Subscription fatigue: AI phone features will soon become costly. Here’s why I’m not convinced.

Over the past year and a half, phone makers like Google, Apple, and Samsung have found different ways to incorporate artificial intelligence into their mobile products. Google has built its Gemini AI tools into everything from messaging to photos. Apple unveiled its Apple Intelligence suite of features, including smarter Siri and ChatGPT integration. And Samsung unveiled Galaxy AI, a family of features that simplify tasks like image editing and message translation.

But behind all the flashy announcements and promises that AI will improve your mobile experience, there’s a fine print: If you want to keep using these features, at some point you’ll have to pay for them.

Samsung says on its website that the Galaxy AI features will be “free on compatible Samsung Galaxy devices until the end of 2025.” According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple plans to eventually charge for some of its AI-powered iPhone features, and you’ll have to pay a monthly subscription fee to unlock the full power of Gemini across Google’s apps (though Pixel users will get free access to photo AI features like Magic Editor).

All of this is happening at a time when subscription fatigue is at its peak. According to an April CNET survey, U.S. adults spend an average of $91 per month on subscription services. Two-thirds of respondents said they’ve seen at least one subscription spike in price within the past year. This fatigue is causing many to pull away from various services. In fact, about a quarter of U.S. subscribers have canceled three or more streaming services in the past two years, The New York Times reported.

The added monthly fee doesn’t have much appeal to many people, myself included. Of the multiple subscriptions I already pay for streaming, cloud storage, and delivery services, signing up for yet another recurring cost, especially for some fancy AI feature that I’m not sure I need yet, is what I’m least keen on.

reference: Sorry, iPhone users, Galaxy Ring isn’t available. Here’s why that’s wrong

For example, tools like Sketch to Image on the latest Galaxy S smartphones are great, but how often do you actually want to convert a drawing into an image? Using Galaxy AI, Gemini, or Apple Intelligence to create messages might be useful for some, but I’m fine with just drafting the text myself; it feels more authentic. And while I’d like to see smart assistants like Siri get better, I don’t mind a lesser experience if I don’t have to pay to ask them about the weather.

Tech companies are now spending a large part of the event touting the many new AI compatibilities that underpin their devices and features. But with every keynote, there is a growing sense of disappointment about the promise of the emerging technology. Do we really need AI assistance when writing an email or making a shopping list on our phone?

While the focus of Apple’s latest Worldwide Developers Conference was the introduction of Apple Intelligence, I don’t see the need to upgrade to a new device beyond the iPhone 14 Pro just to take advantage of its AI features. As long as I can still take high-quality images and videos, send text messages to friends, and scroll through my favorite social media, I’ll be happy. pay To get an AI boost on my iPhone or MacBook. For me, I can function just fine without those features.

With subscription fatigue in full swing, we’re at least lucky that Samsung chose not to charge a monthly fee for its new health wearable device, the Galaxy Ring (though the $400 starting price means you’ll be paying a fair bit up front). But I hope more companies listen to our collective fatigue, especially as prices rise, including for gadgets. For example, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 are $100 more expensive than last year’s models, as is the iPhone 15 Pro Max. That’s because Apple dropped the lower-priced 128GB storage option. A lot of things are already rising in people’s price ranges. Charging an additional monthly fee on top of the many other costs associated with owning a smartphone just adds fuel to the fire.

Until there are more practical and legitimate uses for the AI ​​features on my phone, I don’t mind avoiding the latest futuristic features and the subscription fees that come with them – I’d rather keep that money in my pocket, or use it to pay for other subscription fees that will undoubtedly come my way.