[hnand]

> I'd have avoided a free version and just made the basic price at least $6

I would definitely get less heat, but the user would paradoxically end up in a worse position. I feel like there's always a disconnect between the user and developer when it comes to a freemium model. Developer thinks that it's a paid app that the user can actually try and make an informed decision before buying. User thinks that it's a free app with arbitrary annoying restrictions. And I understand the user perspective.

I think things would be better if refunding was less painful for the user and developer both. If there was a zero friction way of refunding things, we could just abandon freemium.

[causi]

As a user, I've found utility in apps that offer all features and customizations for free, but reset your preferences every time you start the app. It's like a demo except it never stops working and you can see the maximum amount of value the app can provide you.

[hnand]

That's how my app handles customizations - they just get resetted once in a while, but you can use them without paying, Premium just makes them permanent. I wonder if it's not obvious from the UI and people think that you can't use them at all.

[anonymouse008]

Curious if you have an example app for this? I have a stored records based app I work on occasionally and I wonder if an X day storage would fit this bill… but it feels weird to say, “if you want to store data permanently then it’s $y a month”

[causi]

My personal experience with it is game emulators that reset your customized control layouts and such but I imagine it could work for other sorts of apps.