Foursquare has updated its iOS app with a new rating system that gives locations a score from 1 to 10, taking in decimal points. The scores appear in the app's Explore feature, as well as the site's main web view, and are generated from a variety of metrics including likes, dislikes, check-ins, and more. Foursquare says this is more useful than the ratings employed by "other sites where every place gets 3.5 stars," in a clear swipe at competitors such as Yelp.

While it's certainly true that averaged ratings can become uniform to the point where they're of little use, we'll have to see if Foursquare's differentiated approach proves any more helpful in practice. For more on Foursquare, make sure to check out this week's episode of On The Verge, where we'll be talking to CEO Dennis Crowley.