Swarm by Foursquare is a new social checkin and meetup up for iPhone. At first I was a little stumped. Why would I need Swarm if my friends and I already use Foursquare? However, as I started using Swarm I started to change my mind. It's a different app and it's useful for something that's both similar and yet very different from Foursquare — seeing what your friends are up to and figuring out how and where to meet up with them.

Anyone who already uses Foursquare should understand the basic concepts of Swarm immediately. Just as you would check in on Foursquare, you can do the same through Swarm. The main difference is that Swarm is meant to be used when you are looking for something to do or you're attending an event you'd like other people to join you. Get an iPhone SE with Mint Mobile service for $30/mo

While Foursquare functions as a feed of all your Foursquare contacts, Swarm focuses only on those that are currently nearby. The main screen gives you an overview of who is in your direct vicinity, whose a few miles out, and who's far away. If you're looking for something to do, let your friends know where you are by checking in and then post a status. They can then let you know they're interested. Since Swarm can actively run in the background, it can alert you when your friends are nearby or want to meet up. The only downside is that obviously constant use of GPS can and will run your battery down faster. Swarm also integrates with Twitter, Facebook Messenger, and SMS — if you let it. This means if one of your friends is nearby and you want to contact them, just tap on their photo choose your contact method. Since Swarm ties directly into Foursquare, you'll also receive all your Foursquare friend requests through Swarm as well.