
Show HN: Sobrr - mrwnmonm
http://www.sobrr.me/
======
egypturnash
I kept waiting to find out what on earth being called "Sober" has to do with a
Snapchat clone. Are your single serving friends supposed to help you in your
quest to not drink any more?

And why does half of the displayed UI seem to refer to it as "Vibe"?

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TRUPPP
I think this is a great app and an interesting idea, but one of the few
projects where I could see the name being a problem for traction and success.
A more generic name, which doesnt associate neccessarily with parties and
drinking, would enable more people to take this app serious. And well, like
for all social apps, I really hope that more plattforms are very close on your
roadmap =) Why wasnt a web-based approach with the opportunity to compile down
to hybrid-apps not an option? Good luck anyway, hope to see you successful,
since I really like the idea =)

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tyang100
Many thanks for pointing out the name part. The android version should be soon
released, targeted this September.

~~~
mponizil
Call it Vibes.

~~~
andkon
The social network for sex toys.

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kmfrk
Write the whole pitch/description in text, because otherwise you'll lose the
people who can't or won't be able to watch the video: people at work,
libraries, auditoriums, etc.

~~~
cbsmith
Yup. Totally lost me. You at least have to convince me about _why_ I should
watch the video.

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math0ne
Immediately thought this was a hook up app for recovering addicts...

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oomkiller
Looks interesting, kinda like Snapchat's My Story on steroids. I would suggest
redoing the voiceover with a better mic and less gain, there is some obvious
clipping going on there. Also, cut the music track down a bit, and maybe pick
one without vocals. It was kinda hard to understand at points, but maybe
that's just my rock-concert ears.

~~~
peaton
No I agree. As soon as I heard the music I instantly started thinking about
it. "Is music always this distracting? Is this louder than normal? What is he
saying. Oh well, I'm sure it's just me." But I'm glad you pointed this out.
Definitely worth a reshoot.

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limsup
The images of a cheering crowd with hands in the air has become annoyingly
cliche for social apps. Nearly as cliche as About pages with circular images
of the employees.

~~~
skrebbel
I'm having fun imagining the Birdman-esque thought process that must have gone
on in your head before writing that comment.

Must... find... something... to... complain... about!!

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brothmc
That name makes no since for this app IMO

~~~
trentmb
Yeah, I was expecting some sort of addiction support app or something.

~~~
tyang100
Only the name without the description will be surely misleading. But i heard
people like it after realizing the ironic part: everything sobers up after
24hours

~~~
bendyorke
I'm not quite sure your using the word ironic correctly (unless there's
something I'm missing).

Although, I did like the name more after the description. :)

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jw_
I clicked on the link wondering how an app is supposed to help with sobriety.
"Does it count days clean? Does it hook you up with somebody to talk to if
you're having a compulsion to use?" Nope! It's yet another damn photosharing
social network. Awesome. Now I can finally share my photos with people online.
Thanks Sobrr.

I like how an app named Sobrr promotes itself with people drunkenly messing
around half-naked, people at a concert, people at a bar. All the things I
personally associate with my own sobriety!

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spyder
_" Sobrr will make sure there is no evidence of your craziness. You will
always be “sober” online."_

The only way they can make it sure is that they don't allow you to post
anything. Otherwise it's just the same lie that Snapchat started and less
tech-savvy people may believe it (that nobody can save their photo that
expires). I'm sure they quickly become sober when they see their "expired"
photo spreading on the net.

To say something positive: I like the 24-hour friendship thing, because it
makes sure there is only active "friends" in your list, and also forces a
little more interaction:

 _" At the end of the 24th hour, you two will be cleared from each other’s
friend list, unless both sides tapped “Keep.”"_

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taejo
Cue "why didn't you keep me as a friend"

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fiatjaf
Another photo sharing app? Really?

~~~
beat
It's symptomatic of the industry. "Startups" are created by kids barely out of
(or still in) college, with little real-world business experience, so they
create what they understand - like photo sharing for drunken hookups. And
investors are there to play on them, like lottery tickets for
multimillionaires, just in case it's the next Snapchat or something. Hmm, has
Snapchat found a revenue model yet?

~~~
micmac99
+1

Branding is critical for any business. The "startup" industry needs to get
that. I'm not convinced that it (as a whole) does. And that fact is both
encouraging and shocking. Job security for me as a design/branding
professional.

~~~
beat
I don't think of this as a branding problem. I think it's a business model
problem. Why another social sharing app? How does this make money or compete
in a viciously crowded field against billion-dollar giants?

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jpeg_hero
I agree with all the other comments here about the name being absolutely
wrong. Maddeningly wrong.

The "hook" for this app seems to be not just disappearing content but also
disappearing "friends" (impermanence is hot!). It's interesting how much this
must hamper any viral uptake. The app itself is deleting the overlap you need
to prompt adoption. what are the odds that two people who are grinding on the
dance floor both have the app installed waiting to connect? What are the odds
I am going to want to take the time to publish a vibe knowing I have very few
permenant contacts?

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bkanber
Lots of harsh criticism in here. I think you guys have done some great work.
Innovation is made incrementally, and you guys have taken two different models
and blended them. Sometimes that works very well, sometimes it doesn't.

I'm not going to try and predict what's going to happen to this app, but I
would say that your biggest challenges will be in getting users to understand
that Sobrr fills a different need of theirs -- if it is a need at all. With
Facebook and SnapChat and Hinge and Tinder it'll be hard to separate
yourselves from the crowd, but I'm wishing you luck.

~~~
jw_
Yes, I can see how differentiating a clone from the things it clones will be a
tough row to hoe.

There is nothing innovative about this at all - it's almost a parody of
useless SV startups.

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carlob
I read it as sobber, the social network for crybabies and whiners.

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anewfounder
Takes a lot of effort to try and guestimate what this page is about if you are
trying to avoid the video.

Also I think the video is done nicely however I am not entirely sure about how
I get exposure to new photos etc - what originates them if everything expires
in 24 hours? After I login the first time I am not clear on how this app would
take me so I am losing a bit the excitement about looking forward to getting
this app

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colinbartlett
Cool, another social network I can ignore.

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benwoodward
Nice! I had a similar idea myself. Have you thought about how you could
reassure users that data really has been deleted?

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cmdrfred
At first glance I'd assume this is like don't break the chain for alcoholics
and drug addicts.

Site looks great though.

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geekam
I seriously thought this was an app that had something to do with alcohol and
getting sober etc.

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drivingmenuts
Is this an app about sobriety or what? That's what the name leads me to think.

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gnopgnip
Is it possible to make this compatible with iPhone 3g?

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jaxbot
Was the low battery (19%) in the demonstration intentional? It is probably
realistic, but there's an xkcd about that, which is never a good sign. Except
when it is.

[http://xkcd.com/1373/](http://xkcd.com/1373/)

~~~
tyang100
Lol. Funny one. At least it shows the screenshots are not fake. Lol

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micmac99
I did not even click the link. All the comments alone made it very clear you
did NOT use the services of a brand/marketing expert that could have helped
clarify/define your brand. Your brand is sorely misunderstood.

Why do startups refuse to hire professional design/branding people at the
early stage? when we can help make your idea into a real winner?????? Sorry
but come on, "It's too expensive" is totally not a good enough excuse. Even
for bootstrappers. Not if you hope to earn a living/funding with your idea. If
the idea's that good, the expense of using a real professional is well worth
the investment. And if the idea is less than good...let us work with you to
get to a good idea. All designers should include fact-finding/question-asking-
probing and positioning statement writing as a basic part of the service.
That's what the major multinational design firms (the ones that work for the
top global companies) do.

~~~
bkanber
Oh, come on -- you admit you didn't click the link but still assume that you
have enough information to go by to criticize them? And start pushing your
services on them?

This is a "Show HN" post. You're supposed to play with it, and _then_ comment.

~~~
micmac99
I stand partially corrected, but sorry, I still stand 110% by the general idea
behind my comments. I'm not "pushing" my services so much as pushing the
concept of rigorously thinking an idea/concept through and testing it before
rolling it out to the public (and getting other professionals involved in the
process) - even if it is a "Show HN" post. When something is posted on any
public forum you do open yourself up to criticism. My apologies if it's taken
the wrong way, but startups DO need to consider this.

