Your Terrible Phone Habits Destroying Your Dating Game

Especially in the early days of a romance, phone manners are crucial. Coming across as weird, rude or cloying does no one any favors. But how do you know whether you give bad phone?

The Daily Mail reports that TalkTalk Mobile recently surveyed 1,000 people across the U.K. about smartphone etiquette and romance. Apparently, the top offense was using an insufficient number of kisses in text messages, which reads as “impolite and a brush off.”

That’s funny, because I would’ve said my top turn-off was using any kissy-faced emojis at all, ever.

Britons have some other weird hang-ups too, like texting after 11 p.m. (just turn off your phone at bedtime maybe?) and “emailing pointless small talk.” Pointless small talk is the stuff long-term relationships are made of.

Other sins were more reasonable, though, like taking calls mid-meal, resending messages when you don’t get an immediate answer, and leaving your phone on at the movie theater. One of the biggest offenses was overuse of acronyms like LOL. The Daily Mail says this is because “they make the sender seem overly keen or too needy,” but I would argue it just makes you look dumb.

Meanwhile, half of male respondents said it was OK to dump someone via text message. How many kisses am I supposed to include in THAT missive? Plz advise.