I hope you all had a chance to try the DoubleMemory beta build. If not, please read on, as there is a join link.
Roadmap for the App Launch
Private Alpha
We kicked off this phase about a month ago, shipping over 30 improvements. I won’t bore you with the full list, but know that we’ve been hard at work refining the experience.
Private Beta
Two weeks ago, we emailed everyone (about 60+) who filled out our survey. Since then, we’ve delivered even more improvements. Participants in these two private phases will receive a significant discount when the app officially launches.
Public Beta
We are opening up the waitlist now—this very newsletter—and inviting everyone, starting with Reddit, where it all began. Most of you should already be on the beta build, but I’m hoping to gather another round of subscribers to join the list so I can establish better communication.
Soft Launch
Once ready, we’ll release the app on the App Store and notify everyone subscribed to this newsletter.
I chose this traditional, staged rollout intentionally to gather maximum feedback and iterate quickly as our audience grows. Thank you to all these submitted suggestions and bug reports!
Today, I’m sharing the Public Beta TestFlight link with all survey respondents and newsletter subscribers:
For those not interested in future updates, consider this a one-time email letting you know we’re ready for public beta. Feel free to unsubscribe after this message. Thank you for your support and feedback—it’s invaluable as we fine-tune the app.
Business Model Thoughts
I’ve been considering whether to adopt a subscription model or a one-time purchase. Many of you indicated a preference for one-time purchases or a freemium model.
While researching competitor apps you recommended, I noticed several offering one-time purchases but burdened with feature bloat, likely added to entice more buyers but never removed. This reminded me of Microsoft Office’s old days of feature overload.
One key reason for this bloat seems to be the need to introduce new features periodically to justify upgrades, distorting the relationship between developers and existing users, as new users get priority. I believe a subscription model better aligns developer incentives with ongoing user needs.
For example, I’d rather earn $30 annually from a satisfied user than $90 once, assuming a three-year lifetime value. A subscription model keeps developers motivated to maintain and improve the app continuously. Remember RoamResearch?
Therefore, I’m currently leaning toward a fair subscription model while rewarding early adopters who submit feedback with redemption codes and early subscription discounts. I’d love to hear your thoughts and inputs while we explore the best path here.
Current Beta Paywall Status
Some beta app builds may lack a subscribe button for now, but it will be present when we launch. The subscribe button will include minimal feature gating logic and a limited-time discounted subscription offer. Early subscribers can lock in the price and avoid future price increases.
One Thing that's Probably Useless but Fun
For a couple of days last week, this idea kept coming to me at night and throughout the day. I created this experimental interface. I'm not a Swift expert nor a motion designer, so the interface is arguably not shippable and probably never will be. But the idea is: what if every note is a card that floats in 3D space, where time is the third dimension? When dragging the scrollbar or scrolling, the cards move into the foreground until they fade away... Coming not too soon to a Vision Pro device near you. :D
Check out the 6-second demo here.
Bonus Content
I created this TikTok video for DoubleMemory yesterday. This is my first time promoting on TikTok using a cold account. There are currently zero views 😩, either because I don’t understand Tiktok algorithm or the account is flagged. I was hoping the TikTok algorithm would help, but maybe not... could use your boost. I'll continue experimenting with video content to reach more people.
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8NXUUhH/
What’s Next
I’m going to take a road trip to the Grand Canyon during Christmas break with family and friends. Wish me luck! After that, I’m hoping to spend more time focusing on promotion and launch. Building software alone is the easy part. The hard part is finding validation from a large group of users who also find value in it and can sustain the continued evolution of the software, with their support, emotionally or financially. All your attention, bug reports, idea suggestions are the biggest sources of support I’ve received so far. Thank you!
Have a Great Holiday Season!
I'll keep you updated about my adventure. Feel free to DM on social/Discord, or email. I'm always up to talk to a user and break through the fourth wall.