Despite the useful photo hook, Raw is a generic dating app lacking the cool features found in Bumble, Hinge, and Tinder. You swipe right on profiles you like, you swipe left on profiles you don’t. It’s a time-tested formula that works well enough in Raw’s clean, basic interface.
However, the profiles don’t offer much information. I didn’t expect it to rival Match’s profile depth, but Raw only lists a person’s name, age, and daily pic. With only one picture to look at instead of a gallery, this is arguably a shallower way to judge people. It goes against the emphasis on realness.
Oddly, Raw still lets you create a more fleshed-out profile, with additional photos, a bio, and hot takes. However, this information doesn’t appear while swiping. Presumably, that data influences who shows up in your feed. After all, die-hard sports fans who want kids probably aren’t looking for someone who loves anime and dislikes children.
(Credit: Raw/PCMag)
Raw has nifty messaging features to keep conversations safe and cordial. For example, the Respect Meter adds a red flag to seemingly toxic answers on a person’s profile. It also adds a green flag to reassuring answers. In addition, the Ghosting Killer feature stops you from initiating a new connection if you have too many other open conversations you haven’t responded to (maybe this will teach you how to have a healthy breakup). These clever tools go beyond merely blocking and reporting someone, which you can also do.
Raw also has a few AI dating features, although these seem nebulous. Raw Q is an AI assistant that analyzes profiles and conversations to provide automatic dating advice. Algorithms are nothing new for dating apps, but reducing the human element in communications seems a little troublesome. Meanwhile, The Ring is a physical ring that claims to share emotions between partners using AI and bio-sensors. We’ll see if that takes off.
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