SpeedDate iPhone app makes love search faster

Good news, everyone. And by everyone, I mean those who are trendy and single. Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and we're here to help you speed up that dating process.

You'll need to be an owner of either an iPhone or an iPod Touch, though. Thus, the aforementioned "trendy" notion.

This is my friend. Come get him, ladies!

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CBS Interactive)

Online speed dating service SpeedDate announced on Monday the availability of its free iPhone application. No more excuses. You can now find a match anywhere. Sort of.

The app allows access to SpeedDate members' profiles, which you can connect to by sending a "wink" or a quick "flirt." It also allows for creating a new profile if you are not already a member. You won't be able do much else, however, such as sending an e-mail to a member.

I tried the app on my iPhone 3G and got my profile up and running within a minute. After that, the application asked for my location and went straight to the "SpeedDate" tab, where it showed me a list in slide-show style of singles in my area between the ages of 18 to 99.

After narrowing the age range, I was surprised by the number of singles available in my vicinity. Unfortunately, the application doesn't allow for filtering by any other criteria, such as height, body type, or hair color. I couldn't put any of the matches into a "favorite" list either. And if I turned the application off, I needed to go through the same process again when I turned it back on. If I'm lucky, I'll be able to find the same person again.

As it turns out, the free version of the site, the same as this free application, doesn't allow for the freedom to save potential dates, search based on screen name, or filter searches with more details. It only allows you to show interest in others and hope they will pick you (and can afford to connect to you).

There are two other tabs, including "My Profile," which allows for viewing and editing your profile, and "Inbox," where you can view winks and flirts from other members.

After an hour of trying out the app and sending winks and flirts to numerous "down to earth," "fun," and "responsive" members, I haven't heard back from any of them.

On the Web site, SpeedDate also allows for three minutes of free communication to a new remember and a seven-day free trial. If you aren't speedy enough, after that it will cost you $59.99/month.

One annoyance, the app doesn't seem to save your user name and password, so each time you run it, you'll have to enter them again, which could be frustrating especially when you want to get that date fast.

Other than that, I find the SpeedDate application kind of fun and easy to use. Of course, it doesn't guarantee a success story. This generally requires hope and patience, which are free but unfortunately, take time.