Why I am leaving MapMyFitness.com for Nike+

There are a few things I really dislike.  One is being ripped off.  Another is being called a liar.  When you actually rip me off and then call me a liar when I call you on it, especially when I have proof that what I am saying is the truth, I am not a happy person.

Such as my current issue with MapMyFitness.com.

The problem is, is that I actually love their iPhone/iPad app, MapMyFitness+.  I have used it for over six months without fail.  I love using their website and use it to record and analyze my training runs.  But not anymore.

I started off with the MapMyFitness free app for the iPhone and found I didn't like the apps, so I paid the 2.99 for the app, and got rid of the apps, plus got coaching and live tracking features in the process.  A win-win for me and for MapMyFitness as they got my business and I got an app I love and used.  Until I installed an upgrade for the app.  Then the app I loved turned into the app I can't stand at the moment.

I applied the update to the app.  After all, one of the items the update addressed was "bug fixes" and being a software developer myself, I said, yes, fixing bugs in an application is a good thing so I clicked on the "Update" button.  What I did NOT notice however, was the second line:

That second line took away all of the features I used in the MapMyFitness+ app that I paid for.  Notice that nowhere does it say what these advanced features are.

I sent MapMyFitness Support a not so nice email last night asking what the heck happened to the features I paid for.  Here is the first part of the email exchange:

Eric Dickey, Nov 19 20:56 (CST):

I just installed the latest update for the iOS version of your app. I PAID for the plus version for the features and NOW I find they have been TURNED OFF!!!!

I feel as though I have had my money stolen from me; ripped off! Now I have to pay a friggen MONTHLY FEE?? I have used your app for almost 6 months now with only a couple of issues and have been very happy; I used the coaching to help me train better, I have used your website to help me out but now you may have just lost a customer! I will be tweeting this, blogging this, facebooking this, posting on google and everywhere else I can think about! I want me features I PAID for BACK!!!

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Submitted from: http://www.mapmyfitness.com/imapmy/support/

Here is their initial response:

Kristen Dodd, Nov 20 09:27 (CST):

Hi Eric,

Thanks for contacting us! Our +app features only included the music player, integrated camera & being ad free. Our free app previous had Live Tracking available, not just the +app. I apologize for the confusion.

Kindly,

MMF Support

 Now when I read this response I was livid.  First of all they were telling me that the features I cared about most didn't even exist in the app.  So now I felt I was being called a liar.  That did not sit very well with me.

Hi,

 No, I am sorry.  You see, I actually USED the coaching features of the +App during my last race which was TWO weeks ago.  Please do not insult my intelligence with the fact that I know what I was using when running.  One of the features that I loved (past tense) about your app was the coaching feature.  Want more proof?  My wife purchased the + app as well and has NOT repeat NOT updated it and HAS the coaching feature.  

Would you like screen shots of her app on the her phone which has NOT been updated?  Or perhaps screen shots of the app on my iPad which has NOT been updated and HAS the coaching feature shown?  

I DO NOT like being called a liar.  There is no misunderstanding on MY part.  

So who can I send the screenshots to?  You or your supervisor?

Eric Dickey

As you can tell I am not a happy camper in this email exchange.  Now here is the kicker if you take a look at the screenshots below, you will see that I am correct in what I am saying.

The initial screen.  When you touch the Record button you are taken to the next screen shown below. 

Please notice the coaching part of this app. Hmmm....it seems that perhaps I am not lying after all about what I use. 

This screen is to determine what kind of coaching you would like to have tracked.

So here I decided to make the pace to be coached into 8:00 minutes per mile. 

This screen in the Coaching feature that MapMyFitness says was never a part of the "+" version of their app is letting me select the frequency.

I really hope you can appreciate why I was so irate here.  I actually have the screen shots proving me right and them wrong.

The latest response from MapMyFitness is below:

Kristen D., Nov 20 11:36 (CST):

I apologize for the confusion. Yes, this was previously a free feature available on both the free and + apps. It is now part of our premier membership packages. Again, we apologize.

Now, I know that when I had the free app, the coaching was not part of this.  This was the main reason I bought the app.  Not for an ad free environment, as ads do not bother me.  I wanted the coaching features.  I guess what I will need to do now is to open up the free app on my phone, as I have never upgraded it, and take screen shots to prove my point to them again.

For now, my best advice to any of you who are using MapMyFitness.com and it's apps is to ditch them and go with Nike+.  I tried it last night and I actually have a better experience with it than the one I had with MapMyFitness, as well as the same features offered for a monthly fee now by MapMyFitness.com are FREE from the Nike+ app.

It actually hurts to leave, as I have six months worth of running data and maps on their site, and no way to get them that I can see, but I will not tolerate being ripped off and called a liar by a company I trusted.

Thanks for reading.  Have a great rest of the day.