Dating Tips On How To Land A Mac Lover This Valentine’s Day [Interview]

By

CC-licensed, via Unlisted Sightings on Flickr.
CC-licensed, via Unlisted Sightings on Flickr.

Life is too short to date PCs. That’s the belief of dating site Cupidtino, which since its 2010 launch has amassed 32,000 Apple aficionados.

Whether you believe that affinity for a consumer electronics brand can spark romance or not, narrowing down the dating pool by trying to find some commonality can’t hurt. And Apple’s insanely great devices are as good a place to start as any. With Cupidtino, you can use the website and recently-released iPhone app for free; for $4.99 a month you get unlimited access to messages and a chat feature.

Cult of Mac got these Mac-loving dating tips from co-founder and CTO Amol Kelkar. Kelkar, once a PC by day and a Mac at night (he worked for nearly a decade as a software engineer at Microsoft), tells us what kind of opposites attract on a Mac-centric dating site, a place dripping with single Macs in the real world and whether a PC-version is in the works.

Cult of Mac:  The site icebreaker – which would work just as well for chatting up someone in a real-world situation – is: “I became a Mac when.” There’s such a huge range of answers (from “someone gave me an iPod Touch two years ago” to “I haven’t used anything else since the 80s”) what should people look for?

Amol Kelkar: We ask members to share their Mac story to reflect their passion for a Mac-inspired lifestyle. It often ends up being a curious conversation when our members meet in person. The most interesting stories get exchanged when a recent convert meets a lifelong fan. We’ve seen thousands of unique Mac stories – everything from “I was born this way” to “Just got an iPad two months ago and I’m in love!”

We are not sure if the answer to this question gives a detailed psychoanalysis of a person, but we don’t think a psychoanalysis is needed to know whether a person is interesting enough to meet or not.We encourage members share what does a “Mac-inspired” lifestyle mean to them and how it reflects their personalities…

The Cupidtino iPhone app.

CoM: The site talks about Macs having similar “personalities,” but if you consider all Macs creative, artistic types etc., how do you find your next date?

AK: Diehard Mac fans often have a lot in common – personalities, creative professions, a similar sense of style and aesthetics, taste and a love for technology. Although many members tend to be creative types, Cupidtino focuses on the approach to lifestyle than professions.

As Apple fans we love to hang out in cafes with our Macbook Airs and iPhones. Part of what we pay for is a chance to run into another geek who’s just as much into photography, design, hybrids, the BBC, HTML5, polar bears, Wired, Whole Foods, Coldplay and Angry Birds as we are…

CoM: You have a button for meeting people at the nearest Apple store. Do Apple stores make good first dates, or is it just to check out the person in a public place?

AK: We strive to make the first meeting interesting, convenient, safe and comfortable. Fanboys and fangirls know where the Apple store is – chances are high that they might have frequented it. More importantly, Apple stores tend to be in fun and intriguing neighborhoods with many exciting hangout spots nearby. Members typically end up meeting near the Apple store and check out a spot nearby.

The gelato place near the Apple store in Palo Alto is one of the top destinations for Cupidtino dates.

CoM: Aside from maybe just listing your Apple gear, if you’re looking to hook a Mac, what sort of profile works best — whether we’re talking about your site or any dating site?

AK: Intriguing photos work the best. Most viewed profiles on Cupidtino tend to have cool photos of the member, often with their Apple products. We’ve added some tips on our blog, too.

Com: Any thoughts on “opposites attract?” There are a lot of sites for people who want to date people of backgrounds different from their own. Have you had PCs sign up and are there any intentions to expand in this direction?

AK: Opposites do attract. With the advent of iPhone and iPad, many members are hybrid where they may be compelled to suffer a PC at work, but get solace from using their iPhone or iPad. Cupidtino’s experience is optimized for a Mac, iPad, iPhone and iPod. We don’t intend to let people sign up from a PC.

Newsletters

Daily round-ups or a weekly refresher, straight from Cult of Mac to your inbox.

  • The Weekender

    The week's best Apple news, reviews and how-tos from Cult of Mac, every Saturday morning. Our readers say: "Thank you guys for always posting cool stuff" -- Vaughn Nevins. "Very informative" -- Kenly Xavier.