That’s a 25% increase (of $2.50/month for the annual sub).
I know it’s better for the future of Roon for us to stay on the annual sub, but the Jan 1 increases to the annual/lifetime subs make the current $700 lifetime cost a compelling option.
I’d prefer paying $1200 for 10 years of Roon use, but i can move to lifetime now for $700 (plus $240 paid for the last 2 years of sub). Moving to lifetime before Jan 1 will save me $260 over the next 8 years… everything after that costs nothing.
Staying on the annual sub gets me only 6.5 years before I’ve paid $1200 in total. So the price increase effectively reduces my Roon benefit by 1 1/2 years.
I love using Roon. It’s a great fit for my local/streaming needs. I just wish it made sense for me to continue on the monthly sub. But I think for me (and possibly many of us) it’s now time to get the lifetime sub.
I’ve been on the fence about jumping to a lifetime subscription. I’m still slightly hesitant to do so because I absolutely do not want Roon to go out of business. This is because since beginning to use it I’ve built my entire listening world around it in my home and it’s been a godsend. The price increases, while disappointing are understandable so maybe this will convince me to jump to lifetime before the increase goes into effect.
I don’t feel good about this but I need to change my thinking.
I joined Roon on 06-Jul-2022 and decided to pay an annual subscription ($9.99 x 12 = $119.88). Being a new user, I wasn’t ready to go for the lifetime plan but my thinking was that I might do so if I’m still pleased with Roon after a year and I can see myself staying with Roon for the long haul, which is indeed how I feel today.
But now I feel a sense of urgency that prices are rising. If I now switch to the lifetime deal before the prices go up (let’s say on 06-Dec-2022 for the sake of illustration), it will cost me $699.99 there and then. But I’m only 6 months into the year I paid for.
The Change your billing plan dialog says:
After clicking purchase, you will be charged $699.99 immediately. You will not receive any full or partial refunds for any prior payments.
So I will forfeit $59.94 of my annual payment. I know this is less than the impending increase of $130 for the lifetime payment but I feel like I’ve been tricked into a choice I now regret.
I have to think about this differently.
If I were able to secure the current $699.99 price for the lifetime plan and pay it on 06-Jul-2023 when my year is up, I will still have paid the same amount as if I switch to the lifetime plan on 06-Dec-2022.
Because of bonus extensions I got with a couple of hardware purchases my subscription is paid up through April 2024, so jumping on the lifetime sub before the price increase doesn’t really make sense for me.
Also, y’know… I’ll be nearly 72 by that point so I guess it’ll be year to year for me in this as in most things.
I am new to the Roon family having taken the plunge to a year subscription only last week, I also invested in a 2nd hand NUC onto which I have installed Rock, but I haven’t had much time to use and play with the system and I’m not sure whether to just stick to it for a year or take the plunge and buy the lifetime pass as I am still within my first 30 days and I could get it for $580. It is a lot of money and a bit off putting. But also nothing is permanent so noone knows if Roon will be here in years to come or if it will be taken over by a big conglomerate who might then change the subscription plans and cancel the lifetime passes people have already purchased.
Roon Labs turnover was $5 million in 2021, not too bad for a small company. It can definitely be an acquisition target for a bigger player.
It was not tongue-in-cheek, but it’s not a threat either. There is no desire for pain or retribution. I’m only stating the thought process, and how we considered the exchange rates when setting this price.
That said, on Jan 1, 2023, prices go up to $829 for the lifetime. This has been announced (currently being shown on Pricing - Roon Labs) and also has been emailed to many people. In the future, the lifetime may go up again, or the lifetime option may be killed off completely.
In a way, I wish you had killed it off already. Then I would not have to agonize over it.
Today’s lifetime price compared to the new annual price means it’s worth 4.67 years. That’s quite a long time in the hi-tech industry. Who knows what will happen in that time?
My wife says we should stay on the annual plan, even though it will be going up 25%.