Better have a smart phone/tablet
We used Lifecake for 5 years. One of our favorite aspects of Lifecake was that it was usable online- so grandparents who don’t have tablets or smart phone could still see their grandchildren (or great-grandchildren). Without that option i am not sure the new $5/mo charge in the new app Back Then is worth it! Giving no workable warning to parents before BackThen became the only usable option is not a smart launch. Mandating a monthly subscription is even worse (yes yes we know keep the lights on and all that...it seems to be the only company reply). Verdict is still out- but $60/year to share photos will probably send us looking elsewhere eventually. The app is identical so easy to use but we need the full accessibility ASAP.
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Former LifeCake customer
This app is LifeCake with a different colour scheme. If you paid for extra storage on LifeCake, you can’t get your money back, whatever LifeCake says. You have to pay again. When you use the wizard to migrate your data, BackWhen says you have to buy a new subscription and hangs there offering no way to make the purchase. (PS: This was fixed by deleting and reinstalling the app.) What these people are selling, in essence, addresses the fundamental desire for immortality that is met by our offspring. They are selling continuity. This change of provider is a discontinuity, badly handled. The LifeCake -> BackThen migration wizard DOES NOT WORK for customers who need to subscribe to additional storage. (PS: This was fixed by deleting and reinstalling the app.) These are people’s most precious memories and sharing them when COVID 19 prevents visits is a real comfort. The timing of this move was disastrous in terms of coinciding with the pandemic. The executives of the companies concerned should get their heads out of their profit margin spreadsheets and look at the real world.
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Response from developer
BackThen is a NEW company and we are not affiliated to Lifecake or its owners. BackThen was created to give parents and their families an alternative to having to move away from the experience they have grown used to. BackThen is self-funded by the team. We understand any subscription is tough for some, particularly in this horrible period of global pandemic uncertainty. But we need to ensure the business is viable and that we can keep the lights on. Lifecake have assured us that (1) pro-rated refunds are already being processed, and (2) all parents will be provided with 'Download All' links to retrieve their memories within the next 10 days.
Easy Migration. Subscription price reasonable.
Easy migration from Lifecake, took about 10 mins via the app. Looks like anything over 1GB storage costs £3.99 per month, which allows up to 200GB on that subscription. Looks like a 1TB option on its way. It’s easy to rack up data with videos and pictures over the years.
I think these costs are reasonable considering the business is in start-up, secure storage and uptime can be expensive, and the its a business that needs to make money to keep going, just like any other. Time will tell but at the moment all seems good.
Would be good to have an emphasis on security and how/where the data is stored and protected.
I think these costs are reasonable considering the business is in start-up, secure storage and uptime can be expensive, and the its a business that needs to make money to keep going, just like any other. Time will tell but at the moment all seems good.
Would be good to have an emphasis on security and how/where the data is stored and protected.
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Response from developer
Thank you for you feedback. If you have any questions, feel free to email us to support@backthen.app.
Overpriced
All the reviews say new app not affiliated with Lifecake, except even the logo looks the same and Lifecake literally directs you to move to this app.
Way less storage, way overpriced. Will be deleting.
Way less storage, way overpriced. Will be deleting.
Response from developer
When the decision was made to close Lifecake, the original founders decided – rather than let the memories in Lifecake fade away – to quickly build an independent new app to replace it. BackThen. The company is 100% owned by the founders, with no association to Lifecake's parent company.
Thank you for carrying on
We loved using lifecake over the past year and half as our families live in multiple states and can’t see our child’s growth firsthand. Extremely happy that the transition from Lifecake was painless and all memories and comments/likes carried over. More than a fair price for the quality and service this app provides!!
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Can’t have your Lifecake and enjoy it too!
I loved Lifecake for years. I deleted the old app and downloaded this as they said to do. I have all my photos on my phone so I didn’t need to keep them off Lifecake.
But for some reason I can’t start new and fresh with no importing of pics/vids?. And already saying I have over the limit of pics/vids... must purchase?
Ridiculous... I can’t even check the app out first without buying storage? What gives?
I can’t see how this isn’t affiliated with Lifecake like they are saying.. the only way we found out about this is through Lifecake.. soo?
Anyways, won’t be buying. Moving to Google photos.
But for some reason I can’t start new and fresh with no importing of pics/vids?. And already saying I have over the limit of pics/vids... must purchase?
Ridiculous... I can’t even check the app out first without buying storage? What gives?
I can’t see how this isn’t affiliated with Lifecake like they are saying.. the only way we found out about this is through Lifecake.. soo?
Anyways, won’t be buying. Moving to Google photos.
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Price gouging
They say they are not affiliated with lifecake but they make it so you can backup your pictures on backthen automatically from lifecake. However, they increased the price a ton! It’s upsetting that I have 6 years of photos that will take forever to download or upload to a new provider and this new app that is basically exactly the same with a new name has such a higher price. I also have no idea how I will help my elderly relatives download and use this new app during lockdown. Not to mention many families are struggling at this time and it’s not a good time to drastically raise prices
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Very easy to transition from Lifecake!
Well done by the original lifecake team! Disappointing that Canon would go and purchase lifecake only to shut it down. But good negotiation by the lifecake team to have clauses to allow for a rebirth of the same app with a new company. We had 30 GBs of memories that transitioned over in about 5 minutes and it’s just like it all was in lifecake thankfully! Would have been terrible to start over again! But more expensive but it’s understandable considering how much cloud space is needed nowadays as to when lifecake originally started. Thanks to the Old Lifecake/new BackThen team!!!
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Paying for a “new” Lifecake.
It’s sad to see a company close down that we have cherished for years. I understand that this is a company not affiliated with Lifecake (though it looks pretty much identical) if you want the many Lifecake users to have a easy transition, you should at least be kind enough to give us free storage for at least a month, to see if this is something we would enjoy compared to Lifecake. To pay 5 bucks and I can’t even see that platform is pretty sad. We will definitely look else where to store the many memories of Lifecake.
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No web option is awful.
Taking away the web option means that many grandparent and great-grandparents who don’t have smart phones or iPads won’t be able to access their loved ones pictures. This is devastating to many of our beloved family members. I see no reason why a web version can’t be included with this. During the pandemic and quarantine, this is a particularly terrible time to take this joy away from them. Please offer a web version or we will have to go elsewhere.
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