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Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

news.ycombinator.com

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Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#211

Post by yololol »

yummypaint wrote: post #113
sebisaacsinflow wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for highlighting this - we're trying to figure out what the best model is for our community. A lot of other apps follow a similar model, we allow people to cancel anytime and have refunded everyone that has forgotten to cancel. Some people also like having the subscription because it is a pay per use model rather than putting everyone under the same one-off bundle. We're working on extending the free trial / m…

I can assure you that absolutely no-one "likes" being charged a full years subscription in advance. We're working on extending the free trial / moving to a freemium model. Please. You aren't spaceX "working on" your next engine, or AMD "working on" the next processor architecture. All you have to do to end the unethical behavior is flip a few bits in a database. Don't pretend it's some kind of grand technical challen…

While criticism can be good when constructive, I think these comments are a bit dramatic and make way too many assumptions.

I would expect that it's more financially lucrative to have a happy userbase, which translates to a good reputation and thus larger user-base, rather rip-off a few who will eventually give bad reviews and create a bad reputation. To me the current pricing model sounds more like a bad decision rather than anything else. But in any case, if I didn't like it I would just not use it, rather than throwing accusations around on malicious intentions without having any evidence.

PS: I am not even remotely affiliated with the creators of that app

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#213

Post by SyzygistSix »

jdavis703 wrote: post #205
SyzygistSix wrote: post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Damn. I spent $3000+ dollars and went through 7 hours of testing. I hope getting treatment was that easy for you as well.

Are you in the US? I spent something like $200 on the initial appointment in the SF Bay Area. This was done without insurance, so that was the total cost. And I think I spent slightly less than 2 hours undergoing evaluation.

Yes, in the US. It was a very thorough evaluation. My niece's recent evaluation was similar to yours. My testing was conducted by a psychological services group that was recommended by my primary care providers, which is a service for generally poor people, like myself. Kind of weird but I don' know the process. Nevertheless, I hope the very thorough and documented diagnosis is worth it, as it makes clear the need for treatment and a prescription, and also distinguishes between types of ADHD. I have heard getting a prescription can be difficult. When you are poor, healthcare providers often suspect substance abuse. I have no healthcare insurance either.

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#214

Post by chrsig »

Justin_K wrote: post #178
mStreamTeam wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone with ADHD, I can confirm this model is super predatory. I cancel all my credit cards every year just to get rid of all opt-in charges on regular basis

Also, as someone without ADHD, I can also say this model is predatory. Nobody should have to remember to put in a request to not be charged after a trial.

You're not wrong - but it's maybe not great to distract from the predatory nature of targeting people that are at high risk of being exploited from this model.

It's bad all around, but it's extra bad for people with adhd -- and considering it's an adhd app, it really puts it on a different level of predatory that's worth focusing on.

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#215

Post by mkr-hn »

skeletron wrote: post #22

Many of the reviews of the Android app are quite critical of the trial and payment model, for example: > CAUTION: After the free trial period (7 days), they will charge for an annual subscription ($102.95 US). This is OPT OUT, not opt in. In other reviews they say they will offer a refund (I will update when/if I get one) but for an app for people with executive function issues, an opt out format seems shady. Either…

I managed to put together a system to keep track of renewals, and still make sure to pre-cancel them so they won't renew without me meaning to. Too many services will take your money and shut you down if you cancel renewal before the end, and I won't touch any that do. They need to be very clear on how they handle this, or it's a hard pass for me.

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#216

Post by weathawi »

skeletron wrote: post #22

Many of the reviews of the Android app are quite critical of the trial and payment model, for example: > CAUTION: After the free trial period (7 days), they will charge for an annual subscription ($102.95 US). This is OPT OUT, not opt in. In other reviews they say they will offer a refund (I will update when/if I get one) but for an app for people with executive function issues, an opt out format seems shady. Either…

maybe it's good to start putting service payments on blockchain to enable easier accounting, and not require ongoing payments.

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#217

Post by zafiro17 »

skeletron wrote: post #22

Many of the reviews of the Android app are quite critical of the trial and payment model, for example: > CAUTION: After the free trial period (7 days), they will charge for an annual subscription ($102.95 US). This is OPT OUT, not opt in. In other reviews they say they will offer a refund (I will update when/if I get one) but for an app for people with executive function issues, an opt out format seems shady. Either…

Noom, a popular diet/weight-loss app, works on the same principle. I've used it. To start the free trial you need to prepare the payment mechanism. Then after X amount of days, the paid service automatically kicks in. I wasn't super-excited to discover I'd just committed a lot of money before I was ready or even fully committed to the app/service.

I suspect this is going to be the new trend for future apps, since it almost certainly delivers a higher number of paid users than other methods do.

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#218

Post by [deleted] »

n1000 wrote: post #5
ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #2

I wish you luck! I have the opposite issue. I'm ... what do you call it? neurodiverse (at one time, I was an "aspie"), and I can actually get locked into a fugue, so strong, that hours go by like minutes. In the aggregate, it has worked out OK. I'm a damn good programmer (but a total nerd). I do have family that have suffered from ADHD, and hope that your app may be helpful.

Hyperfocus is actually one of the odd trades of ADHD. If people with ADHD work on a topic that motivates them, they can easily loose hours just like you describe. However, if the task is too mundane or overwhelming, I can easily procrastinate months on them.

[deleted]

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#219

Post by mkr-hn »

zarkov99 wrote: post #161
WhiteDawn wrote: post #74

As someone with ADHD, I’ve stayed away from this product because it is a subscription service. I will sign up for subscription services fully well intentioned and then proceed to not use the service and forget to cancel it in time. I know myself well enough now to stay away from any product offering a subscription. There is no real “managing” it, it’s just a fact of life for me and something I live around. An app tar…

Have you tried Privacy.com ? Even for people with no ADHD the subscription trap is very real but there are technological solutions.

Are there any hidden traps in the free plan? I know they have incentive to onboard as many free users as possible since they get part of the card fee when you use it, but people get greedy even with an opportunity to make essentially free, effortless, and ethical money.

Re: Launch HN: Inflow (YC S21) – Self-help app for people with ADHD

#220

Post by texasbigdata »

yololol wrote: post #211
yummypaint wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can assure you that absolutely no-one "likes" being charged a full years subscription in advance. We're working on extending the free trial / moving to a freemium model. Please. You aren't spaceX "working on" your next engine, or AMD "working on" the next processor architecture. All you have to do to end the unethical behavior is flip a few bits in a database. Don't pretend it's some kind of grand technical challen…

While criticism can be good when constructive, I think these comments are a bit dramatic and make way too many assumptions. I would expect that it's more financially lucrative to have a happy userbase, which translates to a good reputation and thus larger user-base, rather rip-off a few who will eventually give bad reviews and create a bad reputation. To me the current pricing model sounds more like a bad decision ra…

If you worked towards the higher standard, of trying to avoid even the potential appearance of inappropriate action, you would never do what they did.

Deep down do you believe that they would have changed if not for this public outcry?

Make it free for 30 days THEN throw up a pay screen. You're a funded startup what's the issue here?

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