One of our favorite Apple photo editors has announced a controversial change
Upfront payments can’t cover costs, say Pixelmator Photo developers
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Popular photo editing app Pixelmator Photo is shifting towards a subscription model, hiking the price of a perpetual license in the process.
The iOSphoto editorwill now embrace monthly and annual subscriptions for $4.99 and $23.99, respectively. Meanwhile, a lifetime license will now cost $54.99, a massive jump for what was once a $7.99 app.
Existing users can continue using the app with unlimited access, no subscription required.
Why Pixelmator subscriptions?
In a detailedblog post, the developers outlined why they’re moving away from an upfront payment model.
Ultimately, the decision was financial, with the company admitting that relying on big feature updates to market the photo app meant “the money we make isn’t actually enough to support development costs”.
The post also revealed other problems app designers face with the paid upfront model. Balancing slower development cycles with demand for major updates among new users meant the team felt unable to focus on the important features and quality of life upgrades existing users actually wanted.
We’ve tested the best photo storage and sharing sites>Google Photos update wants you to get creative - but there’s a catch>Bad news, Amazon Prime members - one of your best perks is being taken away
Pixelmator also revealed theAppleApp Store’s lack of free trials for paid apps was partly to blame. It claims no trials have led to reviews from users who felt the lightweightPhotoshop alternativedidn’t match their expectations. Pixelmator hopes the now-free app with features locked behind a subscription will provide a workaround for the absence of a free trial.
Are you a pro? Subscribe to our newsletter
Sign up to the TechRadar Pro newsletter to get all the top news, opinion, features and guidance your business needs to succeed!
However, the team behind the well-established image editor recognize the decision may be a controversial one: “Of course, there are downsides to subscriptions too – one big one, really. It’s more expensive… But the hope is that there are enough users who use the app regularly and feel that the annual or monthly fee is worth it.”
It’s not all bad news, though. Early subscribers will get the upcoming Pixelmator Pro - in our experience, one of thebest photo-editing apps for Mac- at a reduced cost. The image editing tool is set for release by early next year. The team has promised to look into discounted pricing for existing customers.
Steve is TechRadar Pro’s B2B Editor for Creative & Hardware. He began in tech journalism reviewing photo editors and video editing software at the magazine Web User, where he also covered technology news, features, and how-to guides. Today, he and his team of reviewers test out a range of creative software, hardware, and office furniture. Once upon a time, he wrote TV commercials and movie trailers. Relentless champion of the Oxford comma.
Best secure file transfer solution of 2024
Best lightweight Linux distro of 2024
Watch out, Nvidia - new benchmarks suggest Apple M4 Ultra could beat the mighty RTX 4090
