Cuddling on the
Wild Side

Update (3/23/2010 12:45pm): Grindr is back in the App Store

It looks as if Grindr has been removed from the App Store. There is this from Wikipedia, “On March 23, 2010, at approximately midnight pacific time, the Grindr app and its references were removed from the app store.”

Also, I went to the App Store and checked myself. It was not there. I have already deleted Grindr, but from what I’ve seen of other removed apps, current users will be able to continue to use the app. It will not be possible for new users to join though through an iPhone App.

Maybe it was Grindr’s fault for creating a product that had to follow Apple’s guidelines, and maybe it was these “family” groups putting pressure on Apple to remove apps like Grindr. Either way I felt that Grindr went about handling the restrictions placed on them very poorly.

I do have some inside scoops that there are some App Store restriction free web apps coming out that will do very much the same as Grindr does. Also, check out the Recon iPhone App which recently added location-based searching. Recon is one of the best gay hook-up/dating sites out there for a wide variety of reasons.

I consider this a victory for the pro-cuddlers. Maybe if Grindr resurfaces, it will be kinder to us.

I would like to thank Kevin for making a comment on my Grindr Review post for notifying me of this.

I have found the first iPhone Application that is anti-cuddling. I’ve always thought of cuddling to be an innocent and intimate action, but apparently Grindr finds it to be repulsive and offensive.

My Grindr photo they don't have a problem with, unless I want to cuddle.

Over the past few days I’ve had my Grindr profile censored, and every time I get a message that it’s because of the text. At first I thought it was the “kinky” or “rough and wild fun” portion, but nope, that’s not the case. Today I posted “Just a single guy that likes to cuddle.” and within 2 minutes… BAM… censored.

I would maybe understand this if I tried to post a profile on eHarmony or something, but a family friendly gay hook-up app? This is shocking to me. Maybe they’re just trying to start a war with me because the review I wrote of them wasn’t so kind. It’s also the first thing that pops up if you search “Gindr Review”.

I’m a little addicted to Grindr right now, but I’m going to start weening myself off of it. If you haven’t joined yet, don’t. It’s not worth it to join an anti-cuddling group. I also urge all pro-cuddlers to start weening themselves off of Gindr too until you have no need for it.

Please join the fight and spread the word on Facebook, Twitter or your blog (feel free to post in full with a link back here).

Grindr is an app for the iPhone that’s been out for a while now. Essentially it lets you find other people using the app based on proximity to you if they were on recently. Think of it like Manhunt with GPS on your phone. You can then send messages, pictures and your location to that person.

I think I’ve only actually met 1 person on there that I wasn’t already friends with, but the app does work relatively well and they have been doing a lot of work to improve the servers. The interface is pretty intuitive and you can always block an annoying guy.

The pic I was banned for

Although there is an 18+ warning when you download the app, it is a family friendly app. So if you’re a parent, feel safe letting your child download and use the app. I recently got banned from Grindr for the photo to the left. Now I don’t think the pic is that bad, and you’ve pretty much seen pics like this on magazine covers, but apparently because there is a tiny bit of cock and pubic hair… it’s considered an “obscene” photo.

Here’s a little email conversation I had with them while getting un-banned:

Me

I got banned and don’t understand why.

Grindr

Your profile was banned since it did not comply with our Terms of Service, which prohibits nudity or sexual/obscene photos and/or text. You cannot post photos of a penis on your public profile.

I removed the ban on your profile. Please ensure that in the future your profile contains only family friendly text and photos.

[Removed some marketing crap]

Me

Can you define what “nudity or sexual/obscene photos” are… because I’ve had my picture removed before for wearing a swimsuit that covers everything?

Also, isn’t it an 18+ app? Why do you have to limit the nudity?

Grindr

Thanks for your reply.  I included in the previous email that your profile was banned due to a photo of a penis. If you have had photos removed while wearing a swimsuit, it could be anything from pubic hair showing or even your text.  Although Grindr is an 18+ app, we want to keep the public profiles as clean as possible because not everyone wants to see nudity while searching for friends.  Remember, you can send whatever pictures and text you like during private chat.

Now, beyond the ability to post R-rated pics on your main profile, there are definitely some improvements they could make. Right now you can only have 1 public photo, more would be nice. It would also be nice if it had push notification, and there was a way to stay logged in without having to run the app. It does drain your battery quickly because it uses GPS. It would be nice if you could search for sexual interests. And a web component so I don’t have to sit at my phone to use it would be even better.

Overall though, it is a pretty good app and I’d recommend at least trying it out. If you do work at a homophobic place, and you care, I wouldn’t log on while you’re at work. It can be nice at a bar, or even just wandering around town.