Tried Again and Got Worse
Response from developer
Hello! Prequel is still a free to use app, with many free tools and effects. Sometimes we have to add more paid features in order to be able to continue to develop the application and create new filters. If you have any questions or suggestions about Prequel, please contact us through the settings menu in the application or by email at support@prequelapp.com. Also, besides weekly subscription, we also have annual and monthly subscriptions that are much more affordable 😉
why are so many things premium??!!
if the free filters were actually GOOD and everything wasn’t PREMIUM, this would be five stars. but sadly, this gets a two. i’m disappointed but will keep checking to see if they actually get good filters soon. please add some good filters back to the free!!!
Beware of "Free Trial" leading to immediate charge!
- All I saw when I opened this app was a page of movie-like posters. I couldn't find anything of interest. That was my first impression after getting billed.
- If I did stumble across something cool, like AI yearbook photos that maybe seemed interesting. I couldn't even try them because Prequel wanted to charge me ADDITIONAL fees marked as a "big sale"! It was at that point I just closed the app and moved on to another. I was looking for one app, one fee.
As for the charges relating to Apple. Apple does not write the terms of service for Prequel, do they? Where the word "abuse" is used relating to "free trials"? I trialed 10-15 apps one afternoon, I only had one issue with this one particular app. Prequel was the ONLY app I got charged for. I read all the "free trial" text very carefully, for each app.
I was refunded the money immediately. This is not about $6, it's about the way a lot of apps are tricking customers into overpriced subs they do not want. Prequel's annual value isn't $6.81/week... is it? That's $354/year. So the only reason I can come up with is some are looking to make quick cash. So if someone takes out a free trial and then passes away the next day, Prequel gets to keep taking their money indefinitely. That's not the way I want to do business.
END OF UPDATE
I've been downloading a lot of AI photo/video apps to trial them and see which are actually the best. On this app I selected "free trial", double clicked to confirm, and I was instantly billed by Apple! I politely reached out to the company, I received the usual business answer of, "read before you click and confirm", but Apple needs to do something with all these quick money grab attempts from "free trials"! With this app, apparently I had previously installed it and taken out a trial. So when I unknowingly did it again, even though I was confirming a "free trial" on my phone and the app, I was instantly billed $6.81 for a weekly fee by Apple! For those wondering, that would be approximately $354 CAD/year for this app. Even the best design apps on here are $40-80/year for Lightroom or Photoshop, and it's not even close to what this app's yearly subscription is. Then I read their Terms of Service. It states, in lamens terms, that it is in their discretion if they feel someone is "abusing" free trials, to act. So, apparently, that's what happened in my case. Apple seruously needs to consider keeping their sellers in check when it comes to trick wording and especially when it comes to making sure the weekly or monthly price a company attaches to their "free trial" is at least in the same BALLPARK as their annual price. That was not the case here. Some apps had an annual fee of around $40, then a recurring fee of $13.99/week after a 7-day trial. I would ask Apple if they think that is ethical and in good faith. To me that seems an awful lot like price gouging people who don't pay attention. And it's getting worse and worse. Purchases and seller charges made on this store should all be in good faith! To summarize my personal experience with this Prequel app and it's features. I still don't know what it does. Because even after getting over the annoyance of the free trial that I paid for, when I finally found something that looked fun or interesting, like AI yearbook photos, I was AGAIN asked for MORE MONEY!!!!! $7.99 on sale for $3.99 (give or take) ADD-ON FEES!!!! No, thanks!! This interface was confusing to me. All I personally saw were a bunch of movie poster type links and not much else for content. Then again, I only spent 10-15mins on it and deleted it when I saw even more charges. I emailed Prequel about my incident with getting charged, and they just gave me the standard business lines of "read more closely". I did not appreciate that response. As customers, we should be more than permitted to "shop around" and find the best product available without attempts to hook you into an unreasonable recurring fee, or have it be considered "abuse" of their free trial system. We're the ones paying the money! If a company doesn't like free trials. Don't offer them. It's that simple.
Response from developer
Hello! We'd be grateful, if you would message us via email, as we are quite limited in replies here on App Store ;) Besides weekly plan, we've got annual and monthly subscriptions too which are much more affordable. They can be found in your App Store account settings. Paid options allow us to develop Prequel constantly and to pay for the AI effects' servers. Which effects or features would you like to have for free? All charges are done by Apple. We do not process any charges directly, and we don't have access to your payment information, only Apple has it. Apple is also checking, whether a trial period was used by this Apple ID (customer) or not. Trial period is provided one time, Apple (not Prequel) is checking each customer, whether they have already used their trial or not. And then Apple is showing to the customer the exact amount and the date of the payment (right now or after three days in Apple's system window (grey colored, takes the lower half of the screen). Customers have the possibility to cancel it and not to purchase anything. You can request for a refund from Apple: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204084. We'd appreciate a lot, if you could change the rating, if you don't have any technical issues with the app itself. Because we don't bill users directly, all payments are processed by Apple. If you need any assistance with Prequel, please contact us at suppprt@prequelapp.com.
Dear developers
Response from developer
Hi! Prequel is a free to use app. Trial or a paid subscription is not obligatory at all. You may close the offer screen by hitting "X" button in the upper screen corner. Then tap on the big + button and then on the Effects on the right menu. You will see many free effects, including AI effects. Also, card information is not entered in the app, but only in your App Store account settings. App developers don't have access to your payment information ;) If you need any assistance, please contact us from Prequel's settings menu or at support@prequelapp.com
My FAV!
Response from developer
Hi! Besides weekly plan, we've got annual and monthly subscriptions too. They can be found in your App Store account settings. Paid options allow us to develop Prequel constantly and to pay for the AI effects' servers. Which effects or features would you like to have for free? Please, reply to us at support@prequelapp.com. We really appreciate any feedback from our community, as we try to maintain balance between paid and free features.
Deleted features (Where is the text on the Aurora effects???)
Response from developer
Hello! We're sorry for the disappointing experience with Prequel. We'd like to investigate the issues properly, but we'd need more details about them. Could you please send us a message from the app's Settings menu -> Send feedback or at support@prequelap.com. You may also attach some screenshots or records illustrating the issues. Thank you!
MONEY HUNGRY DEVS
Charge money for your stupid AI filters, and if that doesn't make enough money to support the servers and the business then maybe you should realise that barely anybody wants to use them in the first place! This app is on a downwards spiral and it is so sad. Just pure greed at this point. I would gladly pay for good software but I refuse to pay any money to a team that’s shilling its customers and siphoning funds into reductive AI effects rather than genuine innovative designs.
Response from developer
Hey there! Thank you a lot for your kind words and support. We'll pass your request to our team :) Our ultimate goal is to make Prequel friendly for you. Prequel community is a safe space for everyone!
Soooooo slow
Response from developer
Hello! Thank you for your feedback. The reason that the premium version of Prequel is currently available on a weekly-subscription basis is because we release new filters, effects and tools every 1 to 2 weeks. So it's more like a subscription service with new features being added almost every week. However, we do want everybody to be able to enjoy Prequel and create with us. That's why 80% of our features are available for free. And why we are still considering other alternatives, such as a one-time purchase option. Sincerely, Prequel Team
Disappointed.
Response from developer
Hello! Prequel is a free app and we are trying to maintain a balance between paid and free versions of the app. By now, we offer over 300 effects variations for free. What is more, there are many other subscription plans available. Feel free to contact us at support@prequelapp.com.
Used to be my favourite, ruined by greed
Response from developer
Hello! Prequel is a free app and we are trying to maintain a balance between paid and free versions of the app. By now, we offer over 300 effects variations for free. What is more, there are many other subscription plans available. Feel free to contact us at support@prequelapp.com.
