Snoo is a very expensive but well-received smart cradle, and now some of its app’s best features are locked into a new $19.99-per-month premium subscription. The change, which takes effect this week, has angered many Snoo users because the subscription puts some previously free features new parents rely on behind expensive paywalls.
Since the plan was announced last month, a bunch of posts in the Snoo subreddit prompted complaints. “Crazy choice,” one user wrote. “Taking advantage of parents who are just trying to get their kids to sleep and paying a fortune for the pleasure of something that a) may not work and b) will only be used for a short period of time and becomes useless is actually destructive. Disgusting, c) requires ongoing payment to use full functionality.
“I’m not opposed to the concept of a premium membership if they want to add more features. I’m surprised to see existing features advertised as coming with Snoo suddenly being paid for. edge. (Sarah’s name has been changed at her request for privacy reasons.) “It’s like a mechanic deliberately damaging your car so they can sell you a repair service.”
You can get the most out of your Snoo by connecting it to Wi-Fi via the bassinet manufacturer Happiest Baby’s app. When you turn on the Snoo, the bassinet floor rocks back and forth to soothe your baby while playing buzzing white noise. If your baby is fussy or cries, Snoo can react by increasing the intensity of movement and sounds, and you can control many of the settings through the app. The app also offers features like sleep tracking and a “weaning mode,” which can be helpful when you eventually need to move your baby to a larger bed.
Until then, all features in the app are free. But as of July 15, the Happiest Baby app has added a lot of features to its premium subscription, including some of the app’s best tools, like sleep tracking and weaning mode.
The paywall is especially distressing because buying Snoo outright isn’t cheap. At Happiest Baby’s full retail price, the Snoo sells for $1,695, while a certified pre-owned Snoo sells for $1,195. The resale market is a common way to buy Snoo at low prices, but Happiest Baby is now encouraging potential buyers to purchase Snoo directly from Happiest Baby or an authorized partner.
Happiest Baby CEO Harvey Karp said that if you purchase a Snoo from Happiest Baby or an authorized partner after July 15, 2024, you will receive a 9-month premium subscription for one baby edge. If you rent Snoo (which costs $159 per month), you’ll have access to premium features for the duration of your lease plus an additional month.
(The best price is available to those who purchase Snoo from Happiest Baby or an authorized partner before July 15, 2024. If that’s you, you’ll get a premium subscription via: each of your children. A second baby can be added through the app, and for additional babies you can contact Happiest Baby customer support.
On the other hand, if you buy Snoo on the resale market, you’ll have to choose whether you want to pay a subscription fee. Karp said the company has received many support requests from second-hand Snoo users. “Subscriptions allow us to provide SNOO users with the same level of care – from technical support and troubleshooting to sleep consultation – as purchased through the resale market.” ”
“I’ve spent a lot of money on the device itself. It would be a shame to miss out on some of the benefits I got from buying it.
Snoo owner Sarah from Australia said she purchased her Snoo from a company that buys and refurbishes Snoos, but has nothing to do with Happiest Baby. This means she won’t get any free Premium months, but she said she will pay for them. “I’ve spent a lot of money on the device itself. It would be a shame to miss out on some of the benefits I got from buying it.
Jordan Leventhal to give birth to baby in September, says edge He and his wife found Snoo on Facebook Marketplace at a price they could afford. While he said they could pay the $20 per month premium subscription fee, “I don’t know if we would have gotten Snoo if they knew they were going to be charged.”
Snoo is a lifesaver for my wife and I. Before we got it, our baby wouldn’t sleep on anything but us, which meant weeks of us doing all-night shifts just for the baby. We were desperate for anything that would allow her to sleep independently.
We ended up finding someone on Facebook Marketplace selling their barely used Snoo for much cheaper than Happiest Baby’s official option. (Our family very generously gifted us the Snoo, which we are very grateful for, because even with the lower cost, it’s still a big burden.) We’ve been using the Snoo for a few months, and our baby just upgraded to one A bigger bed with a weaning mode helped a lot – something we would have had to pay for if our baby had been born a few weeks earlier.
Despite the outcry, Happiest Baby continues to push forward with subscriptions. “To continue to make Snoo even easier to use, we have to be able to flexibly adjust the structure of our business,” Karp said.
