Filed under: iPod Family, iPhone, App Store
It's a bird! No, it's an app! No, it's Tweetie 2 for iPhone!
Users of Tweetie, the popular Twitter client for both Mac and iPhone, have reason to be excited: a new version of the iPhone app, Tweetie 2 (aptly codenamed "Bigbird"), is confirmed to be on the way. In a preview of the new version, Scott Kleinberg of ChicagoNow detailed his experiences with beta builds of the upcoming release. From the screenshots provided, it's clear that several interface improvements have been made, including a quick menu that provides easy access to several new features while posting a tweet. Other improvements include the ability to send video tweets, persistent session handling that restores the app to its previous state, conversation threading, draft management, and geotagging.
While Scott's review suggests that the changes and improvements make Tweetie 2 feel like a whole new app, Tweetie developer Loren Brichter indicates that it really is -- it's a complete rewrite from the original app. In addition to the major features, the new version also boasts integration with several 3rd party services, and a host of configuration options, from new gesture options to custom Twitter API settings.
Of course, not everyone will be happy with the update. There is already a stir among beta testers over the app's use of pinstripe backgrounds on the profile and single tweet views. Also, there is the issue of cost: Tweetie 2 will set you back $2.99, as it is being offered as a new app instead of a free upgrade to existing users. When it comes to upgrades, most desktop applications follow a pattern where minor updates (such as upgrading from version 1.0 to 1.1 or 1.1.2 -- often refered to as "point releases") are provided free of charge, and major updates (from version 1.0 to 2.0) usually require the user to purchase the new version of the software.
With iPhone apps, however, Apple does not provide a system to allow developers to do this. Developers can release upgrades and bug fixes as free updates to their applications, but if they invest a lot of time into a major update to their app, they have to submit it as a new, different version of the application rather than an upgrade to the old version, and there is no option to allow users who have perviously purchased the original app to receive a discount on the new version. So users are faced with having to pay full price for the upgrade, which in this case, is another $2.99.
In my opinion, this is not an unreasonable amount to pay for a major upgrade to an already great application, but there are users who feel they shouldn't have to pay for the upgrade. My advice to them? If you can't spare $3 for the amount of time and effort that was put into making a decent, feature-rich upgrade, don't bother using it. Stick with the original Tweetie or find another app that you're willing to pay for.
So, controversy aside, Tweetie 2 looks very promising. The latest beta build that was provided to developers is expected to be the final build, and if things go well, we should see it hit the App Store in the coming weeks. An update to the desktop version of Tweetie is also in the works, and will probably surface after the iPhone app is released.
Update: TUAW reader Ahmed drew our attention to this tweet, indicating that Tweetie 2 has been submitted to Apple! Assuming there are no hold-ups, we can probably expect to see it hit the App Store in a few weeks.
What do you think of the new version? Will you be upgrading when it's released? Let us know in the comments!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
PSM said 8:11AM on 9-29-2009
I think developers have a right to charge more for major upgrades, but for now I'm going to skip this one. I've been bouncing between Tweetie and Twitterrific since each came out, and have been using Twitterrific exclusively for a while now.
In the realm of Twitter clients in particular, I'm kind of surprised to see a company asking for more money without offering push support.
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Jason said 8:20AM on 9-29-2009
Actually there are push notifications for users you choose
PSM said 8:23AM on 9-29-2009
Oh, I thought I read that it had no push. Well OK then, that's good news.
lilguy said 8:23AM on 9-29-2009
n00b question but what is pinstipping?
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cole said 8:55AM on 9-29-2009
check out this post detailing the pinstriped background on most iphone applications:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/1062453/how-can-i-get-the-pinstripe-background-to-show
James said 8:27AM on 9-29-2009
I for one WILL be upgrading... TONS of things I've been waiting for in this release so why not!
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Hawkman said 8:40AM on 9-29-2009
It's not the price -- pretty sure most people will just pay the $3 -- it's the principle. Feels a little like they don't care about existing customers. And yes, I know, they can't offer any upgrade pricing; but will they offer an apology for that?
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Jason Martin said 11:24AM on 9-29-2009
I think you mean "he". Tweetie is created, coded, and maintained by a single individual. Tweetie is his sole source of support. That, among other reasons, makes me more inclined to gladly pay the $3. Also, this is a true 2.0 upgrade, and the work+added value makes it very reasonable. I don't see it as "they don't care about existing customers". Rather, it's a guy simply trying to make this product profitable. In the end, that will benefit all consumers, even if we have to pay again.
Free upgrades for life just isn't a sustainable business model. I, for one, would rather companies charge for major upgrades, such as this, so that they can afford to keep the upgrades (and new products) coming.
Hawkman said 12:32PM on 9-29-2009
"He", then. Please don't try to make me feel guilty like this -- I'm a student, and a freeware developer.
I'm quite clearly not arguing that $3 is a lot of money. $3, in fact, would be a perfectly fair upgrade price.
Although the fact that we have nothing to show for a long period of loyal use, recommendations to friends, and patience in waiting for features like push (instead of jumping ship to another client which already had the shiny shiny) is disappointing, that's just how it is with the App Store. I can accept that. Being effectively called a tightarse in articles and comments is rather annoying, though, and I think unfair.
All it'd take, for me at least, is a brief "Sorry, I'd have done upgrade pricing if I could, guys, but my hands are tied" -- yet there's not a word of it in that blog post. I'm quite sure it's merely a failure to *write*, not a failure to *feel* that way, but sometimes the writing is important.
Michael Jones said 1:13PM on 9-29-2009
He may not have said it in the blog post, but he has acknowledged it on Twitter:
http://twitter.com/atebits_support/status/4473817100
http://twitter.com/atebits_support/status/4459900597
He has also been very generous to users who have contacted him indicating that they just bought Tweetie 1.0 and are unhappy with having to pay again for an upgrade.
I do see your point though, but as you said, his hands are basically tied. It would have definitely helped if there had been more significant updates to Tweetie 1.0 just to make users feel like they were getting their money's worth.
Aaron Brown said 8:43AM on 9-29-2009
I'm fine with them charging for the upgrade and I'm sure I'll buy it when it shows up in the app
store. However I didn't know about the charge for te upgrade when I went ahead and purchased tweetie last night. I've been a twitterfon pro (now echofon pro) user for some time. The main reason I preferred Twitterfon over Tweetie was bc
Twitterfon has little badges at the bottom of the app indicating how many unread tweets you have. When I read ya tweetie 2 was getting that I decided it was finally ok for me to use tweetie, knowing that the feature was coming in an upgrade. I should have kept reading to learn that it wouldn't be a free upgrade. Now I'm stuck having paid last night for the original with absolutely no use for it.
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Galley said 8:49AM on 9-29-2009
It's too late as Twitterrific Premium gets all my love. At least the Mac version of Tweetie will be a free upgrade.
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tomind said 8:52AM on 9-29-2009
I think it is sad that they are constantly charging for upgrades etc. I have purchased many apps in the past and they remove them without a refund and I am tired of getting screwed over.
I know people need to make money but give me a break.
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Steve said 10:25AM on 9-29-2009
Oh come on dude it's THREE BUCKS! You can't even buy an issue of "Crybaby Monthly" for that much. Just skip Tacobell for lunch today and you're covered. Geesh! A team of pasty coders spend countless hours inflaming their carpel tunnels and you can't toss 'em 3 bones?
They should probably charge MORE! You should just stick to adware or grow up.
puhsitch said 8:34PM on 9-29-2009
Wait wait wait...they remove them from your phone?
Tim said 6:00PM on 9-29-2009
I think it's great that they're charging. This tells me they'll have some decent cashflow and may actually stick around for a while.
Free apps are wonderful, until you think about how they will sustain for the long term (Remember I Want Sandy?). I'm reluctant to move any part of my workflow to a free app unless it's from an enormous, well-capitalized company (hello Google!). This is why I pay for Evernote and Pandora, even though I don't have to. I want them around for the long haul.
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Zcott said 9:02AM on 9-29-2009
Considering the developer is now working full-time writing Mac and iPhone apps, I think it's OK to charge for a mega-upgrade like Tweetie 2 is.
And let's put this all in perspective: $3 isn't a lot of money - skip getting a coffee from Starbucks one day and you'll have the extra cash!
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Alex Muller said 9:10AM on 9-29-2009
I think it’s great that Loren’s charging $3 for this upgrade; it’s worth so much more, and he easily deserves it. I’ll definitely be buying it as soon as it’s approved by Apple.
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Noah said 9:27AM on 9-29-2009
If he really wanted to give Tweetie 1 users a discount (say a dollar), all I'd have to do is FWD him the receipt I received from iTunes showing that I purchased Tweetie 1. Then the developer could send me a dollar via Paypal.
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Michael Jones said 11:08AM on 9-29-2009
If he were to do that, he would essentially be giving you an advance, because he wouldn't see the profit from the sale for about a month after you purchased it. Not to mention, he'd be giving you half of his profits (since he only sees about $2.09 out of each sale).
Seriously, Apple needs to offer some sort of mechanism for developers to offer paid upgrades to existing customers, while at the same time preventing devs from charging for minor bug fixes. Which means they would likely have to review and approve the upgrade pricing, and I'm not sure they want to be involved in that part of the process.