Holy shit y’all. Developers need to eat too. It’s totally fine to charge for an app or serve ads. LjDawson is a fantastic developer and really listens to his user base. Yes there are plenty of open source apps to use, but sometimes closed source is way more polished because the developer makes it their job to create the app. Living isn’t free. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
It’s like having Reddit back, this is amazing. 🙏
For as long as I can remember Reddit and Sync have been one and the same. I never used Reddit website or app, only ever used Sync to browse Reddit hosted content. I used it a lot. I’ve missed it a lot.
Between the Lemmy platform and Sync client, to all intents and purposes what Reddit was has been fully restored/migrated.
I know it’s early days, but I did not expect to see anything like this so soon and it gives me hope that Lemmy can grow and thrive into the network of people that always made Reddit what it was. Everything that’s needed is there - early, a little rough around the edges, but there. And being improved constantly.
Hallelujah!
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Yeah, I’m liking lift off. Only thing I miss is better filtering options like keywords. But, it’s one I’m using right now to type this message.
I like connect. It’s similar to Sync.
I entirely agree. This is breaking the unspoken rules of Lemmy for me.
Can someone please explain a bit what is included as part of a “unique identifier”… does it mean the app sends Google what communities you’re visiting or content you’re consuming, so they can advertise to you personally?
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Starting with Android 12 (and maybe earlier, I think it may be a part of a Google Play update?), you can delete your advertising ID in settings - definitely worth doing!
Unique device identifier would be some information unique to your device that can identify it. A common example of such a unique Id would be your IMEI although that isn’t necessarily what they are using. Minecraft as an example creates a unique user ID based on your account that system administrators can use to keep your player records even after you change your Microsoft account name or gamer tag.
It doesn’t have to be specific data related to your activities in the app per se, but it could potentially be used in that manner depending on the app.
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I think there’s some nuance there too. I’m not keen on the idea of my facebook messages, or google chats, or private emails, things like that going into other peoples hands (regardless of how much I can do to stop it), but purely ad-based stuff doesn’t bother me. I’m gonna be seeing ads for something, and whether or not they’re things google or amazon think I might want doesn’t really change the equation for me.
However, I do hold it to be true people should be in control of that if they want to. I feel like the choice is important.
Then sell all your shit and live without any device connected to the internet. If you believe a trillion dollar company can’t track what you like then I’ve got bad news for you.
Oh wait, even if you sell your shit, they just need to know who your friends are and they can create a profile of you… Woops! 🤷
What’s funny is that you’re trusting a bunch of random Lemmy hosts right now, but not companies that can be identified and that you can tell which laws apply to them.
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Lemm.ee’s host is such a nice dude, I don’t think he’d sell people out either.
Individuals can’t be corrupted in exchange for money, good to know 👍
I’m sure they would also protect your data with their life if authorities came knocking.
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Would love to see you GDPR your data from all instances 😂
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Or just block ads…
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Logcat is your friend. Someone on one of these threads mentioned they confirmed via logcat that the dev is correct.
This is all you need to see, folks.
Jesus, the absolute entitlement in this thread. Can everyone just chill until the app is out of the beta version? Some of us are fine with seeing ads until the lifetime fee is available, and some of us are fine paying a subscription until the lifetime fee is available. If you’d rather not use the app until then don’t, but trashing the dev for getting paid while he works endlessly to create the sync experience for us is so ignorant and childish.
Sync is by far the best user experience app for lemmy that’s available for Android, just as it was for reddit, and it’s worth the wait and the price until the pro version is available.
I hope the dev ignores the whiners and focuses on those of us that get it. How demotivating to see people run their mouths when they dint know what they’re talking about.
My God, I missed Sync so much. Devs , thanks.
(シ_ _)シ
It’s identical to sync for Reddit. You even added the ability to restore from backup from Reddit. You’ve done amazing work
I need an excuse to try a comment and this seems perfect. Thanks dude you’ve clearly been putting in some work. It’s like coming home.
You know, you have many fans all around the world. This must be great feeling. And your product is/was the meaning of Redd*t for a long time, now it’s will be Lemmy=Sync
Great job! 5 stars!
(☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞
It was seriously like hugging an old friend when I woke up to the download this morning! So happy and warm to be back!
I was about to uninstall the other Lemmy client was never going to return Lemmy until the notification
Storing data usage, personal ads, 21.99€ just to remove ads or a subscription model.
I’m a dev myself and I get that everyone needs to be compensated, but right now I have only one thought:
“You either die a hero or live long enough to become the villain.”
ITT, bunch of people who have never used Sync for Reddit whining about Sync Ultra and the app having ads. 🤦🏻♂️
The ads through me for a sec, but then I realized this wasn’t the Dev or Pro version.
I’ll end up subscribing at some point, but I do wish there was a one time option like last time. Not really interested in the cloud backups and all that, just the ad free experience.Edit: Spoke too soon. Looks like there wil be a one time option at some point in addition to a version with no ads. Looking forward to it.
Just pushed beta 25 that adds a one time option.
A wise decision.
See everyone, it’s this level of responsiveness and communication that’s led many of us to want to pay for this app.
Thanks mate, your work is deeply appreciated the world over.
How does that work if I already purchased the yearly model? Can I transfer the yearly to the ad-free one time?
I haven’t seen any ads yet. Where are they
I used sync for reddit for a decade. No way in hell I’m paying $20 for the ad-free upgrade. Explain how lemmy which is months old and a minute fraction of the size of reddit, should cost me more to browse ad-free than reddit? It’s mind boggling that we’re in the age where asking $20 for a 3rd party social media app is being defended as reasonable.
It’s not about the app. It has nothing to do with the app itself to be fair. It’s the fact to have ads. Ads aren’t the spirit and the philosophy of Lemmy.
People are fine to pay for the app. Money isn’t the issue either. The dev should not assume Lemmy is a new Reddit. It’s different with different spirit and philosophy. This point has to be taken in consideration.
That’s the beauty of have a multitude of different apps. You choose the one that feels right for you. Much like how you can choose another Lemmy instance.
Yes, sure, you can choose whatever you want. It doesn’t make my opinion wrong. It’s not in the philosophy of the fediverse. People can use it with an ads tracked app of they want. I respect it.
It’s a hard no for me and I will express it. It could be a hard yes if they will be a one time payment version without free ads base one.
The dev said there already will be. I hope you’ll support a hard working, singular dev who puts a lot of work into an app and engages with its users like LJD.
an opinion cannot be wrong. but it also cannot be right. you make a fair point with what you’re saying. the dev is already planning on a single time purchase, but a sub option is definitely not “morally wrong.”
It can be morally wrong depending on the person’s visions. It’s not that this vision is wrong or right. It’s a personal one. Nobody did this vision mandatory.
Although I do not agree with your opinion above, but I think your opinion is valid and you don’t deserve the downvotes.
My opinion is that Sync and Lemmy are two different things with two different philosophies. Yes they are interconnected, but they are both separate entities, and it’s not like Sync is built off of Lemmy’s source code. The dev should get compensated for the time and resources he put into the source code of Sync, and if ads is a way to contribute to that, then so be it.
I don’t think your opinion is wrong. It’s an opinion, and that’s fine.
As a developer myself, I do understand that the dev wants to be compensated for all the hours he puts in, but I am also aware that we’re all using software everyday in many different ways that are made in the free time of many people, without any compensation. Both are valid.
The Dev has just announced he’s pushed beta version 25 that adds a one time payment option.
One time payment update was just pushed out!
You can choose whatever app fits you. That is the power of choice. Some of us are really ok with non intrusive ads or paying for the app. He said that one time payment for removing ads will come soon.
Ads aren’t the spirit and the philosophy of Lemmy
Says who? I’m just curious who decides what Lemmy’s philosophy is. Does that philosophy extend across all instances or only specific ones? Or is it baked into the source code somehow?
Personally I think ads are alright. But that’s just my philosophy.
Ads or subscription.
Yeah, I’ll stick with Thunder. Having used Lemmy and Mastodon, I realised how much I hate ads.
Yup that is a real rough pill to swallow when the default is free AND no ads. If I’m going to drop money on lemmy I’d rather just donate to whoever is hosting my instance.
I hear what you (and everyone else) is saying, but the developer needs to make money somehow or they’ll have to go get a regular job, and then who will develop?
I think what I’m saying is, how else is the Dev meant to feed his face?
I miss the days when I could just drop a couple of dollars on the paid version, stops the ads and works forever, subscriptions turn me off.
He can release it as a one time payment without free version.
Look at how people are reacting to paying for a subscription. If he had no free version people would NOT try it.
And, I’m not the dev of it. He needs to convince the people. Here, he has multiple possibilities that he can explore before finding how to attract users.
I tried multiple Reddit apps before I settled on Sync. I went through a phase of trying a different one every week. They were all free versions with a paid version. I paid for the ones I liked.
That’s all I wanna do, buy it once, no subscription.
It wasn’t the case of Sync at the beginning. It was just a paid version. The free ad based version came later.
That may be so, but my point was that I would not have tried it had there been no free version.
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It’s the only Lemmy app that has an actual working and usable tablet mode. Thunder’s tablet mode is… weird. Everybody else doesn’t have a tablet mode. Unfortunately, leading with a subscription model is terrible. Even if they’re already planning a one time payment option (which they should launched with), it’s already left a sour taste. I left big software that was essential for work because of the subscription model (Adobe, Autodesk) and found alternatives. Sync isn’t even essential and there are multiple alternatives. Maybe not that pretty, but they’re decent enough. I hope Boost does better.
Sync launched in beta. While it’s unfortunate that a great majority off people seeing the posts aren’t aware of that, and think it’s a full launch.
The dev opened it up as beta, so more then 100 people could help test it out.
A pero versión is coming before the full release.
There’s absolutely no reason for beta software to not be able to launch with a one time payment option. A lot of companies do this. Just look at all the early access games from steam. This is not a valid excuse in my opinion.
He has only worked on it for 6 weeks since the heat of the reddit drama, probably just figured that’s a thing he can wait a little longer for but some people were very antsy to get back on sync
He added the one time remove ads feature just now proving that he could have added this at the start just as easily. Your argument again is not a valid excuse.
I added the extra one time payment options within a few hours of the beta going live due to feedback on here.
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I second this 100% the app also displays nicely on a tablet compared to others. I’m shocked to see this dev ask 100$ plus for a lifetime for an app as good as it is. I understand he needs to make money but I think he took it two digits two far. I’m glad it’s a single developper getting that money though instead of a corperation.
Things loading slowly are due to the instance themselves. The app itself is lightning fast.
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One time purchase coming soon, its still in beta after all
Maybe, the dev should have wait until he can release it as a one time payment without free version. You want Sync, you pay. Nobody will be against it.
Contains ads
ಠ_ಠ
That was the case with the original Sync, no surprise here.
Although there was the option to purchase Pro as a one-time fee. This one unfortunately only has a subscription option (which I’m not too keen on).
Edit: ljdawson has confirmed there will be an one-time payment options for both Ultra and ad removal!
Screw subscriptions. They’re invariably a rip off and I’m not made of money.
Same… I rarely buy apps. I’m definitely not subscribing to something.
And not to an app to browse a social network, when there’s free alternatives without ads
I am in the same boat. Bought RIF years ago and there are a couple of other apps I got as a one time purchase but subscriptions mostly make me delete an app immediately. Stuff like Spotify or Netflix are exceptions of course but those apps are just the gateway to a paid service. Sync doesn’t have to pay money on an ongoing basis to Lemmy. It’s straight up a purchase to the developer for an app.
Not too concerned though, I use Voyager at the moment and it’s just such a great way to browse Lemmy, I have no problem sticking with it!
Technically, they could be fair but they’re just always extremely overpriced. If you buy an app for $5 and use it for 5 years, it comes out at 8 cents a month. You’ll never find an app subscription that costs you 8 cents a month, but that would be a fair deal.
Afaik a one-time-purchase to get rid of the ads is planned.
Do you happen to have a source? This is what I’m hoping for.
Yes, according to ljdawson on discord, lifetime ultra will be coming back. Not sure about pro though.
Yeah, I’m thinking more the ad-free pro option, rather than the Ultra. That’s all l need 🙂.
It’s on Sync’s discord
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It’ll probably have a one time fee option. The dev must know that not everyone will want to pay a subscription. I paid for removing ads on Sync for Reddit and I’ll happily do it again, so hopefully there will be an option of just removing ads. I don’t use either Lemmy or Reddit enough to justify paying a subscription, even though I really respect the dev.
This is what I’m hoping for!
While I’ve never used this app, it seems like there are so many good quality free/open source Lemmy apps now that an app with ads and subscriptions doesn’t really make sense.
there will be an option to buy an ad-free version in the future (IAP).
The future is now.
I’m fine with an ad version and then an upgrade to an ad-free version.
What’s insane here is this developer making a subscription service instead of an ad-free pro version
I mean, he’s competing against TOTALLY FREE, Ad-free lemmy apps RIGHT NOW, and every 3rd-party Reddit app developer is working on a lemmy version as we speak.
This was a total clown move. I was ready to drop like $10 on a pro version right now, if it had great UI. But a subscription … For access to a FREE service? The balls on this guy.
Lemmy is not a free service. You might not be paying for it but some of us are. With subscriptions too. Subscriptions are the better funding model for continued development and operation.
Lemmy instances are not a free service. Yet don’t have ads and instead rely on donations or are self funded. And then this app comes out with a subscription model to remove ads despite instances doing the heavy lifting of this space that has been contrary to the usual monetization model?
I’m not sure this type of defense you make really applies in this situation. If it was a reddit app sure, but in the space of the fediverse it stands out as rather unusual.
I’m not defending anything. Simply pointing out that Lemmy isn’t a free service even if it looks that way for some (or many).
I’m not sure who does the heavy lifting btw. It’s not easy to decipher whether running an instance or developing the cloud components or the mobile components is easier. Also the funding is a bit wonky at the moment. The core Lemmy development is woefully underfunded compared to some of the large instances. It’s likely to get better eventually but so far I’ve noticed that core development funding barely budged for the last month or two. Instances are vitally dependent on the core project.
People are understandably reluctant to donate to the core Lemmy devs, but donating to an instance is a lot more reasonable to many folks so that’s why it’s unfolding that way.
Yes, lemmy isn’t a free service So the argument to defend lemmy and give them money makes more sense when it comes to instances than it does for an app that shows up with a subscription model to remove ads.
The subscription from sync is not one run directly by the lemmy instance that is not charging api calls, not showing ads to users, and not paywalling users yet taking on so much expense. Which is why I’m not really sure what role sync plays here from your comments, since sync app and the costs of hosting a lemmy instance seem like entirely different matters.
I have to agree with you, I feel Sync has gone against the Fediverse ethos.
Most of us understand fully the “why” of a subscription model, however, this is not the place, not on a free service.
You must not have read that first sentence.
Actually haven’t. Do you know what he meant by that?
Literally what I said - Lemmy is not a free service. Free as in free beer. Most of Lemmy is a service that costs real money to its users. Maybe not to all of them. Maybe it doesn’t cost you in particular anything, but it costs another user on the instance money. They’re just happy to pay for you.
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Yup what a let down. Luckily there are also open source apps.
On sync for reddit there always was a one time purchase to remove ads. The subscription is for extra features which you honestly don’t need. I believe the one time purchase is coming back on this version as well.
It’s just evidence it’s a gold rush.
I wasn’t expecting an ideologically motivated project by any means, but his focus is on the diminishing parade of users he’s got from the previous app and not where he’s sending them.
I got kinda disappointed when I noticed that the author almost doesn’t visit Lemmy and everything is coordinated on Discord instead of the, you know, forum-thingy which you make an app for.
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Beta update released within the last hour adds the option for lifetime ad removal.
Where?
After updating, it’s in the sidebar. $12.99 for me.
$20 for me.
Lol. I said I was ready to drop $10.
This Dev is really trying to milk this.
We lose some we gain some.
I haven’t seen any… Yet
I’ve only noticed it on the ‘slide’ view mode so far.
I just switched and saw it immediately. What a disappointment :(
https://lemmy.world/comment/1975537
Looks like the Dev is looking to add a lifetime option and an option to remove ads in the future.
I was wondering what was up with the ads consent things. The reason I switched to Sync in the first place was to get rid of ads on Reddit…
Beta update released within the last hour adds the option for lifetime ad removal.
Where? I can’t see it in the Ultra section??
Update
Found it.
£12.99
The option is available by clicking your profile icon and selecting ‘remove ads’.
£13??
Mine is $20 for the remove ads option, how does that make sense?
It increased 50% overnight.
it’s already there. ‘remove ads’ button. steep given you can get Microsoft Office for that price if you look hard enough but I will probably get it.
It’s good to be home :)
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Lol! The choice is ads or a SUBSCRIPTION!?
My friend, we know other 3rd party Reddit app developers are working as fast as they can to make lemmy apps. One of them is bound to have a one-time pro version upgrade. I’ll hold out for that.
LMAO … Subscriptions. Why on earth do you think we left Reddit?!
I left Reddit because Spez is an asshole and he killed third-party API access (which, btw, impacted more than just clients - many useful bots/scripts died too as a result of this change).
For many of us, Sync was Reddit, and killing Sync basically killed Reddit for us, but now that Sync is back (for Lemmy), many of us are more than happy to pay a subscription to support the dev, instead of supporting Reddit. ljdawson is an awesome developer who actually listens to his users and updates his apps regularly. If you don’t want to support him and/or use a different app, that’s your call of course, but for fans of Sync, it’s like coming back home after a long time and getting that feeling of “there’s no place like home”.
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I was on Reddit for 13 years, and bought the pro version every app ever made for the platform (sync, RiF, bacon reader, boost, Apollo, Joey, etc, etc.). Sync was … fine. But in no way was it a stand out. RiF had them all beat by a mile for nearly a decade, then Joey elbowed them out in the last few years.
Anyway, I’d have been happy to buy sync Pro for lemmy, but a subscription is bonkers when there are free alternatives.
If the RIF app comes to Lemmy I will die happy.
My phone screen has burn in of the RIF refresh button lol
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If you think ads are non intrusive we have different definitions.
If any selection of the free content network I’m a part of isn’t showing me the content I want it’s an intrusion.
There are umpteen services that run on donations, telling yourself ads are necessary is the same deal with the devil as the public Internet.
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I’m here on the fediverse because ads are poison.
Knowing my neighbors are swigging more of that shit doesn’t make me feel any better.
When I accidentally tapped on the first ad and it automatically opened a shopping app I had on to a product I have no care for. Personally for me, the ads ARE intrusive. I instantly uninstalled after that.
Joey ❤️
The issue people have with Sync is the model going against the philosophy of Lemmy and the fediverse.
People aren’t mad at paying for the app if it was a one time payment.
Yup and I added the option
who actually listens to his users
Support of non-Google-Play version is where? I personally asked about it multiple times and I’ve seen many other people ask as well.
there will be a separate in app purchase structure
the ultra subscription was a separate sub model from sync for reddit that was on the side to help support the 1 developer who works on the app if you want to. the model was already there and nothing has changed from reddit, so it was probably easy to leave the code in with the same features and keep it in.
you also need to realize this is a beta as well so it’s not “officially” released yet. if sync for reddit is anything to go by, once LJ is content on the app it will be released in full, with additional pro / dev variants to come. but since those are considered separate apps, those won’t come until later since they need to be reviewed and put on the app store… which makes sense there’s only 1 variant at this time
edit: pro model won’t happen due to Google play store policies on duplicate apps. one time in app purchase is coming
Sounds like pro will not be a separate app and will only be unlocked with an in-app purchase due to Google Play policies around ‘duplicate’ apps.
even better then!
Chill, mate, it’s open-beta. Sync Ultra was a thing on Sync for Reddit as well, which comes with features that need constant cash such as server maintenance etc. IAP for ad removal will come soon.
I left reddit because of asshole decisions. I think 18 Euro per year is pretty fair for an app you probably use every day. I prefer one time payment over subscription, too. But the price for sync is nothing to rant about imo.
My thoughts exactly. The cost for a year is less than a single order of take-out
Beta update released within the last hour adds the option for lifetime ad removal.
I disagree. I think there’s a lot of people living in a fantasy. Things cost money. You can’t rely on good will to pay for developers, engineers, and hardware.
Maybe ads aren’t the way to go but you’re not being realistic if you want this place to grow without some kind of funding.
I’m not addicted to any social media enough to pay for a subscription. And I’m sick of subscriptions in general. I’m fine with liftoff.
Voyager is the way to go. It doesn’t even feel like it’s “just” a WebApp.
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I’m back after testing Sync for a few minutes and… You’re absolutely right and I think Sync is winning me over!
I mean it’s nice, but it’s also super clunky
None of the other lemmy apps I’ve used have quite felt right. I really liked sync for reddit, so I’m hoping I’ll like the lemmy version too. I generally try to avoid subscriptions, but if they offer a one time payment to be ad free at some point then I’m fine with that.
I just started testing it out and I gotta say, Sync for Lemmy is absolutely beautiful!
I’d buy it in a heartbeat if it offered a one time option!
It’s available as a one time purchase now
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I haven’t checked out Thunder yet! I’m amazed at how fast apps for Lemmy started showing up after the whole Reddit API fiasco!
Using Sync for Reddit for so long I realized I missed the layout of Sync so I’m glad to see it back for Lemmy.
Bought a month subscription since I can use my rewards to pay for it. Worth it for the no ads.
I’m sorry. I get a developper needs to eat but 100+ dollars for the lifetime is absolutely outrageous. That is more than some AAA games on release.
