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Smart sous vide cooker to start charging $2/month for 10-year-old companion app (arstechnica.com)

submitted 4 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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[–] [email protected] 12 points 4 months ago

I have a different brand, but I can see the value. The interface on the small screen on the device I have is very clumsy. Took me a while to figure it out, and I'm very tech savvy. I can see a mobile app being useful, also for notifications so I don't independently have to set timers.

Also as a former mobile dev, mobile apps take maintenance to keep up with OS changes over time. And developers are expensive.

What I imagine happened is that they probably outsourced their app development to a 3rd party, because they make hardware, not software. That contract probably expired, including their ongoing support agreement, and they've probably negotiated an hourly rate for support on-demand going forward, maybe with a different 3rd party dev.

So in all likelihood, they're just passing the cost for ongoing maintenance on an EOL model to the customer.

However, that looks absolutely insane from a consumer standpoint.

I don't know their Financials, but they may not be big enough to just swallow the cost for brand PR if they're not selling at a volume and profit margin to be able lose money on old products.

This is why, even as a dev that used to work in the mobile and IOT space, I tend to purchase dumb devices if there are good options. Smart devices get dumb as soon as the shine has dulled.