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I would consider some sort of free version of this app, so people can join without risk. Maybe make a version that limits you to 3 friends for free, or unlimited friends for $1.99?

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Yeah, combined with the above comment, I think this is a good idea. This was actually my initial thought (but with 2 friends) early on, but I wanted to experiment with the idea of only having a paid version because I believe paid apps get more usage (I might be crazy here).

From my experience free trumps paid unless the paid app is promoted by apple/lots of blogs. You may get more return users with a paid app (since they shelled out the cash they will probably want to get their money's worth) but if you're trying to build a user base and especially if your app relies on one, which yours seems to, free is the way to go.

I agree. Sounds like a great app, but to be useful, I have to pay for it and so do each of my friends (unless you add the email / SMS feature suggested above).

I suggest a fremium pricing model. Perhaps all features are free exept one killer feature, which is an optional in-app purchase. For example - push notifications when one of your friends suggests an activity.

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