Picture a man shopping for an engagement ring.
I see a guy with his hands buried in his pockets hovering over a sparkling glass case of jewels. Beads of sweat are forming on his forehead. He’s biting his lower lip with his eyebrows squished together trying to envision his girlfriend’s face when looking at each ring.
He’s completely out of his element and thinking of only her. It’s all just so romantic, isn’t it? Well now there’s an app for it.
Shopping for an engagement ring goes mobile today with the Tiffany & Co. Engagement Ring Finder, the jeweler’s first iPhone application. Now that same guy can thumb through diamond rings on the subway or in front of the television.
Romantic? No. Resourceful? Yes. The app is free and lets anyone easily browse the Tiffany engagement collection according to shape, setting, metal or design. That means us too, ladies, and trust me – it’s fun.
The rings are shown true-to-size, and you can even up the carats. I won’t lie – I did place the iPhone over my left ring finger to envision what my favorite style would look like on my hand while playing with the new app. What I did not do, however, (in order to save my boyfriend from heart palpitations) is pair it with a wedding band and send it to him via e-mail, text message, or Facebook. But ladies, these are all options!
The coolest feature: The app comes with an accurate Ring Sizer that lets you figure out your size by placing an actual ring directly on the screen and aligning it with the correct circle in the guide. I thought this was pretty clever. Guys, now you can sneak a ring out of her jewelry box and figure out her size without having to blow any surprises by having to ask. And ladies, most of us don’t even know our own size, so this crafty app will take the guesswork out of any ring purchase.
What you can’t do with the app is actually buy a ring. Thank you, Tiffany, for keeping the process still somewhat special by requiring users to make an appointment for a diamond consultation if they’re really interested in purchasing that perfect ring. You can still do this all through the app, though, so no extra steps required if you’re serious about buying.
While I still fear Tiffany may have sucked a little romance out of the engagement equation in efforts to keep up with technology, I’m starting to realize that even Romeo probably would have picked out Juliet’s ring in the comfort of his own home if he had the option. And as long as the ring still comes in a little blue box, there’s no way any excitement will be lost.
Download the free Tiffany and Co. Engagement Ring Finder at the iTunes store.
Written by JSG contributor Liz Regalia.
