What are some things you are subscribed to that make a service worthwhile in keeping?
I only have a few I can say is worth-it but worth it in a more conserving sense, like pumping-the-brakes kind of deal. Not something you would want on all of the time.,
- Amazon Prime.
People may be split on Amazon for activist reasons or what have you, but I find it difficult to argue against what benefits that is brought from it. I sparingly use Prime and get it only when I have things I want to shop for that will be best used with it. I don’t personally use Video, Music or what have you.
- All Streaming Services (Only if you have a work-around)
Subscribing to any base streaming service plan with ads is worthless, but worth it if you use an HDMI cable from PC to TV or whatever configuration. Then watch through a browser that kills advertisements.
Worthless Subscriptions
Spotify
You’re only paying for the privilege to skip songs which should be a basic right of usage. Podcasts still aren’t exempt from advertisements. Features provided aren’t really that exciting to use.
Sirius XM
I just re-subscribed to this for $1 and might be personal taste, but I listen to the comedy channels. I don’t go anywhere else because I find that the music-based channels played things I don’t typically like or can vibe with.
Discord Nitro
You’re just paying for cosmetic junk which also all have separate price tags and other useless profile things that some of which, obstruct profiles so it is pointless. Only provides minor perks to video, audio and file capability. You also get to use emotes, that you can barely see anyways, in any server you’re in (unless mobile).
All news-based ones
Why pay for journalism that is all but dead and biased these days?
X-Box Game Pass
Bit 50/50 on this one. On one hand, trying out so many games is a perk, but, it also works against itself because you could be isolated by choice and what limit you have to work with.
Gym Memberships
Very parasitic and predatory. They all lock you into contracts and pretend that they’re like your car dealership or even your apartment landlord into these year-long subscription models. They prey on you not using their facility, they charge you annual fees and other fees you don’t know about. The only way out of them is to pay the remaining balance of the subscription or other scheming means. Very few out there actually let you cancel.
Paying holly creeps for their slop is funding your enemies
Same thing music streaming
Cut it out and pirate it. If you really care a out the artists and then money direct. Cut out the corporate parasites where ever possible. They are the enemy.
I’m happy to be a direct supporter of creative people whose work I enjoy; think Patreon and similar setups.
I find that making small monthly payments to a handful of independent folks who do work I love and who directly appreciate my support to be far more satisfying and worth it than subscribing to a wealthy and powerful media conglomerate thing which feeds me a bunch of crap the majority of which I don’t care about.
I guess with the gym it depends on whether you use it or not. The one I joined got a lot of complaints about not letting you out of your contract, but I never tried to get out of my contract and I used it all the time. For me it was definitely worth it. They never charged me a fee on top of what they disclosed at the very beginning. That would’ve been aggravating.
For journalism, I pay for 404 media because it’s journalist-owned, but it’s pretty niche in its scope.
My issue with Amazon Prime other than hating Bezos is that it was too good at all the things that drew me to it in the first place. Keeping track of everything I like to buy and free shipping and a speaker that I could just talk to and order stuff made shopping so convenient! It led to a lot of overconsumption. I would just browse my recommendations out of boredom and if something caught my eye I’d hit the one-click button and it would be on my porch in a day or two. I started to accumulate piles of crap I didn’t need and hardly ever used. I decided that spending money ought to be a bit inconvenient.
Not worth it, but more or less needed:
- Rent (700€)
- Electricity (100€)
- Internet (60€)
- Hetzner Storage Box for Backups (25€)
- Domains (~10€)
- External IP addresses (16€)
- Donations to FOSS and content creators (idfk anymore)
Going against the trend here, but i wouldn’t be without spotify. We use the family sub, so I’ve got separate accounts for the family and for our smart speakers. My parents also use my account. We listen to a lot of music and podcasts, and it just works.
Beyond that the only other sub i have is Amazon prime, which we’re kind of stuck with as all our photos are in the cloud using their service. It works pretty well and the fire TV does a slideshow so we actually look at them from time to time.
The rest of the streaming subs we’ve had in the past are long gone. IPTV does the lot, which I use through express VPN.
You can use Pandora for internet radio and youtube when you want to look up specific songs.
Spotify never had a use, but the useful idiots kept shilling it to each other so that’s why it’s popular.
On the phone it just works. I’ve loads of playlists going back years. The playlist creation features make it super easy, suggesting related songs to what you’ve got already. I’ve tonnes of vinyl and CDs and a media server, but for convenience, commonality and variety I have no regrets
Why pay for journalism that is all but dead and biased these days?
Have you though about why it’s dead? It has always been biased, it’s human nature.
Password manager.
I’ll assume the gym membership part is some large chain US gym or something? I couldn’t disagree more.
I have a membership to a smaller gym and it’s a great deal in my opinion. Cancel anytime, no deals, no discounts, just a price and access to a facility. It’s one of the most pure and simple subscriptions I can think of.
The subscriptions where you pretty much don’t have a choice because there’s no replacement.
If you’re subscribing to any digital media, then odds are it’s not worth it and you’re just being a useful idiot. (sorry not sorry)
Utilities? Yeah, that’s worth it.
I also pay a subscription to get my groceries delivered without an additional cost for each order. It’s definitely worth it.
I agree with journalism.
They should pay me if they want to wash my brain with their propaganda.
streaming is never worth it, and the service providers are bleeding money just to keep it afloat.
Counterpoint: Dropout.
1000%, dropout is fantastic and more than worth the $5/mo I pay
Worth it: the medication I need to live.
Not worth it: the medication I need to live.
Nebula is worth it. Youtube plus, or whatever it is now, is not.
Tidal is worth it. Qobuz may be more worth it? Spotify is not; but preferably buy from bandcamp whenever you can.
Other than that, just, nothing.
I am not sure why people subscribe to Music streaming services. My ex said it was to discover new music, but I do that via YT and friends. Other than that I just have 10 to 20 GB of music on my phone. No subscription, always available. Connects to all my devices. I just don’t get the point. Maybe if I didn’t have a PC it would be slightly more difficult to set up and add/remove music. But other than that?
They don’t want to admit they’ve been conditioned to waste their money on things they could be getting for free.
Internet Service Provider and basic utilities. That’s pretty much it. Everything else can be pirated or bought per item instead of through a subscription.
Look at this fat cat with an ISP sub. I do everything through mobile data.
Me too.
4G speeds are actually pretty good.
