Lavalife.com Review
Tested: March/3/2010 |
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Review
Lavalife.com doesn't have as many members as Match or Yahoo!Personals, but this site is getting popular real fast. And here is why:
Unlike the mentioned sites, Lavalife.com gives you a full access* to the site as a free member. You can register for free, create a profile (with photos), browse full member profiles (and see their photos and videos), contact as many members as you want with unlimited smiles and reply to everyone who contacts you all for free!
That means you can chat for free if someone emails or instant messages you first. And that's what normally happens after you "smile" at someone. Other dating sites won't let you do that. The only thing you can't do as a free member is writing initial emails and instant messages. The fact that you can reply for free to every message also means that you will be able to contact all (!) members (free and paid members) which is not necessary the case on other dating sites.
Another difference is that Lavalife.com has 3 different areas: a dating area, a relationship area and an intimate area. You can create a different profile in each of these sections if you want for free. In other words: you can have three different profiles (that pursue different goals). This makes Lavalife.com much more versatile than common dating sites. You can decide for yourself what you are looking for, browse in each section separately and connect with people who have the same wish. You can even narrow down your search to within one mile of your location. The good thing about Lavalife.com is also that they do a good job sorting out fake profiles.
Bottom Line: If you are willing to search on your own and don't need any match-suggestions and a time-consuming personality test, lavalife.com, with its free approach, the 3 communities and the easy to use website, might be the service you have been looking for you don't risk anything because it's free.
P.S. With only $18.99 per month (3 months-subscription) and $29.99 for a 1 month-subscription, lavalife.com is even less expensive than Match.com and Yahoo!Personals.com (3 month membership rate). Unlike free members, paid members can send/receive unlimited instant messages, send/receive unlimited emails and Live video chat with other members over webcam.
 | To Lavalife.com |
All Features:
 | 7 million members |
| Free trial (Full Access* as a free member) |
| Free registration (adult dating profile with photo) |
| Browse members for free at any time (free search on full members profiles) |
| Free smiles (contact as many singles as you want) |
| Free to reply to everyone who contacts you - guaranteed |
| Sign up to one or all 3 of communities: dating, relationship and intimate |
| Search for members to within a one mile radius of where you live |
| See when a member was last online |
| Free email alerts when you catch someone's eye |
| View Videos for free |
| Lavalife Magazine (online dating articles) |
| Send/receive unlimited instant messages (paid members) |
| Send/receive unlimited emails ('') |
| Live video chat with other members over your webcam ('') |
| Available in French ('') |
* => except for: Send/receive unlimited instant messages (paid members), Send/receive unlimited emails (''), Live video chat with other members over your webcam ('')
Pros and Cons:
The Pros:
- Free trial (full access* to the site as a free member)
- 3 different categories (dating, relationship and intimate)
- Up to 3 free different profiles (with photos)
- Browse members for free at any time (view full members profiles)
- Unlimited Free smiles (let you contact someone)
- Free to reply to everyone who contacts you
- Real Profiles (fake profiles get sorted out)
- Narrow down your area
- Easy to use
- Acceptable Price
The Cons:
- No match-suggestions (you have to search for yourself)
- No personality test
| To Lavalife.com |
User Comments:
by Kyle, Mcihigan - Rating: 
Its great for meeting new people and there's a huge range of people to choose from of all different ages & interests. Thats why i like it so much...
Its great for meeting new people and there's a huge range of people to choose from of all different ages & interests. Thats why i like it so much...
by spankygoodtime - Rating:
Try Lavalife for an eruption in your love life
Lavalife is one of the many dating sites that abound on the Internet and in my opinion one of the better. I don? really think of the Internet as an ideal way to find a partner, but it does widen your options considerably. I have chatted and made friends with men that I would never have met by any other means.
~~ Free features of the site ~~
This site is American however there are members from all over the World. It is possible to log on to the site as a guest, and see how many members are from your locality before signing up.
~ Profiles ~
As is normal on this kind of site, a user signs up and posts some information for others to see. Your log on name does not have to be the same as the one on your profile, which is good from a security point of view. There are three sections you can post a profile in that are geared to the different requirements users might have. Some people post a profile in just one, others all three. It is possible to use different handles for each section.
Dating: This section is geared for people who are just looking for friends.
Relationsip: This is for people who are looking for a serious, long-term relationship.
Intimate: This is for people seeking casual encounters or for those looking for serious relationships with likeminded partners with more unusual sexual tastes. When you create a profile here, there are pulldown menus that allow you to show prospective partners what you are into. It is possible for couples to create profiles as well as singles and you are allowed to detail your sexual desires/fantasies as long as you adhere to site rules.
You can hide your profile but still log on and chat; no one can see you unless you message them. It is also possible to delete a profile and create another under a new handle within the same account. You can also temporarily hide your profile, if perhaps you meet someone and want to see how it goes, or delete it permanently.
~ Astrological, erotic and compatibility reports ~
These can be viewed providing the member has entered the relevant information when signing on.
~ Searches ~
When you click on the online section of the site, you will come to the worldwide section and see everyone in the order that they have logged on. There is a further link to local members that are online.
You can also enter criteria such as profiles with photographs, locality, and age and so on to perform a search for an ideal partner. The results of the search can be saved.
~ Hotlist ~
You can create a hotlist of your favourite members, which allows you to see when they are online.
~ Show someone you are interested ~
If you would like to chat to a member and get to know him or her better, you can send a smile. The recipient receives a smiley face along with a link to your profile. Hopefully he or she will send a smile back to you indicating that they are interested. It is also possible to send a smile with a message but this facility is part of the paying features of the site.
~ Blocking a member ~
If you are getting obscene messages, or a member is just being a nuisance, you can block them from seeing you online or contacting you. You won? see that person online and their details will not come up in search results.
~ Photographs ~ You can post photographs of yourself in all the profiles you have created, either on public view, or if you are shy, backstage. If you have pictures backstage you allow the people you want to see them. In Dating and Romance these photographs must be respectable and no nudity is allowed, in Intimate nudity is allowed backstage.
~~ Paying features of the site ~~
To be honest it is probably the guys that have to pay on this site, as they outnumber the women by 5-1. I have never put my hand in my pocket, but I do use the free tokens that are sometimes offered by this site.
If you get a message and the sender is online you can answer them. However when their chat time is up one of you will have to spend tokens to continue the conversation. You will receive messages that have been sent after you have gone offline, when you next log on. It is possible to look at past chat messages from up to a month ago, which is useful. It does show all messages sent and when I have looked I have found messages that I missed seeing during a chat session. Useful for preventing misunderstandings!
~ Finally ~
The best tip I can give is if you are interested in someone let them have an email address or some means of contacting you as quickly as you can. There is nothing more frustrating than running out of chat time at that crucial moment.
Remember the server can be slow and flaky and this can cause misunderstandings. That wonderful man may not be ignoring you, it could be the server going slow with chat messages.
There are time wasters and wankers on this site as much as any other, so don? take things too seriously. I know a few people who have met their partners on the Net so don? take the all too common rudeness and bad manners to heart, there are plenty of genuine people who are honestly looking for a relationship. Remember that the Net is an extension of your social life, but not your only social life. So get out as much as you can, it really is the best way of all to meet new people. Good luck.
Try Lavalife for an eruption in your love life
Lavalife is one of the many dating sites that abound on the Internet and in my opinion one of the better. I don? really think of the Internet as an ideal way to find a partner, but it does widen your options considerably. I have chatted and made friends with men that I would never have met by any other means.
~~ Free features of the site ~~
This site is American however there are members from all over the World. It is possible to log on to the site as a guest, and see how many members are from your locality before signing up.
~ Profiles ~
As is normal on this kind of site, a user signs up and posts some information for others to see. Your log on name does not have to be the same as the one on your profile, which is good from a security point of view. There are three sections you can post a profile in that are geared to the different requirements users might have. Some people post a profile in just one, others all three. It is possible to use different handles for each section.
Dating: This section is geared for people who are just looking for friends.
Relationsip: This is for people who are looking for a serious, long-term relationship.
Intimate: This is for people seeking casual encounters or for those looking for serious relationships with likeminded partners with more unusual sexual tastes. When you create a profile here, there are pulldown menus that allow you to show prospective partners what you are into. It is possible for couples to create profiles as well as singles and you are allowed to detail your sexual desires/fantasies as long as you adhere to site rules.
You can hide your profile but still log on and chat; no one can see you unless you message them. It is also possible to delete a profile and create another under a new handle within the same account. You can also temporarily hide your profile, if perhaps you meet someone and want to see how it goes, or delete it permanently.
~ Astrological, erotic and compatibility reports ~
These can be viewed providing the member has entered the relevant information when signing on.
~ Searches ~
When you click on the online section of the site, you will come to the worldwide section and see everyone in the order that they have logged on. There is a further link to local members that are online.
You can also enter criteria such as profiles with photographs, locality, and age and so on to perform a search for an ideal partner. The results of the search can be saved.
~ Hotlist ~
You can create a hotlist of your favourite members, which allows you to see when they are online.
~ Show someone you are interested ~
If you would like to chat to a member and get to know him or her better, you can send a smile. The recipient receives a smiley face along with a link to your profile. Hopefully he or she will send a smile back to you indicating that they are interested. It is also possible to send a smile with a message but this facility is part of the paying features of the site.
~ Blocking a member ~
If you are getting obscene messages, or a member is just being a nuisance, you can block them from seeing you online or contacting you. You won? see that person online and their details will not come up in search results.
~ Photographs ~ You can post photographs of yourself in all the profiles you have created, either on public view, or if you are shy, backstage. If you have pictures backstage you allow the people you want to see them. In Dating and Romance these photographs must be respectable and no nudity is allowed, in Intimate nudity is allowed backstage.
~~ Paying features of the site ~~
To be honest it is probably the guys that have to pay on this site, as they outnumber the women by 5-1. I have never put my hand in my pocket, but I do use the free tokens that are sometimes offered by this site.
If you get a message and the sender is online you can answer them. However when their chat time is up one of you will have to spend tokens to continue the conversation. You will receive messages that have been sent after you have gone offline, when you next log on. It is possible to look at past chat messages from up to a month ago, which is useful. It does show all messages sent and when I have looked I have found messages that I missed seeing during a chat session. Useful for preventing misunderstandings!
~ Finally ~
The best tip I can give is if you are interested in someone let them have an email address or some means of contacting you as quickly as you can. There is nothing more frustrating than running out of chat time at that crucial moment.
Remember the server can be slow and flaky and this can cause misunderstandings. That wonderful man may not be ignoring you, it could be the server going slow with chat messages.
There are time wasters and wankers on this site as much as any other, so don? take things too seriously. I know a few people who have met their partners on the Net so don? take the all too common rudeness and bad manners to heart, there are plenty of genuine people who are honestly looking for a relationship. Remember that the Net is an extension of your social life, but not your only social life. So get out as much as you can, it really is the best way of all to meet new people. Good luck.
by ninac, Pheonix, AZ - Rating:
There are so many sexy, erotic men on this site. If you're looking for online dating with singles who know how to have fun, men who know how to kiss, and erotic online chat, I recommend lava life for sure.
There are so many sexy, erotic men on this site. If you're looking for online dating with singles who know how to have fun, men who know how to kiss, and erotic online chat, I recommend lava life for sure.
by Will Frakes, Calgary, Canada - Rating:
I have actually met women from Lavalife that I am still friends with, and hopefully I may get more out of. Lavalife seems to be the best of the bad lot of these sites, I have even had 2 1/2 successes with the intimates section. I would give Lavalife 5 stars but it isnt perfect.
I have also met some crazy girls, one in the intimate section after meeting, saying I wasnt for her as I was 'too affectionate'.. WTF? (and women complain about men not being affectionate enough! I give up!) and also wasted credits smiling at girls with no photo, only to find out that some of them are hideous. Im sure the women get hideous men too, so alls fair in love and war.
The upsides to Lavalife are: Lavalife seems to kill fake profiles quickly -you know, the IMPOSSIBLY HOT girls smiling at you, who are typically 18/19 who has been on it one day, you learn to wait a few days to smile back, and Lavalife deletes them. I find that usually, impossibly HOT girls dont need to be on Lavalife in the intimates section, they can get some anytime they like offline. No recurring fees, just credits (in Canada anyway) custom filtration is quite handy, quick searches are a good idea.
Downsides are: one cant hide profiles one has already decided isnt for you, no way to filter out women one has already smiled at, forcing one to wade through scores of pics, Doesnt keep track of total smiles sent to received ratio, the Lavalife 'party'isnt geo based, so ergo pointless, poor profile weeding out in 'intimate' sections, such as girls posting profiles that state "I dont want sex/nsa" etc (so why the HELL are they on intimates for???!)
Other than that, the usual ups and downs apply to the site. Girls being optimistic about their weight, putting 'few extra pounds' or 'average' when they are clearly VERY overweight, forcing one to untick the FEW (and I stress FEW) extra pounds box. To be fair, alot of men tick 'muscular' or 'athletic' when they have visible beer guts, so it does cut both ways.
From personal experience, I have found with Lavalife and all others that one has a high failure rate of smiles, flirts or what have you. With Lavalife, I must have smiled at every half decent girl 18-30 within a 200 mile radius over the last year or so, Im guessing it must be at least 300 smiles I have sent out, for a return of about hmmmm 20? I have learned, that to have even a small degree of success, one has to almost 'smile spam' a site in huge numbers, just to harvest a few back. I am currently figuring out how to write an automated script to send smiles in the hundreds, as otherwise one has to spend HOURS in front of the PC to do this. ( I will probably get flak for this...)
In essence, Im just about done with Lavalife. I have pretty much exhausted the site, and to send out another 300 or so smiles to get 20 back is too much like hard work.
Everone knows that with dating sites, if you are a half decently attractive and nice intelligent girl, you get huge numbers of smiles/flirts/IMs from men, and that women dont really 'need' to activley participate, it all comes to them. Its highly likely that Lavalife and others have a 100 males to 10 females ratio too, further diluting the pool.
I think im going to go back to hitting the bars. Least I can talk to real people and not sit in front of the PC to send out smile after smile for little return!!!
I have actually met women from Lavalife that I am still friends with, and hopefully I may get more out of. Lavalife seems to be the best of the bad lot of these sites, I have even had 2 1/2 successes with the intimates section. I would give Lavalife 5 stars but it isnt perfect.
I have also met some crazy girls, one in the intimate section after meeting, saying I wasnt for her as I was 'too affectionate'.. WTF? (and women complain about men not being affectionate enough! I give up!) and also wasted credits smiling at girls with no photo, only to find out that some of them are hideous. Im sure the women get hideous men too, so alls fair in love and war.
The upsides to Lavalife are: Lavalife seems to kill fake profiles quickly -you know, the IMPOSSIBLY HOT girls smiling at you, who are typically 18/19 who has been on it one day, you learn to wait a few days to smile back, and Lavalife deletes them. I find that usually, impossibly HOT girls dont need to be on Lavalife in the intimates section, they can get some anytime they like offline. No recurring fees, just credits (in Canada anyway) custom filtration is quite handy, quick searches are a good idea.
Downsides are: one cant hide profiles one has already decided isnt for you, no way to filter out women one has already smiled at, forcing one to wade through scores of pics, Doesnt keep track of total smiles sent to received ratio, the Lavalife 'party'isnt geo based, so ergo pointless, poor profile weeding out in 'intimate' sections, such as girls posting profiles that state "I dont want sex/nsa" etc (so why the HELL are they on intimates for???!)
Other than that, the usual ups and downs apply to the site. Girls being optimistic about their weight, putting 'few extra pounds' or 'average' when they are clearly VERY overweight, forcing one to untick the FEW (and I stress FEW) extra pounds box. To be fair, alot of men tick 'muscular' or 'athletic' when they have visible beer guts, so it does cut both ways.
From personal experience, I have found with Lavalife and all others that one has a high failure rate of smiles, flirts or what have you. With Lavalife, I must have smiled at every half decent girl 18-30 within a 200 mile radius over the last year or so, Im guessing it must be at least 300 smiles I have sent out, for a return of about hmmmm 20? I have learned, that to have even a small degree of success, one has to almost 'smile spam' a site in huge numbers, just to harvest a few back. I am currently figuring out how to write an automated script to send smiles in the hundreds, as otherwise one has to spend HOURS in front of the PC to do this. ( I will probably get flak for this...)
In essence, Im just about done with Lavalife. I have pretty much exhausted the site, and to send out another 300 or so smiles to get 20 back is too much like hard work.
Everone knows that with dating sites, if you are a half decently attractive and nice intelligent girl, you get huge numbers of smiles/flirts/IMs from men, and that women dont really 'need' to activley participate, it all comes to them. Its highly likely that Lavalife and others have a 100 males to 10 females ratio too, further diluting the pool.
I think im going to go back to hitting the bars. Least I can talk to real people and not sit in front of the PC to send out smile after smile for little return!!!
by Sheffield, Chicago, IL - Rating:
America's sexiest dating site!
America's sexiest dating site!
by Anonymous - Rating:
I met my soulmate on here, so I can say nothing but good things about LavaLife. The best experience of my life. I guess it all depends on the people you meet, but I did talk to a couple of nice enough guys, and then well... as they say "the rest is history" =) Love it!
I met my soulmate on here, so I can say nothing but good things about LavaLife. The best experience of my life. I guess it all depends on the people you meet, but I did talk to a couple of nice enough guys, and then well... as they say "the rest is history" =) Love it!
by Michael, NEw Jersey - Rating:
I joined up with Lavalife not with the intention to meet anyone really just to make conversation and get some confidence back after a traumatic separation and divorce. I joined Lavalife on a Wednesday, got talking to a wonderful guy that night. Talked for 4 hours, talked for about 3 hours on the Thursday night. Met up (in a public place) on the Friday night and have been together ever since. We are engaged and are getting married in November this year. So for me, Lavalife is the best. Thanks Lavalife!
I joined up with Lavalife not with the intention to meet anyone really just to make conversation and get some confidence back after a traumatic separation and divorce. I joined Lavalife on a Wednesday, got talking to a wonderful guy that night. Talked for 4 hours, talked for about 3 hours on the Thursday night. Met up (in a public place) on the Friday night and have been together ever since. We are engaged and are getting married in November this year. So for me, Lavalife is the best. Thanks Lavalife!
Lavalife.com Commercials:
| To Lavalife.com |
Well, I wanted to just hook up and have meaningless sex with some random moderately attractive women in my area. I didn't get ANYWHERE with that, at all. Got quite a few messages/winks and numbers from some attractive women looking for something more serious though. And I ended up meeting my girlfriend of 2 years on there. Beautiful girl, identical tastes, but probably not someone I would have run into outside of the internet, since I'm not terribly outspoken. So, while I didn't get what I initially set out for, I did get something good out of it. In my experience at least, definately more a dating site than a getting laid site.