Pushbullet “Pro” service puts previously free features behind a pay wall
Yesterday I found out one of my favorite apps that I have written about before; Pushbullet would be getting a “Pro” syncing service alongside the free version we have all come to know and love. Like many, I was pretty curious how much this service would cost and what new features would be included. But to the dismay of many (if not all) not only were there no new features in said “Pro” version, they had actually removed features that had been free all along, put them behind a pay wall, and limited the use of other features still in the free version that previously had no cap. As if all that wasn’t bad enough for existing users, the price they are charging for what used to be free and nothing else is an insane and MONTHLY or YEARLY fee. You heard that correctly, either $4.99 per month or $39.99 annually. Here is the breakdown from their website on the new limitations and what services you will now have to pay for. Monthly.
I have bought some rather expensive apps and honestly would have had no problem spending up to $10 to purchase this Pro version if they had gone the competent way about it. But a monthly fee, for an app? An app that can be replaced by the hundreds of other free or one time purchase alternatives in the market that do the exact same thing? They must be out of their minds to think this was a good idea. I love the service and will continue using the free version until they remove or limit the features that are important to me or it no longer works for what I need it to do. But judging by the comments left by users in the Google Play Store, this was a very bad move and the numerous other competing brands are welcoming the new customers with open arms.
To be clear, I don’t think we deserve everything for free and understand that developers have to eat too, I just think the way they went about it was incredibly short-sighted and will ultimately cost them more than it nets them. A one time fee though? Even a slightly expensive $10 one? Sold. Let’s hope they come to their senses before they lose too much of the following they have spent the last few years building up. Be a shame to see a great utility like this one disappear.
Ben Johnson
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