Is anyone worried about having to pay for AI features after the ‘free’ period ends?

[frank-barnett]

Just curious what (if) anyone else is thinking. I hope this feature is like the SOS calling on Apple phones where they promised the first year or two free, partly because Apple didn’t know what the cost was going to be, but would not charge for because it would look bad.

I know if I have to ‘pay’ to use a very expensive piece of hardware, I will be grateful I kept my S23 Ultra.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

I do my best not to worry about things that haven't happened yet... there's a long time til the end of 2025, so there's no point getting in a tizzy.

I may baby rage with the best of them when and if it does come to pass though lol.

 

[lateck2]

I doubt it will happen in the first few years. My reasoning is that it would bad PR for future phones with AI.

 

[mlblack16]

Samsung will have to refine its AI development to the point the public is willing to actually pay for it.

I know it's sounds pessimistic, but I don't have a ton of faith in Samsung ever reaching that point. I fear their implementation of AI will be the Bixby of AI implementation in cell phones. Not bad, but not as good as Google.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

Samsung will have to refine its AI development to the point the public is willing to actually pay for it.

I know it's sounds pessimistic, but I don't have a ton of faith in Samsung ever reaching that point. I fear their implementation of AI will be the Bixby of AI implementation in cell phones. Not bad, but not as good as Google.

I think Samsung actually agrees with you, which is why they are letting Google do so much of the heavy lifting.

Of course, the problem with hitching your cart to Google's horse is that you never know when they are going to get bored and shoot it in the face.

 

[KupKrazy]

I read that and I thought two things: I would have traded in the phone by then and... that's messed up - I'm not paying for AI. Next thing you know, everything else on the phone is a subscription. Madness....

 

[Katrina White1]

Not worried. Depending on the sub fee, I'll pay it if I find the features useful. We have almost 2 years to figure out whether it's worth it to us. Also, as the old adage goes: ya gotta pay to play.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

Not worried. Depending on the sub fee, I'll pay it if I find the features useful. We have almost 2 years to figure out whether it's worth it to us. Also, as the old adage goes: ya gotta pay to play.

Well, I think the issue a lot of people are having with this is that we already did pay quite a lot for the phone itself so we should be able to play.
And they weren't exactly upfront about the charge if it does come to pass

 

[Stanley Kubrick]

Personally I will NOT pay any reoccurring fee for anything! Now if it's a ONE TIME fee then I will consider if I need any of the pay-to-play features and how much they want. I have paid for several apps over the years, and many of them I continue to use to this day! We're talking anywhere from a couple of dollars up to maybe 7.50 for the most expensive one???
The real issue is what will happen to the phone if I choose NOT to pay? Will it stop working? I highly doubt it. I believe that these AI features are added icing on the cake to make it even more sickeningly sweet! I don't use this stuff today so I have little concern that I will need it in two years! YMMV

 

[Emig5m]

I'm not really interested in AI. I despise the idea of faked pictures and faking everything.

 

[trucksmoveamerica#AC]

I read that and I thought two things: I would have traded in the phone by then and... that's messed up - I'm not paying for AI. Next thing you know, everything else on the phone is a subscription. Madness....

Apple has their users trained to do subscriptions... Samsung has been mimicking apple a lot in this area lately.

 

[Katrina White1]

Well, I think the issue a lot of people are having with this is that we already did pay quite a lot for the phone itself so we should be able to play.
And they weren't exactly upfront about the charge if it does come to pass

I see it the same as when I purchased my car. There were features that came with it, but only for 36mos. After that, there's an annual fee. It's up to me to decide whether or not I can live without them.

There were rumors about the possible subscription, and after Unpacked, it was confirmed. We knew there would be a cost in 2026, although not full details. People are legitimately upset, I'm just not one of them.

 

[mlblack16]

I see it the same as when I purchased my car. There were features that came with it, but only for 36mos. After that, there's an annual fee. It's up to me to decide whether or not I can live without them.

There were rumors about the possible subscription, and after Unpacked, it was confirmed. We knew there would be a cost in 2026, although not full details. People are legitimately upset, I'm just not one of them.

Any ideas what services would be included with the subscription?

Good thing I'm covered for the next two years, because if my phone loses anything important without a subscription, Samsung will be the one that's ass'd out, not me.

I'll switch to Google phones or even do other brands if needed, like OnePlus

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

I see it the same as when I purchased my car. There were features that came with it, but only for 36mos. After that, there's an annual fee. It's up to me to decide whether or not I can live without them.

There were rumors about the possible subscription, and after Unpacked, it was confirmed. We knew there would be a cost in 2026, although not full details. People are legitimately upset, I'm just not one of them.

I'm not really one of them either, but I can see where they are coming from. And I'm sorry, but if the heating coils are already in the seats and they are all wired up the heated seats should just work... There should not be an additional monthly fee lol

 

[Katrina White1]

I'm not really one of them either, but I can see where they are coming from. And I'm sorry, but if the heating coils are already in the seats and they are all wired up the heated seats should just work... There should not be an additional monthly fee lol

Heating coils are NOT an optional feature. I'm talking about stuff like updated navigation and that phone app where u can check Diagnostics from your phone, etc.

 

[Katrina White1]

Any ideas what services would be included with the subscription?

No idea. I won't even speculate. I'll just say they'll probably clandestinely survey useage, and charge for features that get the most use.

 

[mlblack16]

I'm not really one of them either, but I can see where they are coming from. And I'm sorry, but if the heating coils are already in the seats and they are all wired up the heated seats should just work... There should not be an additional monthly fee lol

Well, it's like my Lexus. For a period of time, remote start worked but after the trial period, you had to pay a subscription for whatever the service is called, (it's like the GM OnStar thing) and the subscription was NOT cheap.

A dick move on behalf of Lexus, to say the least

 

[I Can Be Your Hero]

I won't have the phone that long and in addition to that, I don't think the AI features are very good. I have the Pixel 8 Pro, so a lot of the AI features are on that phone. The Magic Editor, if it decides to work, is very slow and the results are just ok. Sometimes it'll just flat out refuse to do something and comes up with some conflict.

 

[phone-a-holic]

Too soon to even think about it.

 

[fuzzylumpkin]

Well, it's like my Lexus. For a period of time, remote start worked but after the trial period, you had to pay a subscription for whatever the service is called, (it's like the GM OnStar thing) and the subscription was NOT cheap.

A dick move on behalf of Lexus, to say the least

I think that's the problem... It's one thing to charge a fair amount to run a service that has a running cost, but so many companies just use it as an excuse to take the Mickey.