Hot or Not App is not as bad as it seems

Graphic by Clara Ilkka

Ellie Anderson

 

Are you Hot or Not? Is an App that lets people rate you based on looks moralistic?

The app Hot or Not was recently released on iTunes. They have over 190 million members. People around you rate you based on a picture and if you both are interested in each other based on a photo you begin to chat on the app. Should you decide to start chatting with someone just based on a photo you find attractive? Does this app boost confidence or make members self conscious?

The app is very straight forward, you decide whether the person is hot or not based on their picture.

“You put a few pictures of yourself on your profile. Then the app just gives you random people to rate hot or not, if you think someone is hot and they think you are hot then the app connects you both so you can chat,” said senior Dan Smetana. “I never got into any of that. It was pretty fun for a while though.”

Users are not usually looking for a real relationship with anyone on the App and are just using it for entertainment.

Smetana said, “I started using it because I thought it could be fun, I wasn’t trying to meet anyone from it, I was just planning to mess around on it for a while.”

Users are interested to see the score that they have received from people either liking or disliking their picture.

Senior Nate Branwall said, “It’s not a super fun app just was addicting and fun to see your score. I didn’t use it to hook up with girls which it’s made for.”

The app is simple to use and that is a reason so many people are beginning to use it.

“I like the app because it is super simple. A person is either Hot or Not. It was a fun time killer, and it was fun to see people I’ve never seen before,” said Smetana.

Most the time you don’t see pictures of people you know, but it does happen sometimes.

Smetana said, “I saw my cousin on there once, that was pretty weird. That’s when I stopped using it. It’s more fun rating people you’ve never met, than people you know.”

The app can raise your self esteem if you are happy with the score you receive.

Smetana said, “I was happy with my results and it was a solid confidence booster.”

The Hot or Not app is an app that people use for entertainment and students are not looking for a relationship through the app, it is more for entertainment.  Students don’t feel self conscious from the app, it is usually a confidence booster.