Today, dating sites and apps have become quite commonplace. It is now difficult for the younger generation to even imagine that once everyone just met offline, and there was no internet at all. But have you ever wondered how long dating sites have been around?

Some will say that online dating as we know it first appeared in 2012, when the Tinder application was launched, and became truly revolutionary. Others may look deeper into history and remember that Match.com was launched in 1995. That’s why this site is referred to by many as the prototype for all modern dating sites and applications. But this is not entirely correct either.

Online dating can be traced back to the middle of the twentieth century. True, at that time these services were not at all like modern dating services. But let’s still plunge into the past and see how things operated.

A brief history of web dating

Modern online dating in most cases is based on comparing people according to a number of parameters. Algorithms analyze data for each person and try to find the perfect match for them among other users. This is the principle behind Match.com. However, the developers of Match did not invent it at all.

In 1959, two Stanford students, Jim Harvey and Phil Filer, worked together on a project for the Happy Family Planning Service. They used a punch card questionnaire and an IBM 650 mainframe computer to compare data from 49 men and 49 women and link them to the best match.

At that time, Harvey and Filer’s project was not very successful and was not commercialized in any way. Today, however, many experts believe that it is the concept of these two students that lies at the root of all modern web dating.

A much more significant project was the joint development by Harvard students Jeff Tarr and Vaughan Morrill in 1965 — the so-called “Operation Match”. In essence, it was similar to the Harvey and Filer project, but here the developers used data from other Harvard students to compare them based on similarities. The student audience turned out to be extremely interested in this development, so word about the Tarr and Morril project began to gain momentum very quickly and soon went beyond Harvard.

In the sixties, ordinary student development attracted millions of people. It also became commercially successful — each user paid $3 to fill out the questionnaire. Given the rapidly growing audience, even such a small fee eventually brought developers a lot of money. And where there is a lot of money, there is always a lot of competition.

In 1995, the aforementioned Match.com website was launched, and after that, hundreds of other dating services for every taste. Today there are more than eight thousand of them around the world. And this number continues to grow rapidly. On the one hand, this is a plus – after all, a large selection is always good. But on the other hand, it is too easy to get confused by such variety and it’s not always possible to find something really worthwhile.

Many even believe that the days of classic online dating have already passed, and that Match, Tinder, Badoo, Bumble, and other popular dating sites just don’t work. It’s hard to disagree with this, because online dating often hides only disappointment and a waste of time behind beautiful words and advertising. That is why users are increasingly looking for alternatives to the usual sites and dating applications. One such alternative was random video chat, for example, Chatrandom and its many alternatives.

Chatrandom: the original random video chat or a typical chatroulette?

At first glance, Chatrandom is no different from most popular chatroulettes. However, if we take a closer look at it and examine all the functionality available on the site, the difference is more obvious. What makes Chatrandom stand out? Can this random video chat app replace classic dating sites and apps? And what alternatives to Chatrandom should be used if this video chat does not suit you for some reason? Read on to find out more…

History and features of Chatrandom

The Chatrandom project was launched in 2011. According to the developers, they were guided by the idea of making video dating as accessible and understandable as possible for people from all over the world. All you need is a webcam and internet access. And then Chatrandom opens up a world of possibilities for you.

If you know a bit about the history of video chats, then you know that Chatrandom was not the first of its kind. Random video chats Omegle and Chatroulette appeared two years before it. However, it was Chatrandom that offered users completely new opportunities to meet and communicate with random people. This is what drew so much attention to it.

In general, Chatrandom is a completely classic random video chat where you can meet and chat with other users face to face. There are gender and language filters, as well as search by interests — the classic setup of a modern chatroulette. However, Chatrandom also has a few unique features:

1. Themed chat rooms are sections of the site on various topics in which several participants can communicate at the same time.
2. A separate chat with girls feature is a paid section for men who want to communicate exclusively with the opposite gender.
3. Chat for gays is a convenient built-in platform for representatives of LGBTQ+ sexual orientations.

Already these features have turned out to be enough for many to choose Chatrandom video chat for meeting and communicating with new people. But the site has both obvious pros and cons.

Advantages and disadvantages of the service

Perhaps one of the main advantages of Chatrandom is that you do not need to register. You can start chatting with new people in just a few clicks. And to refine your search for users, you can specify your gender, select a country and write a list of interests in a separate field. This will help the algorithm to select more suitable people for you to meet.

Among other advantages of Chatrandom:

• Simple and clear minimalist interface
• Decent moderation and support service
• User-friendly mobile apps
• Fast connection and quite an active audience

However, video chat also has certain disadvantages:

• The gender filter is very easy to deceive
• Video chat with girls is paid
• Limited number of interface languages within the service

For many, these disadvantages are unimportant. For others, this is a good reason to look for alternatives to Chatrandom with wider functionality and flexible settings.

Worthy alternatives to Chatrandom

There are dozens and maybe even hundreds of interesting alternatives to Chatrandom. But to save you time, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with some of the most famous of them:

• CooMeet — a very popular random video chat that men will appreciate primarily. The thing is that video chat with strangers CooMeet has a unique gender filter and connects men only with girls. This saves a lot of time and allows you to find promising acquaintances much faster. For your convenience, there is a built-in text message translator. And thanks to mobile applications for iOS and Android, you can stay in touch at any time.
• Chathub — a good alternative to Chatrandom with a minimum number of settings. In fact, there are only gender and language filters. But for many users, this is quite enough for happy communication and dating. Chathub does not have a mobile version, but the site is well optimized for mobile devices.
• Bazoocam — a video chat that, although it looks a little dated, is still quite popular due to its large and active audience, as well as a few original features. Firstly, there are online mini-games, and secondly, a built-in streaming service.
• Chatous — a rival to Chatrandom for smartphones. The application combines a random video chat and a usable messenger. You can add users you like to your friends list to stay in touch and not lose each other. This is a very useful feature for prospective dating.
• Chatroulette — one of the first video chats in history. The site suffered from poor moderation for a long time, but in 2020, the developers finally paid attention to this issue and the situation returned to normal. Chatroulette is far from its former glory, but this video chat still has a devoted audience.

Each site is unique in its own way, and has its own advantages and disadvantages. We cannot say that there is one ideal platform that will suit absolutely everyone. This is not true. Therefore, we recommend that you try different options and make the final decision yourself. You will definitely find your perfect alternative to Chatrandom!

Don’t be afraid to experiment

Chatrandom random video chat is a really convenient and functional online platform for meeting new people from almost all round the world. And if the chatroulette format itself is to your liking, then Chatrandom will definitely satisfy most of your needs. If this is not the case, you can easily find a high-quality alternative that you will definitely like.

For our part, we recommend you don’t be afraid to experiment with online dating formats and always try something new. You have a huge number of opportunities to meet interesting people, find new friends or even meet your love. You just need to take advantage of these opportunities. Good luck!