Thoughts RE MyFitnessPall moving the barcode scan to premium?

Very disappointing. I'll be keeping my eyes open for other apps or websites, but I think I will try using the feature in Fitbit.

I know most of these sites are now charging at some level and adding advertising, etc.. but to strip away a basic functionality on a site that has been plagued with tech issues over the years is silly.

I'm not totally sure if this will wipe me out of here but it sure does make me consider it.

50% off eh? What's the basis, full, monthly price, or the discounted annual price? I'm with others, give me something new and I might pay, taking something away and asking me to pay; I'll pass.

I feel like a LOT of the barcodes I scan come up as not found, or the wrong food, so why would I pay for that?? The only reason I might consider paying is because they have made the ads more intrusive, but then I can just use it less on my phone and more on my laptop, where I have ads blocked.

I'll probably switch to cronometer. Got super annoyed when they started playing ads while I was trying to log my food, and taking away barcode scanning is some *kitten*. Bye MFP. I've been using it off and on since 2012!

Imagine having your userbase build up your app through word of mouth, add recipes and food items to the database, and generally be okay with annoying ads since it's free.

Only to defecate through our sunroof and decide to strip features, push yet another subscribe-every-month-forever in order to keep features that were standard. They're following the industry of making us rent every function of our lives, but it's still *kitten*

It's unfortunate, but understandable. It's probably the best "feature" they have, so it makes sense that they would use it to drive the subscription side.

Personally, I've got 90% of what I eat well established in my recent list, or in my foods/my meals... so I rarely use the barcode scanner at this point.

The "free" version is NOT FREE--it's paid for by advertising. It's irritating to have to click through a stack of slow ads just to log my exercise but that's a price I'm willing to pay. I am not willing to fork over cash to use an app with as much competition as MFP has.
Any bets on whether this turns out to be MFP's "Netflix moment"? Remember, Netflix lost 800K subscribers and its stock price dropped 70% as a result of their corporate cash grab earlier this year. Wise up, MFP.

justlog2day wrote: »

jeffd247 wrote: »

Agree with those who have commented that the barcode feature was the best feature of this App, and gatekeeping that behind a premium sub is the end of the app for me.

I understand that Under Armours earnings are down, but I can't see this as a solution to that problem

I'm not sure Under Armour owns this anymore.. Do they?

No, it was sold to a private-equity firm in 2020 at a loss of $130M.

As to the OP, it has no impact on me personally as I haven't logged anything in years and for the most part I only really use this platform for the community. But yeah, it sucks. I started here in 2012 and it was the best free diet and fitness app out there IMO. I kind of saw the writing on the wall when Under Armour bought it in 2015 and added the premium option.

It would seem to me that they're now trying to migrate to an app that is paid with either no free access or a free version that will be limited to the most very basic things. A lot of fitness apps have done this over the last few years, but the problem for MFP is that they are an inferior product in many regards.

There biggest issue is the food database, followed by the constant glitches and downtime and syncing issues. I personally vowed never to pay for premium unless and until they have a database that you don't have to wade through to find a correct entry. One of the things that made it great in 2012 was that the database was far and away larger than anyone else's database due in large part to crowd sourcing of those entries...but then you end up with the issue that we see today with a database that is very large, but also filled with a bunch of hot garbage.

I'd guess this doesn't end well unless this private equity firm revamps the whole thing...but I'm not sure a private equity firm is really that interested in the functionality as much as just making a money grab.

@cwolfman13 The community may be the next thing to go for paying customers only. Aren't we just free users instead of customers.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

Hiawassee88 wrote: »

@cwolfman13 The community may be the next thing to go for paying customers only. Aren't we just free users instead of customers.

Honestly, the community is really the only thing MFP has that is superior to anyone else out there...probably because it's been around so long. But even the community isn't what it used to be back in the day. It wouldn't surprise me in the least if it becomes a premium only feature but that in and of itself would not making MFP worth paying for. If I was someone seriously looking to track calories and nutrition I would have likely migrated somewhere else a long time ago. When I was tracking, MFP was basically one of the only players in the game and certainly the biggest...not really the case these days and I'm sure there are a lot of people who can take or leave the community.

I'd certainly miss it as I love chatting on here, but all good things come to an end at some point.

I know. The soup kitchen vs. the dining room. No more soup for you and me. I'm just an ol'hound dog yakkin' on a bone out here in the sagebrush. 😋 I guess it's time to pack UP my marbles and head for the house. A few more chow hall ditties, first.

@justlog2day Let's just get it while the gettin' is good. I paid for a big name weight customer community. It was as interesting as watching paint dry and the grass grow. It was mods and volunteers, the discussion was dead. If the community goes away, we have to pay to play. You have to mix it all up to keep it vibrant, exciting and alive.