Article title is a bit misleading IMO, they are offering everyone Tread+ subscription for free (for 3 months) until the software feature is released to non paying members. Agree it's not the best customer experience but it doesn't really "brick" users from using the treadmill although does make it inconvenient for users that need to now sign up for Tread+

It’s not just a bit misleading. It’s completely wrong.

They aren’t taking away the free feature. They’ve disabled it while they make a similar but safer feature available in the free tier and in the meanwhile they are giving people free access to the paid tier.

No one who doesn’t want to pay Peloton the monthly subscription to use it will ever need to do so, and for a few months they will be able to use the premium features for free.

Tread plus subscription will likely require you to give your card details. How many people will remember to switch to free after 3 months ?

Use privacy.com to create a credit card with, say, $1 limit and mark it for closure after one use.

It is not what you (or I) can do avoid this.

The issue is most people will not do any of that, that is what Peleton is counting on by releasing a feature that will otherwise brick the treadmill .

This sort of thing is why I went with a Concept 2 row erg and bike erg. There is no software connection to anything but the monitoring of the user - if desired. But with their bluetooth and many apps available you can still gamify it if you like.

Honestly at this point in my life, I just want to stop contributing to the push for "rent for life" by tech companies. While I see the entire world just be dragged into a place where people will have no control over items they "own", I refuse to be a part of it.

A cabin in the woods is becoming more and more attractive to me every year, and I'm only 26 :(

We savotaging property rights, and noone is realising this.

Soon, the situation will be that you can be "cancelled" from using your car and toaster because the co pany didn't like somethong you said on twitter.

Meanwhole these companies take no responsebility when their shit goes wrong.

Capitalism is destroying liberty.

Even if free and clear that cabin will have property taxes, a.k.a. rent for life.

Yes that is certainly a depressing fact of life... The Canadian government would not take kindly to missing my yearly Canuckbucks

We have a one room primitive cottage on a few acres of Crown land and taxes aren't more than ~$100CAD/yr.

How rural are we talking?

There are thousands of thrift stores' and garage sales' worth of used fitness equipment that works perfectly fine, and don't require a subscription....

Another plus about row/bike ergs is that they work even if the power is out.

Why would anyone pay so much for hardware that requires a subscription he said while posting from his $1500 + $100/mo smartphone.

The difference is that with a smartphone you can choose which service provider you want (even if they're more or less the same, at least there's "competition")... or don't if you just want to use your smartphone as an internet device/music player/weak little *nix box.

Without a subscription, what can you use a Peloton treadmill for? A really low bench?

We didn’t buy a Peloton, but we did buy an Aviron row machine [1] after its Launch HN post [2]. $2k + $30/month. Is it worth it? It’s worth it to us between juggling work, zoom meetings, kids, life minutia and not having time to get to a gym. I can row at 2am if I want (and I do).

That’s what money is for: to bring happiness and solve problems.

[1] https://avironactive.com/

[2] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25905467

This still doesn't feel like a fair comparison.

The Aviron website clearly states that the device is still perfectly functional as an exercise device without the membership.

Also, I cannot fathom that I'm considering a subscription service for something like this, and yet I am... anything to make exercising fun, I guess.

I suppose that’s fair, as we can still row without the membership. I think the bigger issue is how this relates to right to repair and product warranty/merchantability. If you sell a product and then take away features using a software update, you should be required to either compensate owners for the lost functionality or buy back the equipment from them at purchase price.

What's the $100 for? Do people normally spend that much on app subscriptions?

Cell/internet service.

It’s true you can use a phone as a tablet without internet but it’s also true that very few do.

This made me laugh

Can anyone explain how a company could release an update of _their_ software on _their_ machine that just adds a passcode lock to the screen but the only way to get that feature is to pay them money.

I am quite confused how a lockscreen update & functionality and paid membership could fathomably be connected in code.

This seems like Peloton is doing this to try to force people into buying membership.

Perhaps the recovery process for people who forget their passcode?

Easier to implement if you have other verified communication methods.

Is this their CYA legal dept making it so if someone is injured it's the users fault for staying logged in so the run button was accessible?