptions about minor issues. Fix a Fight is the app for building healthy communication in relationships," says Dudumashe. As a newly wed, she says she is definitely not about controlling the man in her life by tracking his movements.

"People will always do what they want.

Self-respect, respect for others and being responsible for personal choices helps one to be content with self."

She's also interested in Best Sex Life app.

"Sex and sexuality are one of the causes of break-ups. This app helps deal with addressing the awkward conversations about how a partner expresses their intimacy preferences without feeling awkward."

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When it comes to social media platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook, she says seeing another person of the opposite sex on her husband's profiles would not freak her out.

"I trust my husband fully and he has not given any reason to doubt that he has mine and our best interest at heart. Should this change in future I would rather talk and address the fear and uncertainty than assume. We also use social media to express our love all the time. During the day we send each other love notes just as a reminder that loving is a choice."

She doesn't fancy Telegram messaging app though.

"I think it's people with secrets and seeking to hide things from each other. Basically, it's for secret lovers who want to enjoy stolen time without being caught. Naughty!"

For when they are away from each other through travel, they use video call or Skype to catch up with each other.

"Babu D recently warmed up to video call and Skype. It's the cutest experience. He wears a permanent smile through the conversation. I believe it [technology] helps strengthen relations when done with good intentions. The world of connectivity is here and we need to move with the programme; seize the moment."

IT specialist Patience Mogale says she too is willing to try out apps.

"Maybe they will help me hold on to a partner. I haven't been with anyone longer than three years.

"Maybe something like Tinder will help with finding my match and then I'll try some of the others to keep the spark alive," Mogale says.

Matthew Johnson, a senior bank employee, says apps are overrated.

"I'm so old school. I only use WhatsApp. My battery on my phone lasts without all these unnecessary features.

"I don't even know how Facebook works," he laughs. He says his girlfriend of three years knows that she can find him at work, home or on WhatsApp and that's sufficient for him.

"I express my love using real man tactics, not these games. We kiss, we touch, we speak and we make passionate love without fancy gadgets."