My God how much of a minefield would Sex And The City have been if perpetual singleton Carrie had got her hands on the technology we've got today? Instead of hiding under her desk worried that her Instant Messaging service could see her (**really? I mean really?) it would have been all: 'Did Big's Tinder account really mean that he wasn't ready to settle down?' (Answer: Yes).
Luckily Carrie was tech-illiterate so we didn't have to suffer through any of that rubbish. You however, are clever enough to use technology for good. So, if you are a single 'gal' (ugh, sorry) here's some new apps you need to get now.
Coffee Meets Bagel
Getting off with friends of friends is way easier than meeting strangers. You already have the background info, you've got something to talk about, and arranging 'accidental' meet-ups is as simple as organising a night out. Coffee Meets Bagel is the app that drops a friend of a Facebook friend into your inbox once every 24 hours before giving you a day to decide whether you fancy matching with them. In case you haven't figured out the genius behind this – 24 hours is plenty of time to contact your mutual friend and get the full lowdown. The app's already massive in America and it's just about to arrive in the UK, so keep your eyes peeled.
Ex-Posure
Living in constant fear of bumping into your ex? It'll absolutely happen A) When he's with his new girlfriend and B) When you're that top that you always forget that you hate until you get to work and it's too late to change. It's basically the law. New web-app from MTV Ex-Posure will make a heat map for you of places that your ex is likely to be based on his social-media activity meaning you can happily avoid areas of town he spends a lot of time in. This is not a healthy thing to do in the long run, BTW. Just for days when you're feeling vulnerable.
Glimpse and Twine Canvas
Three carefully chosen profile pictures on Tinder don’t exactly give a lot away – unless you know, they show a guy snogging a girl in one of them or something. New picture-based dating apps Glimpse and Twine Canvas give you more of a visual understanding of your matches. Glimpse (which currently has a long waiting list :( ) gives you access to your match's Instagram pics while Twine Canvas lets you browse a bunch of carefully crafted picture collages that'll give you a bigger picture of what your match is into.
Revealr
If you’re not all that confident about your looks, dating apps like Tinder are the absolute cruelest form of torture. Revealr is the app that posts a picture of you but pixellates it to prevent people from getting a full view of your face. Instead people choose potential matches based on a voice recording that you've made. Just make sure you sound suitably husky.
Killswitch
Struggling to get over a recent relationship? Facebook too painful to look at? Killswitch’ll go through your Facebook and ‘seamlessly and discreetly remove all traces of your ex’. Handy for when you’re having a wobble and find yourself hovering over that 'Weekend Away To Venice With My Bubby' album.
Follow Jess on Twitter @jess_commons
Picture: Maya Manwaring
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.