I honestly don't see what the problem is.
If you prefer FOSS use FOSS apps.
I've tried every single Lemmy app for iOS and Android, but I can honestly say nothing comes close to how smooth and native Sync feels.
I wasn't even a Sync user on Reddit so I didn't understand the hype, but I get it now. On my Pixel 6 Pro all of the other Lemmy apps had some kind of issues, whether that be random crashes or frame rate issues. But Sync is just so smooth and feature rich.
I've also joined the sync discord and the developer is very clear on what type of data he collects (He doesn't, but Google may).
Also with the pricing, if you don't agree with the price that's your opinion, but the amount of complaining is ridiculous. He made the app so whatever he wants to charge is his decision. You can also still freely use the app (with ads) so no one is forcing you to buy.
I'm gonna get a lot of hate for saying this but I WANT there to be ads on Lemmy, for developers of apps and hosters, I want there to be a way to fund the fediverse without everyone needing to pay money out of pocket. If you don't want that that's fine I don't care but I want more people on Lemmy contributing more and it being free and still being able to support full time developers without being dependent on donations is a huge hurdle that will make or break the fediverse IMHO
Edit: to add onto this a lot of the people who cry about data security are not constantly running a proxy server with a VPN, I doubt they have an independent routing firewall, they probably use unsecured applications all the time, there are very few people on here where a Lemmy app will be their biggest data security flaw. 99% of y'all are not Mr Robot please stop pretending to be
It's the steep price increase that everyone's offended with. The annual cost is how much the old lifetime subscription cost iirc. (Which makes sense knowing that Lemmy has a smaller user count)
Plus the inability to disable telemetry even if paying.
I mean it's fine and all, but we're here at Lemmy and not Reddit for a reason. This usergroup is the ones that care the most about privacy and FOSS more than almost any other online community.
That's fine.
In my opinion, I think that would be more of a valid point if there were no alternatives, but as the original post shows there are plenty of FOSS apps available for those that want that.
I just feel like the developer has took a lot of his time and effort to make this for the community, but instead, some of the community decides to bash him for it due to the pricing model and it not being FOSS.
We're supposed to be building Lemmy as a community but here we are fighting against ourselves internally when there's plenty of options for everyone to use.
Iirc old lifetime one was just for getting rid of ads (I bought it twice), but sync ultra is just extra features for a small cost each month meant to support the developer a little bit extra.
Right now lifetime purchase isn't available, but I believe ljdawson has talked about it being in the works.
Have you tried Memmy for iOS? My main phone is iOS, but I'm curious as to what may be better on Sync as I was a longtime android user. I do remember using Sync WAY back in the day so I could download a ton of reddit posts for plane rides lmao.
Funny enough, I'm getting ready to board a plan soon and I'm using sync 😂
Have you tried Memmy for iOS?
Yes I have! Memmy is a great app and it was the first one to reach the Apple store. The development team consistently pushed out updates pretty much daily and was able to provide the most features of any Lemmy app currently on iOS, at least in my opinion.
My main phone is also an iPhone, but it's just something about sync. Like it's seriously so fluid and it just feels "right" I would highly suggest giving it a try if you have an Android device laying around that can support it.