Foursquare wants to widen its user base and what better way to do it than by creating a brand-new app. Foursquare will soon divide its solitary app into two separate ones: Foursquare, for finding new places and Swarm, for checking in and alerting friends to your presence.
Foursquare realized that there are two kinds of people who use its app: Those who like to find new places and read reviews, and those who wanted to check in at specific locations to let their friends know where to find them.
Foursquare found that these two very different types of users weren't making the most of both aspects of the single foursquare app, so the company decided to split the app into two separate apps. Doing so will kill two birds with one stone: It will allow Foursquare to build its user base and it will allow users to make the most out of what each individual app has to offer.
"Swarm is for people who want the fastest and easiest way to connect with their friends. Foursquare is for explorers who want to know about the best spots, and to share what they've found with others," Foursquare said in a blog post.
The Foursquare app will feature reviews of places nearby and help users find the best restaurants, cafes, stores and sites to see. Unlike many location-based finder apps, Foursquare tries to make the search personal with the reviews and recommendations.
"We believe local search should be personalized to your tastes and informed by the people you trust," Foursquare said. "The opinions of actual experts should matter, not just strangers'. An app should be able answer questions like 'give me a great date dinner spot' and not just 'tell me the nearest gas station.'"
Swarm, on the other hand, will be used to check in at all these great places so that your friends know where you're at. Foursquare says that the new app will make it easier than ever for users to see where their friends are at any given time. Swarm sounds an awful lot like Facebook's latest friend-finding feature, Nearby Friends.
Indeed, once Swarm becomes available in the iOS and Android app stores, it will be in direct competition with Facebook's Nearby Friends. Although Nearby Friends isn't a standalone app, it will still be Swarm's only real competitor.
Swarm will be available for downloading "in the coming weeks" for iOS and Android with a Windows Phone app to follow shortly thereafter.
