When will the Preview program be over anyone know? so i can use it on my xbox one
sorry we do not announce dates. it will be out of preview when is it mostly complete and stable
It seems unfair that the Plex app for Apple TV is free to ALL users, but the Plex app for Xbox One requires a Plex Pass subscription (during the preview period) or a separate charge to non-subscribers (after the preview period).
What is the rational to giving a “freebie” to Apple TV users and/or imposing a “tax” on Xbox One users?
I agree with PaddyArizona. The new Apple TV gets a free app and the Xbox One all is still behind the Plex Pass wall. We understand you need to make money; put the Xbox One app for $4.99/$9.99 like the iOS and Android apps.
Until then, still using the built in Media Player app on XOne to stream via DLNA.
separate charge to non-subscribers (after the preview period).
The developers have never stated what they plan to charge, if anything, for the app once it is released. So speculating that it will be a separate charge is currently just opinion.
What is the rational to giving a “freebie” to Apple TV users and/or imposing a “tax” on Xbox One users?
There is no released Xbox One app so there is no “freebie” to give or “tax” to impose. Plex simply doesn’t feel they should be charging/releasing unfinished apps to the public.
Unfortunately, most people seem to think the early access program is a pay to use program for finished apps instead of early access to apps still in their development phases.
I think it’s funny that “early access” has been available for a year and is working great but its OK for people to keep saying we need to pay monthly for it when other platforms don’t. I am sure there are still bugs that will be found on the other apps after they are released and I don’t think it’s fair to have users beta test for over a year with no end in sight.
Don’t get me wrong. I love PLEX. It’s just upsetting to see that more resources were spent working on the Apple TV app instead of getting the XBOX One app out of preview.
@paddyarizona said:
It seems unfair that the Plex app for Apple TV is free to ALL users, but the Plex app for Xbox One requires a Plex Pass subscription (during the preview period) or a separate charge to non-subscribers (after the preview period).What is the rational to giving a “freebie” to Apple TV users and/or imposing a “tax” on Xbox One users?
Apples and Oranges here. Two completely different systems/platforms with different requirements and “store policies”. Not to mention the amount of people Plex can attract from an Apple product vs the XBox. If you follow the blogs you’ll also see they went from start to finish on the Apple product in a very short amount of time which would lead to believe it’s also probably a lot easier to develop for, get approvals and probably fix when issues appear.
I’m sure it’s much easier to get the app approved for the Apple store than it has been for the MS store. So there are lots and lots of factors involved which neither you or I know about.
With that said I do agree with mochajava in the fact that the Xbox One Plex app is just as stable if not more so than some other released clients and probably doesn’t belong in the Plex Pass realm anymore as it’s quite usable and stable (one of the points of early access).
But here nor there, this is a Plex company decision and their’s alone. As others have stated there is no cost associated with early access to these apps in testing and it’s open to any Plex Pass member. The cost is negligible at most for all the Plex Pass features.
It’s worth noting that the idea behind this is simple. Plex isn’t going to want to have to deal with every Tom, Dick and Harry who just installed the server and is trying an early preview version of software. They want people who have some skin in the game and can at least work their way around the Plex Eco-System and have some knowledge to help test these versions. Does having a Plex Pass automatically solve this? No but it goes a long way in helping.
My 2 cents,
Carlo
@cayars
Glad to see you’re back, it’s been awhile since I’ve seen you around (But that may have possibly be me looking around)
With that said I do agree with mochajava in the fact that the Xbox One Plex app is just as stable if not more so than some other released clients and probably doesn’t belong in the Plex Pass realm anymore as it’s quite usable and stable (one of the points of early access).
I would say while stability is good, a major part of the hold for releasing is functionality/features. While the developers are still missing things such as filters, auto play unwatched, companion support, handling xbox live/plex.tv outages, etc it is unlikely they will want to make the move and say it is now a completed app. That is not to say that if they don’t get 100% parity that it won’t be released but it is also a major factor besides the stability.
Thanks jmckee, been on something of a hiatus for a bit with work related stuff but I’ve been around the last couple of days.
I agree 100% with everything you said about the Xbox One client and couldn’t agree more!
Carlo
@jmckee said:
The developers have never stated what they plan to charge, if anything, for the app once it is released. So speculating that it will be a separate charge is currently just opinion.
Nope, not an “opinion”. Go to plex.tv/xbox and scroll all the way to the bottom - last paragraph reads “Please Note: Once the preview period ends, the app will also be available, for a fee, to those without a Plex Pass” (see screenshot below).
@cayars said:
As others have stated there is no cost associated with early access to these apps in testing and it’s open to any Plex Pass member. The cost is negligible at most for all the Plex Pass features… Two completely different systems/platforms with different requirements and “store policies”. Not to mention the amount of people Plex can attract from an Apple product vs the XBox… I’m sure it’s much easier to get the app approved for the Apple store than it has been for the MS store. So there are lots and lots of factors involved which neither you or I know about.
Plex Pass is a subscription service, and $40/year or $150/lifetime isn’t a “negligible” cost. I don’t have a Plex Pass and none of the other features appeal to me, but I’d happy to pay for the XBox One app to get access (I’ve already bought the Google TV version for my Logitech Revue device). From a publishing standpoint, there is no XBox Store requirement to charge for XBox One apps, so the app could be made free to all users if they wanted to do so, and with more than 13 million XBox One devices sold worldwide, there are clearly lots of potential customers out there (more than for Apple TV, as apps are only supported on the new 4th generation device). As for app development, I’ve developed for iOS and Windows Phone, and I work with guys who have developed for the new Apple TV and XBox One, and I call tell you from experience that Apple’s app approval process is no easier than Microsoft’s - quite the opposite in fact.
I think the guys at Plex are doing an awesome job, and I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on the XBox One app. I just think it’s disappointing that the XBox One app has been limited to a select group (Plex Pass subscrivers) for more than a year now - originally released on 10/5/14 - while the Apple TV app was released to the general public after only 6 weeks of development. If Plex wants to improve the stability of the XBox One app, release it to the masses! I, for one, would be happy to provide feedback. I just don’t want to have to pay a $40/yr or $5/month subscription fee to do so.
@paddyarizona said:
Nope, not an “opinion”. Go to https://plex.tv/xbox and scroll all the way to the bottom - last paragraph reads
And the first paragraph on the page reads:
Note: Once the preview period ends, the Plex for Xbox app will be available to non-subscribers as well.
So based on the first paragraph along with the Plex for Xbox app on the 360 exiting early access for free the evidence leans more towards a free pricing model than an actual paid app. But again that is speculation as well, we won’t actually know until the app is completed and the app is released.
I don’t own the xbox 360, so I don’t follow its news. But I’m surprised to learn that it only graduated the plex pass phase just recently, like several months ago. Which makes me wonder… when did Plex start developing the client app for xbox 360? Please tell me they started late. Otherwise, I will stop keeping my fingers crossed for the xbox one.
@bltplex said:
I don’t own the xbox 360, so I don’t follow its news. But I’m surprised to learn that it only graduated the plex pass phase just recently, like several months ago. Which makes me wonder… when did Plex start developing the client app for xbox 360? Please tell me they started late. Otherwise, I will stop keeping my fingers crossed for the xbox one.
The Xbox 360 app was one of the first to be in development for the newer clients, hence why it was also one of the first that was released. Xbox One still has a ways to go. No timelines have been released, but there is still quite a bit of functionality that needs to be added.
I just purchased an XBox One and imagine my dismay to find that the client is only available via PlexPass. I would like to see Plex offer an option to buy the “beta” client (w/updates) for those who would like to not wait for it to come out of “PlexPass” phase.
While I can appreciate not wanting to give out timelines, spending $40 for a year of plexpass with no guarantee that the Xbox One client will even be “completed” in that time is a tough sell. Especially when I don’t need all the other goodies that PlexPass gives you. I have a home NAS, I stream media from it locally and on the road. That is pretty much all I need.
Use the Xbox One DLNA client in the meantime. It’s not as pretty, but certainly still functional.
@adamskoog said:
@bltplex said:
I don’t own the xbox 360, so I don’t follow its news. But I’m surprised to learn that it only graduated the plex pass phase just recently, like several months ago. Which makes me wonder… when did Plex start developing the client app for xbox 360? Please tell me they started late. Otherwise, I will stop keeping my fingers crossed for the xbox one.The Xbox 360 app was one of the first to be in development for the newer clients, hence why it was also one of the first that was released. Xbox One still has a ways to go. No timelines have been released, but there is still quite a bit of functionality that needs to be added.
Can you clarify the timeline? What I’m implying is that the 360 came out about a decade ago. How many years did it sit in plex pass?
@bltplex said:
Can you clarify the timeline? What I’m implying is that the 360 came out about a decade ago. How many years did it sit in plex pass?
It was released to Plex Pass last December and came out of Plex Pass in August. Yes the 360 came out a decade ago, but the app has hardly been in development that long. It was asked at one point why the 360 seemed so far ahead of development from the other apps and it was started quite a bit before the Xbox One app.
Plex doesn’t give timelines, but I hardly think that relating the time in Plex Pass to the release date of the 360 has any bearing what so ever.
It will be released when it’s ready. As you already know you can use the Xbox One client now if you are a plex pass subscriber. Personally I can’t imagine running a Plex Server without having a PP subscription as it just adds lots of goodness to the Plex experience. Getting to use preview clients is just icing on the cake so to speak.
Do yourself a favor and explore the goodness of PP and what it will add to your total experience for less than a cup of coffee a day.
Carlo
If Xbox One users have to pay just to use the preview app then everyone should be required to pay to enjoy the “total experience”. I don’t need all of the extras that are offered with the Plex Pass and I am sure there are a lot of other users of other platforms don’t either and they don’t have to pay. Its great that those options are available, but I don’t think requiring users that are helping you test your preview software should have to pay to use something that is missing a bunch of features. If there is no release date in sight then we shouldn’t be charged to test preview software. Yes preview pass gives people the “benefit” to try preview apps, but isn’t Plex also benefiting those testing for them?
