Sync Ultra is a very reasonable $17 a YEAR. YouTube Premium is reaching that per MONTH. I have sync downloaded and it was the first thing I did. Thanks j for the beautiful app.
EDIT: There are many counterpoints and actually good discussion happening down below. Even if you don’t agree, thanks for showing me a different perspective!
If you want to support Sync, make sure to support the Lemmy Devs and your instance holders as well!
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I bought the ad free thing on Sync for Reddit but I’m not going to buy a subscription to access a service I host myself.
I love this app but I’m sicker of everything turning into a subscription than I’m frustrated at the Lemmy frontend.
What’s more infuriating is that Lemmy itself doesn’t have ads but Sync has, sadly.
I understand, but the dev works on this app full time so he has to earn a living somehow. Even the core Lemmy devs are able to work on Lemmy full time because they got some funding from a grant.
In my recollection sync for reddit had multiple long gaps in communication from the dev, including pretty shortly after subscriptions were first announced. I appreciate the desire to be paid, but I didn’t find it clear that there were ongoing development or support efforts.
He took a few months off here or there for irl issues. I’ve been using Sync for nearly a decade, my personal opinion is that the drama is overblown. Even if he disappeared I would have gotten my money’s worth out of the app, I used it daily for 1 - 2 hours a day.
Agreed, I’ve been using sync since 2016 and yeah the Dev disappeared here and there for a bit but it was always for personal reasons. Shit happens. The drama was definitely a bit much IMO.
That being said, I’m absolutely sick of everything turning into subscriptions, I’ll wait for either the lifetime option or just removing ads.
Oye, Timothy
Oye beltalowda, fo keng to im gut.
I mean i agree the dev should be paid for the work. But it just seems a bit odd to require a subscription to remove ads using a service that does not have ads or backend cost from a api. I think there should be no ads or at the very least a one time purchase to remove just ads. Like I understand a subscription for like power user features. And i am not some cheap ass complaining I have probably given the dev 100+ dollars in support between patreon, ultra subscription, ultra lifetime purchases.
But the dev already confirmed that they’ll put a one time payment for removing ads though, just not in this beta release.
That information should be front and centre.
Yeah LJ clearly underestimated how much people hate subscriptions here
Really should have checked any thread on lemmy.ml about Sync then.
But when you serve ads on a platform that doesn’t have ads, why would I use the ad enabled app when I can just go on the actual site?
Everyone needs to make their own decision but IMO Sync’s UI is a million times better than the actual site even with ads.
I’ll admit to being a bit confused because I’ve been using sync for a couple of hours now and have yet to see an ad myself.
I’ve noticed that no ads are shown when you disable all tracking and reject cookies. Might be EU only though.
I’ve seen ads but I have also seen empty ad placeholders.
Yeah I just started using it and I haven’t seen an ad. I know what ads for Sync looked like on Reddit, too.
Sync dev time doesn’t come for free. “Pay or see ads” is a fine model and I’m willing to pay off development. I don’t want a subscription, though.
No dev’s time comes for free, yet there are numerous other apps that are free with no ads. Sync is slightly more polished, but not enough to warrant the price.
I’m absolutely fine with paying for apps! I’ve already paid for the ad free tier of Sync for Reddit. I just don’t want yet another subscription.
No, I’m with you. I had Sync Pro for Reddit and would happily do the same here. Like you, I just don’t want another subscription.
Yeah, I’m not too happy about that. I’ll give this a few days, at least, but I can’t stand ads. It never occurred to me that they would be brought in for a platform that otherwise has none. I paid for a lifetime subscription on Sync for Reddit. For Lemmy, Connect is close enough to the Sync experience that I’m about to say fuck this and go back to it.
I am happy as well with Voyager as web app for both Android and PC.
Same here. I would buy lifetime again but I’m done with subs.
https://lemm.ee/comment/1774742
Guys, chill. It’s just the first public beta. At least give a man a few weeks to iron things out. Geez.
subscriptions based services are mostly about cash grabbing. I really hate it that you have to pay a subscription to use a software. I’ll purchase any software for a reasonable price but I’d never subscribe for a software product like this.
You don’t “host” the front end development of the client though.
It still takes dev time, and that’s expensive, and this is the beta implementation. Lj said he plans to add the lifetime option, but for this first release, he did not include it as he wanted to see how lemmy held up first. If this all died out in a couple weeks after the api changes from reddit, it would have been pointless. This allows for those of us who want to support the development now to enable him to focus full time. With thousands of users vs. the millions reddit had having a dollar purchase to remove ads, it just wouldn’t scale right now to make this a feasible full-time project.
Because he will always have to work on the app as long as it lives. So subscription does make sense here. And 17 dollars ain’t much at all
The problem is how apps are bought on mobile now.
With PC applications, you’d buy a specific version and you would maybe get updates for a year. Then the developer would release an update and you would decide whether it was worth buying the update for the new enhancements. If it wasn’t then you’d stick with the old version until the next new version and make the choice again. This way the developer gets paid regularly by new and existing users if they produce a good app.
On mobile, you buy an app and expect to get updates for the life of the app. The developer is expected to keep producing updates whether the app is complete or not otherwise their app is labelled as dead. They only get paid by new users.
That second model is simply not sustainable from the developer’s point of view for any reasonably sized app so they need to think of ways to make it work. There are only two options which are ads and subscriptions and people don’t like either.
Of course, PC apps are also moving to subscriptions to remove the option that you used to have to not pay them for a year or two if they’re not providing good enough updates.
First thing I did after opening the app was to look for the Pro (ultra) in-app purchase. But monhtly payments, no thank you.
Yea, I would gladly pay to remove ads. Like I already did for the Sync for Reddit. Twice. But no one likes subscriptions.
Same here. I hate subscriptions but would happily buy a Pro version like I did with Sync for Reddit.
What would you be willing to pay? I paid £4 for Sync in 2018. I can’t imagine a Pro (non-ultra) version would be that cheap this time.
At the minimum I’d think it’d match 1 year of Ultra (£17). Not sure if I’d pay that for Lemmy since I still use Sync for Reddit more.
Realistically, it would need to be higher than 1 year of Ultra, unless it only included some of the perks of Ultra. If it was priced the same for 1 year vs Lifetime, very few users would pay for the yearly sub.
Personally, I’m happy to keep paying the monthly sub to support LJ, if the development stalls or even stops completely, I’ll be stopping my subscription. I’m happy to provide continuous support for apps that I use daily if it means that the development continues.
Which is in line with my comment, I was simply saying that Ultra Lifetime will most likely cost more than Ultra Yearly.
New update dropped. Ad removal IAP is $12.99 USD.
Edit: increased to $19.99 USD
I suspect he may be A/B testing pricing. I could have sworn I saw $12.99 for the Ad Removal IAP earlier, but it’s showing $19.99 now.
Even $12.99 felt high just to remove ads. Especially when compared to previous Sync Pro pricing.
I also suspect there may be some testing of the appetite for higher pricing for early adopters… with the potential to lower pricing later for mass audience appeal.
I think we’re seeing a lot of long-time Sync users (who came from Sync for Reddit), so that audience is probably a bit more amenable to higher pricing to support the developer, but this pricing doesn’t seem competitive with the broader Lemmy community.
I’m seeing 19.99…???
Yeah, same here. It is a shame :(
I’m really confused why people feel this way. Can’t you just cancel it if you feel like it’s not worth it anymore?
I just don’t do subscriptions. One of the aspects I hated about my foray into the Apple app store where everything seemed to be subscription or ads. Quickly missed Android and places like f-droid where I knew I could find ad free and subscription free open source alternatives.
I was happy to pay for apps like Procreate and Lumafusion though, so it’s not that I’m against paying for ads. I just don’t do subscriptions.
I generally do not do subscriptions either, but I do make some exceptions for specific apps/services. At least for me, Sync is one of those for now.
When I think about it I think it’s mainly been web hosting type services where data is being streamed or stored on the cloud that I’ve been fine with subscriptions for. And then not so much for pure software preferring more pay once and then pay for a new version update down the line type of approach like Office 2021 for example over Office 365. Although, I’ve moved mostly to libreoffice.
Same for games. I’d rather pay Diablo 4 $70 over paying for PS+ or game pass. Chose to forgo online multiplayer than pay for PS+ on my PS4 last Gen. Generally preferred a large one time lump sum than small monthly payments for things, since I suppose I just a distaste for adding more monthly expenses to the already growing list of monthly expenses.
Plus, how many years do you think Diablo 4 will be supported with updates/patches? At $17/year Sync will be just as expensive after a few years and doesn’t exactly have the same development team size or cost as something like Diablo…
Completely fair point.
Unless the app offers you cloud functions like email, cloud storage, multi-player gaming, or social media sites(lemmy, kbin, mastodon), etc. I see subscriptions as a no-go.
Sync does have some cloud features (and I suspect push notifications will be one of them soon), but yeah, I understand paying for them isn’t for everyone.
That’s a very good point. Software as a product should have a different pricing model than software as a service.
I usually hate subscriptions that try to squeeze you for money.
In the case of sync, I see it as a recurring donation for LJ. 15 bucks is what I make in like 20 minutes as an engineer myself, so ‘paying’ 20 minutes of my salary to a developer of such an awesome app is no problem for me.
I think Christian with Apollo went with a much better approach where he didn’t put in any ads, but limited the app to only being able to use one account and putting a limit to the filter list. But, you could buy the pro version to remove those limits and he put in subscription options too. If subscription is to be pushed his approach felt like the most tasteful way to go.
I gladly pay subscriptions for services. I see that the Ultra has cloud backup of settings, but how much storage could that possibly use? Certainly not $2/mo worth. For that price I’ll want the equivalent of 100Gb of storage in the cloud.
edit: I’d send $2/mo. to the admins of my instance. They’re running the servers that host all this content.
Good point, I didn’t think about it when I wrote my comment, but I agree that there’s a difference between paying for a software product and paying for a software service.
Oh, but Adobe charges the very reasonable $600/yr and Autodesk a bargain $3000+ per year for their software, so clearly Sync must not be that good to only be asking $17 a year. I think I’ll look for something more professionally priced, instead.
Isn’t sync also free?
From what I’ve heard, you pay by viewing ads. Those can be blocked at the DNS level, though.
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Give me a one-time purchase of like $10-15 and I will, but I don’t do (non-voluntary) subs.
I don’t need any of the push notification services.
I remember going for the largest OTP for Sync quite happily. Might have been £30 or something. Subscription? Nah.
Same. More than happy to support development, but I don’t need another automatic subscription. I did OTP in the old app several times (purchased for different accounts, and again just because I use dns ad blockers, but still wanted to support the app). I am happy to do the same here, but not as a subscription.
Lj, please offer an option for OTP that removes ads while still being expensive enough to cover your costs.
It doesn’t need to include push notifications or image preloading, or any other features that require you to maintain or rent infrastructure. I would be willing to pay $20 or $30 for a one time purchase option that doesn’t make me feel like I am a drain to you when I block ads and tracking.
I will never look at ads or consent to tracking or violating my privacy, and I am willing to pay a (non-recurring) fee to enable that. I am sure I am not alone here.
I agree with essentially everything you’ve said. I left Reddit almost entirely because I refused to give up Sync, but I will not pay a subscription for it.
Just wanted to add that an update went out in the play store that allows a one time fee to just remove ads and tracking. I would prefer no google play services, but I am willing to compromise. I just paid $20 for my phone, and another $20 for my wife’s.
Thanks for adding the option, @ljdawson!
Yeah the pro version will do that
Would you be okay if the one time purchase meant you did not receive any updates to Sync? Or perhaps it only got a few months of updates? That seems fair to me.
No, but I’d be willing to pay years ahead at once for something that I know I’ll be using for longer than that.
Everything has an expiration date anyways, because I don’t live forever. Who knows if we’ll still be using Android 10 years from now. It’s just basically a discount on very long term usage that gives the money ahead of time while taking the gamble that I will actually be using it for longer than the subscription price would be.
No. [email protected] !
I would gladly pay once though.
Yep. As stupid as is sounds, I would pay even higher for a one off purchase.
Sounds entirely reasonable to me
You can pay once to remove ads. There’s a subscription called ultra that adds some features like translations but it isn’t necessary.
Where is the option to pay once? I can’t find it.
For me it’s when you click your account icon at the top left. Then it’s right above the Ultra subscription
22€ apparently
In Beta 25, in the account switcher in the top left is a “Remove Ads” button. It’s $19.99 one time. No word yet on the price for a lifetime Ultra subscription.
Yea but it’s ads only, it’s the “remove ads” option. It would be a lot nicer if it was ultra for a one-time fee
Understandable. Dev says it’s coming, not sure what the pricing will be.
It’s here already. I subbed for a year already, so I can’t see the price to just remove ads.
The why not just sub for the yearly plan, then immediately cancel - same thing as a one time payment, you get to support the dev, and you don’t have a subscription to worry about
Because then the ads come back after a year. I want no ads for life for a one time fee. Sync for reddit offered that, why not here?
There’s an option to pay once to remove ads forever.
I want no ads for life for a one time fee
Dev is adding that. =)
Because one year < forever.
Okay then how much are you willing to spend? Say around 35 bucks? Developers need to eat too. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Developers make more money than I do, and I need to worry about my own food first lol. I’d pay $35 one time, but I also remember a time not that long ago where $10 one-time could buy you basically anything on the app store lol.
I like the app, but I hate recurring fees more. Jerboa is free. It might not be perfect, but it works, is ad-free, is on F-Droid, and is infinitely more affordable than $17/yr.
A developer of this caliber can easily get 90K CAD at his day job, and even more in the US.
fuck subs…onetime payment every time, but I won’t pay a sub for an app for a service that is free…
I donate to the lemmy instances, but not an app!
I’m right with you. Sync was the only reason I even started using Reddit. I happily paid the onetime fee and I’m more than happy to do it again. If the sub actually covered costs to keep Lemmy-instances running it would be one thing but that’s not the case now. Let’s see how it all paves out.
I mean… Lemmy is free to use, it’s just the sync dev(s) that put in work to make it beautiful. Art is free… But an art exhibit is not.
Idk. Other people have made a good point. $17/yr is not bad. Especially for a team who have always been awesome.
Subbed to lemmy.world Patreon, one time payment for the app. I like having nice things, nice things only come if there’s reward in making them. I’m someone’s reward for doing something nice.
Don’t really care about any ultra features. Once one-time-pay ad removal is there, I’m getting it. Just like I had Sync Pro and Sync Ultra (if those aren’t reinstated even). I will not do subscriptions.
Ad removal is here, you have to update the app
Indeed! Just purchased
What was Sync Ultra before?
You can remove ads with sync pro (one time payment) , as well with sync ulta (subscription).
I despise recurring fees, so no. $17 sounds good for a 1-time fee though.
There’s a one time purchase to remove ads.
The ultra subscription adds a few features like translations that use cloud services.
It would be nice to have a one-time donation option for the ultra version, instead of just removing ads
I’m cool with a 1 time fee to stop ads, but I don’t see how to do that anywhere. I can only figure out how to pay $2/month or $17/year for Ultra
In Beta 25, in the account switcher in the top left is a “Remove Ads” button. It’s $19.99 one time. No word yet on the price for a lifetime Ultra subscription.
Check the Play Store for an update if you don’t see it.
Okay, yeah, I think I had to update (or I’m blind). Thanks! That’s much better!
Sub once then cancel to show your support then
Support for the subscription? Because that’s what you would do
You’re comparing a service that stores a gajillion gajillions of petabytes to sync?
Thats a good point, but I was referring to payment for a service/software that I use. Ive had the YT family plan since it was called YT Red. I’m very willing to pay for the tools I use.
I’ll put my money where my mouth is just like last time if they give a one time option to remove ads. I don’t the extra stuff and don’t want another subscription.
I’m not trying to say it’s unreasonably priced, but that comparison with YouTube is not really fair. Delivering video content is an incredibly expensive service
And YouTube actually produces content, and some of your subscription goes to the independent creators. If this subscription somehow paid for Lemmy servers that I was using then it’d be far more reasonable. One time purchase or no purchase for me
Is there not going to be a lifetime pro (one-time purchase) option?
There is, people are knee-jerking to the beta version, which is subscription for now. Once things are out of beta, a one-time-purchase version will be available.
I went ahead and bought a year because I want to support this project. I am hoping by the time that’s due to expire, there will be non-subscription options
That’s a mature approach to this, and one that I agree with. I didn’t think the pricing too steep. I can agree, I don’t like having subscriptions if I can avoid it. But less than $20 a year… its nothing for an app ill likely use every day (and not owned by a mega corporation)
As much as I like the app, after currency conversions that’s a lot, especially as a recurring subscription. For a one time fee, I’d just want to remove ads without any extra bells and whistles.
I don’t know though, I feel like giving money to an app for Lemmy would kind of be like supporting the wrong person. Especially if you haven’t even donated to your instance’s owner yet.
Good point… Do both!
Or to Lemmy’s developers, which makes your instance possible, which makes the third-party app possible.
Great point!
Lots of comments about the subscription. I had pro for years and had no idea the dev had switched to a subscription model. Had been anticipating the release but now… I would gladly pay again but not though a subscription no matter how good the app is. First time I see an ad on the app I’ll just go back to connect.
