Fantastical Unifies Its Mac, iOS, and Apple Watch Calendar Experience With Weather, Tasks, Meeting Proposals, and More

[Spaceboy88]

This is total BS. The one feature I've had for years for Fantastical was the ability to view your day in a chronological format, the same way the stock iOS calendar offers. Being able to see the blocks of time open is hugely helpful for me. They finally add this but put it behind a paywall. I'm not giving this company a monthly fee to be able to do that. I would've gladly upgraded to v 3.0 for a $10 fee but this is a calendar utility app...no way does this justify a monthly subscription to me.

 

[chuckisbusy]

If you were a paid Fantastical 2 user, all of the version 2 features are automatically unlocked in version 3

Really, Have you opened the app? Because I opened Fantastical 3 and I don't have month view. I have month view in Fantastical 2.

 

[BigMcGuire]

uh....Disney+: $6.99. AppleTV+: $4.99. A calendar app at $4.99. My reaction: Priceless.

No.

Even at the annual rate of $3.33 it still stings imo.

 

[WannaGoMac]

can you block the upgrade if you own v2?
I have to turn off automatic app updates now?

Why don’t they just charge a single fee for the new version? All they did was lose customers because I’m not subscribing to this I’ll just go back to the stock app or the free one from Google

 

[citysnaps]

A real shame. I was hoping paying a premium price for Fantastical would keep Flexbits away from going to a subscription model. I need to think about how I'll respond.


The good news is the makers of Omnigraffle (Omni Group) and Curio (Zengobi), my two most used apps, have resisted that move.

 

[dustinfarris]

I don't understand the pricing complaints here. Fantastical is now FREE. The subscription is for additional features; but the core app — and all the things that make Fantastical great — is FREE.

 

[djs71a]

You don't have to subscribe if you don't want to. If you were a paid Fantastical 2 user, all of the version 2 features are automatically unlocked in version 3, plus some new stuff like limited weather support.

Is there a list of features Fantastical 2 users get for free?

 

[rcooked]

Nope. I like the features here, and would have actually purchased with a one time buy option. I’m not into the subscription thing, and my app purchases have slowed because of this. Great app, but should have offered a buy it one time for more than the year of sub, and I would have done it.
I will just wait and see if anything like the scheduling makes it into Apples native app.

 

[ersan191]

“Show all day events” seems to be included in the free tier. Just tried enabling it and it didn’t complain.

However, I added an all day event for today, but it didn’t show up on the watch. The complication just shows today’s date. I tried clicking the complication, but the app just shows some kind of custom spinning wheel. So I can’t even see how the watch apps is now. Maybe it’s just my watch, or maybe it will be fixed in 3.0.1. Either way, less reasons for me to subscribe.

Yeah watch app seems completely broken now, nice. I'm going back to the stock one, often Fantastical wouldn't refresh and would show me the previous day's date on the complication which was getting annoying. Wish Apple would just show all day events on the stock, I can deal with the "NO EVENTS TODAY".

I'm just going to change all of my all day events to be at noon or something I guess.

 

[nfl46]

Oh my...another subscription service. I'd much rather pay $9.99 or so and just own it. But, $40/year for a calendar app...no thanks. iOS 14 is around the corner - lets see what improvements Apple brings to the default app.

 

[Weaselboy]

I have always liked Fantastical, but over time the default Calendar and Reminder apps have added a lot of features (like natural text entires) that make Fantastical less compelling.

Looking through my purchase history, I paid $19.99 for V1 in May 2012, then $39.99 for V2 in March 2015. I'm just not seeing it worth $39.99 every year for Fantastical. I think I'm all done and will just go back to the default apps.

 

[Derek Knight]

I use Fantastical on my iPhone and I really like it. It's not amazing or anything. Up until now they have charged a hefty (single) price for the upgrade (like $40+), so I've always tried to wait for a sale. Now that they are moving to a subscription-- for a simple calendar app (as nice as it may be), it's no, heck no, no chance in hades that I will fork over $5/mo for this. Hands down this is a non-starter. While I think they make very quality software, and they deserve to be paid for their time developing and maintaining it, there's zero chance I will subscribe monthly/indefinitely for a one-trick-pony app like this. Get a clue AgileBits. Bring back the single app fee. I will gladly fork over $40 bucks or so for this app. But no more subscriptions, please. By comparison, Microsoft Office 365 works out to $5.83/mo and comes with 6 apps and 2 services. So AgileBits is clearly greedy and out of their minds on this.

 

[sparkinstx]

Another subscription-based app? Uh, no.

 

[ericg301]

The beauty of the app store is that if you don't like, go find another app.

Personally, I use Fantastical all of my devices. I use to run my life. It had gotten a bit long in the tooth however, and I welcome the update. I'm going to try to free trial but am pretty sure I'll subscribe.

Recurring subs are the only real way for independent devs to continue making a living. If paying flexibits $3.33/mo means there will be more frequent updates, then it's worth it.

Sub fatigue is a real thing, but you have to balance that with the value you get back from it.

 

[dumastudetto]

uh....Disney+: $6.99. AppleTV+: $4.99. Calendar app at $4.99. My reaction: Priceless.

No.

Fantastical are focusing on the professional market where $5 a month for a sophisticated calendaring application is a huge productivity gain and an absolute bargain. Fantastical has already been priced towards the high-end, and it makes total sense.

They'll undoubtedly have less customers by adopting this subscription model, but I am sure they will make a lot more money every year. Having less customers to support for more money sounds like a big win for me, and they'll have more consistent revenue to invest more in the product.

People also need to keep in consideration you are getting the app across all platforms for this price. So if you've previously purchased Mac, iPad and iPhone versions, the new monthly all-inclusive price will sting less.

Bottom line - yes, this will be a huge turn off for most normal users now. They will make similar comparisons that you have done and conclude not worth it. But to be honest, Fantastical was always overkill for people who just wanted a nice-looking calendar app that was a bit different to the one Apple builds-in. This really has always been an app aimed to solve the time is money problem for professional people.

 

[ericg301]

I use Fantastical on my iPhone and I really like it. It's not amazing or anything. Up until now they have charged a hefty (single) price for the upgrade (like $40+), so I've always tried to wait for a sale. Now that they are moving to a subscription-- for a simple calendar app (as nice as it may be), it's no, heck no, no chance in hades that I will fork over $5/mo for this. Hands down this is a non-starter. While I think they make very quality software, and they deserve to be paid for their time developing and maintaining it, there's zero chance I will subscribe monthly/indefinitely for a one-trick-pony app like this. Get a clue AgileBits. Bring back the single app fee. I will gladly fork over $40 bucks or so for this app. But no more subscriptions, please. By comparison, Microsoft Office 365 works out to $5.83/mo and comes with 6 apps and 2 services. So AgileBits is clearly greedy and out of their minds on this.

it's $3.33 a month if you buy a year. well worth it IMo. it's not a "simple calendar app" -- it has a lot of complex features and tools that power users like myself find indispensable.

you want a simple calendar app? go back to the stock iOS calendar.

 

[ThePaul]

This pricing is ridiculous. Streaming content services costs less.

Flexibits is making the gamble that enough paying customers will stick around to earn them more money than the previous model. This is the definition of caring more about profit than users.

If you’ve grown your operating costs to the point that app pricing can no longer support your business, then you’ve made a mistake. You’re offering a calendar app, not a service.

Your current users were willing to pay the premium price you placed on version 2, but that wasn’t enough.

The subscription pricing model is not sustainable for all apps for the long haul ... apps that are rushing to use it are just trying to cash in on the short term profits before overall sentiment turns against monthly fees for everything.

this line of thinking ends with failed products.

 

[zed2]

Grrrr. Just had my iPhone upgrade to this new version. Now my watch won’t sync until I sign in to an online fantastical service. WHY?? It worked just fine before. I don’t want to register for another online service. And have no interested in a subscription model.
Time to look for another calendar application again

 

[ericg301]

This pricing is ridiculous. Streaming content services costs less.

Flexibits is making the gamble that enough paying customers will stick around to earn them more money than the previous model. This is the definition of caring more about profit than users.

If you’ve grown your operating costs to the point that app pricing can not support it, then you’ve made a mistake. You’re offering a calendar app, not a service.

so many of your users were happy to pay the premium price you placed on version 2, but that wasn’t enough.

The subscription pricing model is not sustainable for all apps for the long haul ... apps that are rushing to use it are just trying to cash in on the short term profits before overall sentiment turns against monthly fees door everything.

this line of thinking ends with failed products.

remind me which streaming service costs less that $3.33 a month?

 

[BigMcGuire]

remind me which streaming service costs less that $3.33 a month?

There's a big voice in this thread screaming about the $5/mo when if one goes to the website they can see $3.33/mo for annual. ($39.96/year). Interesting. lol.

 

[MacBH928]

I wish if there is an app developer here that can tell us if selling apps for a one time fee is enough, or subscription model is really needed.

 

[bigfatipod]

Really, Have you opened the app? Because I opened Fantastical 3 and I don't have month view. I have month view in Fantastical 2.

I have day / week / month / year after my upgrade. you don't have those tabs at the top anymore?

 

[ericg301]

from their blog:

But let’s talk about the thing that’s likely on everyone’s mind, the Fantastical Premium subscription. We want to help you understand why. The old days of selling separate apps is over. It’s confusing and it’s frustrating. The old days also had a new app upgrade every couple of years (although for those of you counting, it has been over six years since we’ve had a paid upgrade for iPhone, over five years for iPad, and over four years for Mac). The upgrade-every-2-to-3-or-so years model also meant each app was developed individually. That ultimately hurts development and innovation.

Unifying Fantastical into a single platform — one product across macOS, iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS — simplifies and improves the experience. It also means that everyone who values our work and efforts can now pay a single, simple price on an ongoing basis. This also means we no longer need to worry about the “every few years” upgrade old school nonsense. It also means we can now implement new features as soon as possible.

And we mean that. This is not about charging you a monthly fee just to get you to start paying monthly. We already have a big roadmap laid out where we can develop consistently and ship great new features and content on a consistent basis. We are looking forward to our new, predictable business where we get rewarded for our work as we do it.
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I have day / week / month / year after my upgrade. you don't have those tabs at the top anymore?

it's a different month view where you can actually view the content in each daily box - before it was just a colored date to indicate an event.

 

[dumastudetto]

There's a big voice in this thread screaming about the $5/mo when if one goes to the website they can see $3.33/mo for annual. ($39.96/year). Interesting. lol.

When it comes to subscriptions, I imagine most people will pay the monthly price despite the obvious savings. If you are a committed Fantastical user though, I think you can safely commit to a year at a generously discounted price.

I would be very interested in seeing how these subscriptions typically break down though - what percentage pay per month, and how many pay upfront for a decent discount.

 

[iOS Geek]

remind me which streaming service costs less that $3.33 a month?

You keep coming back to the $3.33 a month. You do know there is another option, right? It's only $3.33 a month if you're paying for the YEARLY plan. If not...it's $5 MONTHLY. Which chances are (as mentioned in the comment above mine)...is what the general consumer user is going to be paying. Not many people choose the "yearly" route.