Not all tech prices are rising – in fact, many have been scrapped completely. Wayne Williams picks the 20 best formerly paid-for programs and apps that you can now download for free
We’re so used to reading about tech prices going up – from broadband to iOS apps – that it’s both a surprise and a pleasure to learn that a onceexpensive product is now available for free.
Obviously, as you see, plenty of brilliant free programs and apps around, but Premium and Pro versions of software have the advantage of being unrestricted, offering many more features and being free of ads and nags.
Over the last year, many quality tools you previously needed to pay for have become completely free. In this feature, we round up our favourites – full software, not free trials – and explain why you should download them.
Our list of newly free products includes image editors, photo filters, professional video tools, system and security software, iOS and Android apps, and much more, and will save you a grand total of at least £1,327. We also show you how to use two of our favourite new freebies.
PREVIOUSLY COST UP TO £10
CHAT APP
www.whatsapp.com
How much did it cost?
It used to cost a nominal 69p a year.
Why is it now free?
Facebook acquired the app in 2014 and made it entirely free in 2016 – probably in an effort to increase the user base.
What’s so good about it?
WhatsApp provides an easy way to chat with friends and share media, for free. You can also call friends directly in the app, which is available for iOS, Android, Windows Phone, PC and Mac. Messages are secured using end-toend encryption, so you don’t need to worry about snoopers.
Because WhatsApp is so popular, many of your friends and contacts are likely to have it already, but you can easily invite anyone who doesn’t to download and start using it.
What’s the catch?
Facebook had intended to use WhatsApp data to customise advertising on the social network but following an outcry, it dropped the practice in the UK and Europe. Hopefully that will remain the case.
REFERENCE APP
Terminology for iPhone
bit.ly/term417
How much did it cost?
It was previously priced at 79p.
Why is it now free?
The app hadn’t been updated in a while and wasn’t generating much revenue. After giving it away free in a Starbucks promotion, which created a surge of renewed interest, the developer decided to create a new version and make it free.
What’s so good about it?
Terminology is described as “a browser for the English language” and includes a full offline dictionary with concise definitions for words and phrases, a thesaurus and a reference tool. You can use it to quickly look up something on the web or in other apps.
What’s the catch?
The app is free, but ad-supported. There’s also a $1.99 (£1.59) in-app ‘Pro’ unlock that removes ads and enables custom action editing and a dark theme.
MUSIC APP
Hype Machine for iOS and Android
hypem.com
How much did it cost?
The popular music-discovery app used to cost $3.99 (£3.20).
Why is it now free?
Hype Machine was unable to make enough money from sales of its paid-for app, so it switched to an ad-based model instead.
What’s so good about it?
Hype Machine scans thousands of posts from music blogs and aggregates the content, making the songs shared on the blogs available to listen to on your mobile device. You can search by track name or artist to view all the matching blog posts and songs. Most of the artists featured are rather obscure or up and coming, but it’s a great way to find new music. You can preview a new album in full every week.
What’s the catch?
The app is now ad-supported and no longer has the useful option to download music to listen to offline.
KEYBOARD THEMES
SwiftKey Premium themes
open.swiftkey.com
How much did it cost?
The award-winning mobile keyboard used to charge up to $1.99 (£1.58) for each of its attractive themes.
Why is it now free?
Although an exact reason hasn’t been given – beyond the company wanting to spread some Christmas cheer (the themes went free at the start of December 2016) – SwiftKey was purchased by Microsoft last year, and it’s likely the software giant didn’t see any point in charging for themes.
What’s so good about it?
If you use the popular SwiftKey keyboard on your Android or iOS device, the themes let you completely change its look. With over 100 themes on offer, you’re bound to find a design that you like. In addition to making the themes free, SwiftKey launched some new Vivid themes, which are also free.
What’s the catch?
None that we can see, which is especially pleasing because SwiftKey was our Gold Award-winning Android keyboard in Issue 416 (bit.ly/webuser416).
SYSTEM TOOL
Ultimate Settings Panel
www.ultimatesettingspanel.co.uk
How much did it cost?
This powerful Windows-tweaking software previously sold for £3.99.
Why is it now free?
The developer decided to consolidate the Lite and Pro versions of the software into a single full-featured free program.
What’s so good about it?
Ultimate Settings Panel provides instant access to more than 280 Windows tools and settings, many of which are usually hidden away and difficult to find. A set of tabs along the top lets you select a version of Windows, or an area of the OS, and the available tools then appear as buttons below. We featured a Workshop about Ultimate Settings Panel in our last issue.
What’s the catch?
Accessing the download link on the website is a little tricky because you get redirected to the parent company website.
PASSWORD MANAGER
LastPass Multi-Device Access
lastpass.com
How much did it cost?
If you wanted to sync your LastPass passwords between different devices – PCs, tablets and phones – you had to pay $12 (£9.60) a year.
Why is it now free?
Announcing the change, LastPass said: “By offering LastPass for free across all your devices, we’re making it that much easier for everyone to make good password habits the norm. Because when you have a password manager that goes everywhere you do, you have a strong foundation for securing and taking control of your identity”.
What’s so good about it?
LastPass stores your passwords securely and syncs them between any devices you use. It can save and fill in passwords, generate unguessable logins and store notes securely. It also supports two-factor authentication for an extra layer of protection.
What’s the catch?
LastPass still has a Premium tier that costs $1 (80p) a month and provides extra features, such as family sharing and 1GB of encrypted file storage.
PREVIOUSLY COST £10 TO £29.99
SECURITY TOOL
Atelier Web Firewall Tester
www.atelierweb.com
How much did it cost?
It used to be priced at $19.95 (£15.98).
Why is it now free?
The generous developers simply made the decision to make it freeware.
What’s so good about it?
A firewall is supposed to protect you from incoming and outgoing threats, but how do you know for certain that yours is working as intended? Atelier Web Firewall Tester performs a set of tests and tells you just how secure your firewall really is.
What’s the catch?
You need a bit of technical knowledge to understand the result. The program doesn’t officially support Windows 10 (although we found it worked), and hasn’t been updated in a while. However, it’s ad-free and doesn’t come with bundled junk.
SECURITY APP
Avast Mobile Security
bit.ly/ams417
How much did it cost?
The Android app used to cost $19.99 (£16.02) per year.
Why is it now free?
Avast made the decision to switch Mobile Security to a free, ad-based model.
What’s so good about it?
The free version contains many of the features that you originally had to pay for. The app includes antivirus, a call blocker, app locker, privacy advisor, firewall, charging booster, RAM boost, junk cleaner, web shield, Wi-Fi scanner and Wi-Fi speed test.
What’s the catch?
Some previously available features, such as the firewall and network-usage meter, have been discontinued. Avast has also introduced a new paid-for version that’s ad-free.
NOTE-TAKING TOOL
Instapaper Premium
www.instapaper.com/premium
How much did it cost?
Until recently, the premium version of the bookmarking and syncing service cost $29.99 (£23.90) a year.
Why is it now free?
Instapaper was acquired by Pinterest last year and this gave the company the finances it needed to drop its paid-for version.
What’s so good about it?
Instapaper lets you save unlimited articles, videos and web pages, and sync them across the web and to iOS and Android. It offers full text search for articles, unlimited notes, speed reading and more.
What’s the catch?
Nothing. Instapaper Premium is now completely free and there are no ads to worry about.
SLIDESHOW CREATOR
ScatterShow
bit.ly/sshow417
How much did it cost?
It used to be $30 (£24) and even now you can find it for sale on various websites, including Amazon, for around £20 (bit.ly/buyss417).
Why is it now free?
The developer is offering ScatterShow for no money in exchange for you signing up to its mailing list.
What’s so good about it?
ScatterShow lets you turn your photos into a video slideshow that you can save to your computer, share on Facebook or upload to YouTube. You can pull in photos from your PC, phone, Instagram and social-media accounts. It’s easy to use and has plenty of great options. The program is available for both Windows and Mac.
What’s the catch?
You need to enter an email address to access the download links and get a serial number to activate the software. However, you can make up an address because it won’t be checked.
PREVIOUSLY COST £30 TO £99.99
DISC-AUTHORING TOOL
Ashampoo Burning Studio 2017
bit.ly/burn417
How much did it cost?
Ashampoo Burning Studio 18, which this program is based on, costs £39.99.
Why is it now free?
This is really a cut-down and renamed version of the current paid-for edition of Burning Studio.
What’s so good about it?
It can do pretty much anything you’d want from disc-authoring software, including writing data to CDs, DVDs and Blu-rays; creating (and ripping) audio discs; making and burning disc images; and printing covers and labels.
What’s the catch?
Burning Studio 2017 is missing some features from Burning Studio 18, such as presets for writing music for your car’s particular radio model, but don’t let that put you off.
UNINSTALLER
Ashampoo Uninstaller 5
bit.ly/auninstall417
How much did it cost?
It originally cost £48 ($59.99).
Why is it now free?
Our second free pick from Ashampoo is an older version its Uninstaller, which is updated at least once a year.
What’s so good about it?
Uninstaller 5 can uninstall programs speedily, then scan and remove leftover remnants. It also monitors new installations and comes with 12 system tools, including a drive cleaner, Registry optimiser and disk defragmenter.
What’s the catch?
You need to enter your email address to get a free activation key during installation. You’ll also be nagged to buy other Ashampoo software. See 'Remove unwanted programs with Ashampoo Uninstaller 5' below to find out how to uninstall programs using Ashampoo Uninstaller 5.
MEDIA CENTER
Plex Media Player with Plex Pass
www.plex.tv
How much did it cost?
The Plex Pass – Plex’s premium subscription service – used to cost $39.99 (£31.90) per year.
Why is it now free?
With rival Kodi (kodi.tv) now so popular, the Plex team want to encourage more users to try its software, particularly the features that were previously paid-for.
What’s so good about it?
You can run a central media server and access your content from any device running Plex. It works on Windows, Mac, Linux and embedded systems such as Raspberry Pi. There are also mobile apps available.
What’s the catch?
None. If you like Plex, you can now use the Media Player without any restriction and there’s less of the legal stigma that accompanies Kodi.
DEFRAGMENTING TOOL
Vopt
www.goldenbow.com
How much did it cost?
Vopt formerly retailed for $40 (£32) for one computer, $150 (£120) for five systems, $240 (£192) for 10 systems and $550 (£441) for 25 systems.
Why is it now free?
Sadly, the program’s author (below) passed away last February, and the software was made free in accordance with his posthumous wishes.
What’s so good about it?
Windows comes with its own disk defragmenter, but third-party tools such as Vopt – one of the oldest Windows defrag tools – do a better job. It can also clean up your system.
What’s the catch?
You need to download the registration file from the website and copy it to the program’s folder in Windows to unlock the software. Also, there (obviously) won’t be any updates or bug fixes. It will defrag SSDs if you ask it to, which isn’t something to be recommended. See 'Keep your PC running smoothly using Vopt' below to find out how to use Vopt.
FILE MANAGER
Konvertor
www.konvertor.net
How much did it cost?
It used to be $60 (£48) and some download sources such as Softonic (bit.ly/buyk417) are cheekily still selling it for that.
Why is it now free?
The company hasn’t given a reason, but we suspect it struggled to sell enough copies at that price, especially since there are plenty of other free file managers available.
What’s so good about it?
Konvertor is a smart alternative to the Windows file manager. Its two-panel, multi-tabbed interface makes it easier to copy and move files between locations, as well as delete, rename, and search for them. It can display the contents of most files, including documents, images and videos.
What’s the catch?
There’s no catch, but the software does include a Donate button.
PREVIOUSLY COST OVER £100
IMAGE-EDITING APP
Adobe Lightroom Mobile
bit.ly/lightroom417
How much did it cost?
To get Lightroom on mobile devices, users previously needed to sign up to Adobe Creative Cloud, which still costs from £8.57 a month or £102.84 a year (the minimum term you can sign up for). This subscription provided access to Lightroom (for Desktop as well as mobile and web), plus Photoshop CC.
Why is it now free?
Adobe realised that for most mobile users, £8.57 a month was much too expensive, especially because the other software offered in the subscription wasn’t that popular.
What’s so good about it?
Powered by Photoshop technology, Lightroom Mobile is easily the most powerful free image-editing tool available for Android and iOS. It offers several advanced adjustments, and lets you share your edited images to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and more.
What’s the catch?
The free version does away with the cloud-specific features it originally offered, so you can’t sync changes between the mobile and Desktop versions of Lightroom.
PHOTO ENLARGER
Reshade Image Enlarger
reshade.com
How much did it cost?
The program originally retailed for $129 (£102.89) and some online stores are still flogging it for that amount.
Why is it now free?
There’s no official word from the developer, but it’s likely that the paid-for version wasn’t selling enough copies.
What’s so good about it?
Enlarging smaller images often produces disappointing results because they lose sharpness and are marred by artefacts and jagged edges. Reshade Image Enlarger uses special photoenlargement algorithms to produce cleaner results and can zoom an image by up to 2,000%. It also comes with plenty of advanced options.
What’s the catch?
There isn’t one. It’s entirely free, with no bundled junk, and you don’t need to enter any personal details to get the software.
SYSTEM MONITOR
SoftPerfect File Access Monitor
bit.ly/fam417
How much did it cost?
This file system-monitoring software was previously $149.99 (£119.63).
Why is it now free?
The software was made free after being discontinued.
What’s so good about it?
It monitors all file-system activity on your PC, including file creation, file deletion, and reads and writes. You can filter the details and it can be used to identify possible problems and malware infections.
What’s the catch?
There’s no support and there will be no further updates or releases.
PHOTO FILTERS
Google Nik Collection
www.google.com/nikcollection
How much did it cost?
Before Nik Software was acquired by Google in 2012, its image-editing Photoshop plugins and tools were priced at a whopping $500 (£401). The software giant reduced this to $149.99 (£119.63) before dropping the price tag altogether.
Why is it now free?
Google has a history of releasing paid-for products for free after acquiring the original software developer, and this is just another instance of that.
What’s so good about it?
The fantastic Nik collection consists of seven plugins for Photoshop – Analog Efex Pro, Color Efex Pro, Silver Efex Pro, Viveza, HDR Efex Pro, Sharpener Pro and Dfine – that work on both Windows and Mac. The filters are excellent and can transform ordinary photos into something much more impressive.
Although the plugins are designed to be used in Photoshop, they work perfectly in other image editors such as Paint.NET (www.getpaint.net).
What’s the catch?
It’s a fairly sizable 429MB download and if you want to use the plugins in Paint .NET you’ll first need to install the free PSFilterPDN plug-in (bit.ly/psfpdn417).
ANIMATION SOFTWARE
OpenToonz
bit.ly/toonz417
How much did it cost?
Before March last year, prospective purchasers had to call the sales office to get a price and the software reportedly cost thousands. The new Premium version costs £301.
Why is it now free?
Digital Video, the Italian studio behind Toonz, was acquired by Japanese publisher Dwango last year. Part of the purchase agreement was that an open-source version of Toonz would be released – hence OpenToonz.
What’s so good about it?
Toonz is used in the creation of 2D animation and has been used in the past by the world-famous Japanese anime company Studio Ghibli and the team behind animated series Futurama. There are no restrictions so you can use the software for any animation, including commercial creations, without paying a thing. OpenToonz is available for Windows and Mac.
What’s the catch?
It’s tricky for novices to master and some features from Toonz have been removed or modified in this version. It lacks some customisation options, too, but it’s still an unbelievable freebie.
Remove unwanted programs with Ashampoo Uninstaller 5
1 The main menu provides four options – you can uninstall any existing applications or install and monitor a new program. You can also access Windows tools and turn on automatic installation monitoring. Any recent installations are shown here. The menu bar at the top takes you to the different areas.
2 Click the Uninstall button and you’ll be shown a list of items you can remove. You can sort this by clicking the column headings: name, manufacturer, install date and size. Select a program to see if its installation was logged or not. Click the Uninstall button above to remove it.
3 The program will remove the unwanted item along with any leftover junk. The Tools section includes some useful system tools sorted into categories which include System Maintenance, File Tools and Windows-Tools. Select a tool to launch it. You can customise Ashampoo Uninstaller under General, Options.
Keep your PC running smoothly using Vopt
1 Install Vopt and save the licence key as a TXT file to the folder at C:\Program Files (x86)\Golden Bow\Vopt 9. Run the program and it will analyse your drive and show a colour-coded disk-usage map. Blue squares are file data, black are free, cyan are Windows metafiles, and green are fixed Windows files.
2 Switch to a different disk by clicking Drive. You can see the disk’s status (how many files, how much fragmentation and so on) and check its health. Click the ‘Analyze drive’ button to perform a full scan. It will present you with a new usage map, showing other details, including fragmentation.
3 Ideally, before defragmenting a drive, you should remove any junk files because you don’t want to waste time, space and resources shuffling them around the disk. Click the Cleanup button, choose what to remove and click Apply. When done, close that window and click ‘Defrag drive’ to begin the disk-optimisation process.