1

I was trying to use the latest version of Tinder 3.3.1 but each time I get the following message:

Get Google Play services

This app won't work without Google Play services, which are missing from your phone.

Since this is not covered by their FAQ and their support service ignored my inquiry, what is the reason for this happening? Why would Tinder need an active Gmail account on the phone? I'm asking since I use my Android device without a Google account, hence I'm not sure whether to expect Tinder to work correctly or not.

In other words, what Tinder functionality could possibly break?

I also noticed an additional notification from Tinder:

Failed to Enable Push Notifications. Your Google account credentials are invalid.

Could this explain why I am not getting any matches?

Improve this question
4
  • 2
    Needing Google Play Services installed isn't the same thing as needing a Gmail account, nor even a Google account. Why do you say it is the latter?
    – Dan Hulme
    Oct 11, 2014 at 23:49
  • Well, I have Google Market pre-installed with the phone. But I never connected it to a Google account. Still, I get the "Google Play services" error message. What would explain this?
    – landroni
    Oct 12, 2014 at 14:40
  • What Android version are you on? If you still have Android Market instead of Google Play, it's almost certainly too old to run Tinder.
    – Dan Hulme
    Oct 12, 2014 at 14:42
  • I'm running 2.3.4 Gingerbread, and Tinder's FAQ advertises Android 2.3+ support.
    – landroni
    Oct 12, 2014 at 15:17

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
2

Disclosure: I don't use Tinder. This answer is based on general knowledge about Play Services.

What is the reason for this happening?

Looks like Google Play services is not installed on the device or updated. To install it, please refer to Install Google Play Services without Google Play Store. To update it, please refer to Google Play Store or download manually (e.g. from APK Mirror)

Why would Tinder need an active Gmail account on the phone?

As mentioned in the comment by Dan Hulme, "Needing Google Play Services installed isn't the same thing as needing a Gmail account, nor even a Google account." which is partially true regarding Google account (read the next section).

In other words, what Tinder functionality could possibly break?

For Tinder-specific functionality, possibly nothing. However, as already stated in the question,

Failed to Enable Push Notifications. Your Google account credentials are invalid.

The Tinder app may not be able to receive any push notifications (through Google Cloud Messaging). If it is not a concern, then this message can be ignored. However, setting up a Google account is needed on Android 2.x. From Google Cloud Messaging documentation,

It uses an existing connection for Google services. For pre-3.0 devices, this requires users to set up their Google account on their mobile devices. A Google account is not a requirement on devices running Android 4.0.4 or higher.

(Emphasized added)

Could this explain why I am not getting any matches?

As explained in OP's self-answer, no, the matchmaking system has nothing to do with Google Play services and Google Cloud Messaging.

Improve this answer
3
  • Thanks for the explanations. "you won't get any push notification from Tinder (through Google Cloud Messaging). If you don't care about it, then you may just ignore it." What type of notifications would one expect to be sent via GCM? It's not obvious to me that I'm lacking any app functionality...
    – landroni
    Nov 11, 2014 at 7:25
  • I still can't really say since I haven't tested Tinder, but basically it's a notification similar to WhatsApp when a new message comes, or when there is a new email from any Email Client app. However, since I read from the FAQ that there is a messaging function, perhaps you won't get any notifications from Tinder when there is a new message. This is more of a speculation than a fact, though.
    – Andrew T. ♦
    Nov 11, 2014 at 7:30
  • OK, I see then. Probably on new messages you don't get Android wide notification, but you can still see within Tinder if a new message arrives. So no biggy...
    – landroni
    Nov 11, 2014 at 8:10
0

Actually the app seems to work just fine. I am getting matches, can chat with them, so it looks like Tinder's error message is erroneous.

In any case no obvious functionality appears broken.

Improve this answer
3
  • My device never finished finding people - as if it could not lock a location. Can you confirm you don't have Google Play Services installed?
    – WhyNotHugo
    Nov 13, 2015 at 2:26
  • @Hugo Yes, no configured Google Play. Sometimes the app needs restarting to work properly, or GPS re-enabled...
    – landroni
    Nov 13, 2015 at 7:24
  • Actually, I left it open for quite a while longer, and Play Services kept crashing (all I saw was the error "Unfortunately Google Services has crashed"), while Tinder didn't get any data. Using the Amazon Apps version solved the issue for me.
    – WhyNotHugo
    Nov 13, 2015 at 18:08

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .