Is Meexo The Least Creepy Dating App Yet?

A lot of headlines about online dating come across my desktop (er...laptop), but most of them don't merit more than a cursory read. This one, though, caught my eye recently: "Meexo Is the Uncreepy Dating App You Might Actually Consider Using."

Everyone is calling mobile dating the next big thing, but what's holding it back from a total takeover is an unmistakable creep-factor that just won't go away. Do you really want your dates to know where you are, all the time? What happens if someone you're not interested in sees that you're in the same venue and proceeds to pursue you? Awkward.

Meexo, selected as a finalist for the SXSW Accelerator Competition, is hoping to fix that problem and clear mobile dating's tarnished name. The first thing that sets it apart is that it's only a mobile service - there's no website or online social networking experience to go along with it.

The second thing that makes Meexo stand out is its stance on privacy. "Each person's account is tied to their particular device," says Romain David, CEO and co-founder of the company, "and they're only allowed to make one account per device-although they can sign in through multiple devices." With that safeguard in place, people can't make multiple accounts with fake profiles.

For those who are still worried that there's a stigma attached to online dating, Meexo also has a plan in place to prevent your family and friends from accidentally stumbling upon your profile. The app connects to your Facebook account, performs a sort of reverse "find friend" search, then uses the info it finds to ensure sure your contacts never discover your Internet dating habits.

To combat the problem of being flooded with messages from curious suitors, Meexo users are given virtual currency to spend on the site. Every message sent costs you (although messages received are free), which will hopefully force members to be more selective about who they chose to contact.

And for the geeks among you, Meexo promises to provide a range of geek-friendly features to determine compatibility. Take music tastes, for instance: you and a date can connect phones via Bluetooth, then have Meexo scan your music libraries to see what you have in common. An animation of the cover art of songs and albums you both own will float across from one screen to the other.

Meexo is clearly one smart app. So smart, in fact, that it gets smarter the more you use it. Think of it as the Pandora of dating - as you browse profiles and indicate which ones you find most interesting, the app learns about your preferences and makes more intelligent matches for you.

Meexo is currently available for free on the iTunes store.