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.
So lets put it that way, it is an increase of app. 3% per year since 2015. Maybe this helps a bit to dry our eyes?
No. You can change from annual to lifetime before Jan 1, 2023 at old pricing, but next year, the charge will be at the new pricing.
You should have gotten an email stating that as well, which overrides prior communications.
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.
That’s better.
I noticed that too. I think it’s a mistake. If your annual renewal is next year, you will pay the new annual price, right?
My point is that it makes no difference either way.
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. 
Is that tongue-in-cheek? If not, then I read it as a threat that if you don’t go for lifetime now, you will regret it later.
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.
A similar warning was often mentioned last time before lifetime went up. A lot of people regretted not heeding it then too.
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%.
Nah, lifetime is a great option - pay once, and never agonise over it again 
Buy it and you can stop agonizing as well
This is a bit like people agonizing over when to enter the stock market because next week or next year could be better:
However, you never know, and the best time is always “now” compared to “never” caused by always agonizing over it.
Exchange rates work both ways. When I bought lifetime at $499 the UK exchange rate was really good. I didn’t get anyone using dollars throwing rocks at me.
A couple of thoughts:
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it would be better to allow annual subs to move to the lifetime sub at any point before their annual renewal date (instead of before the Jan 1, 2023 deadline). (Obviously, the total cost is the same… but users on an annual sub would be given more time to decide on the annual/lifetime route)
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when people move to the lifetime sub, they lose the benefits of any bonus sub included with future Roon Store purchases
My annual sub renews in June, but I’ll wait until Dec 31 to buy the lifetime sub.
Wjat´s the difference? Once lifetime starts it is lifetime. You still need ro sibscribe/pay this year.