comment: >
  
  This is just wrong.
context: Free means "without charging money". >
  
  Free in this context is purely financial. >
  
  It's presented that way to be misleading......so people would think it's free. >
  
  People dont think it's free, they know its free, they know because there is no upfront or later financial cost that is the only free that matters when debating using a product or service. >
  
  If you use a service and pay nothing, it's free. The app costs you nothing as does creating an account. Tesco are giving away free food. You have to sign for it and provide an address so they know where to send it. That's free right? No difference >
  
  Nothing is free.  You 'pay' for everything in one way or another.  You may not pay financially for an app, but you pay by allowing specific information about you to be sold to 3rd parties.  Your likes, dislikes, and sometimes your financial information.  It is foolish to not consider the risks of downloading a particular application and how it may record your keystrokes or look for more personal information you have on the device. >
  
  Oh, your precious personal information about wanting to buy XYZ boots, browsing a certain website or being ... years old from a certain location. What a disaster! I personally am happy to be shown relevant ads and want more. >
  
  You personally may be fine with it, but it has privacy implications that are concerning, especially when it's not straightforward what information is being collected or what is being done with it. >
  
  It has implications according to bureaucrats (especially in the EU) and people who think the government records them. If you use an app, they can use your data for personalized content, sell it, etc. >
  
  That’s why it isn’t free. You’re giving them information they can sell so you are paying. >
  
  So free samples of cheese at the supermarket are also not free because they can record your preferred brand and gender, age, location etc., and then use it for future promotions or assortment planning? If you answer "yes", then you don't understand what "free" means. I'm aware of all of that and call it free. >
  
  I agree. I messed up on my comment. I was commenting to the same thing you did. >
  
  Free is about price not hassle... >
  
  Yes, its free. You arent paying anything: its free, period. >
  
  But you are paying.......with your personal info.
  Just so you know.....there are things in life that have value other than money. >
  
  Literally everything is paid for with something. Wanna try this free sample? You've now paid via your time and attention. >
  
  Exactly.....nothing in this world is "free" >
  
  Which is why when something is referred to as "free", they mean it costs no money. Anyone not being pedantic would generally realize that. >
  
  I am pedantic......but I do realize that. I just don't like it. >
  
  What is there to know about you that isn't already known ? Ever bought a new Android phone ? Next time you do, create a new YouTube account, make a call to a friend and talk about a certain subject for 3 - 5 minutes, go to your YouTube account and watch content, you'll notice that the very thing you've recently discussed is being advertised. So, Free just means you don't have to pay, but your information is already out there and being sold by everyone. Thats the price we pay for the convenience of the modern age, privacy is a thing of the past. >
  
  It doesn't need to be. 
  The fact that so many people think this way is sad. >
  
  Unless you yourself manage to create a OS and various systems and scripts that doesn't share or breach any privacy AND you can financially keep it running then this is how it is. For fucks sake, even the damn calculator apps wants to know where i am and who i'm calling, i'm not exactly thrilled that we have come to this point, but i need my smartphone for various reasons, so thats the price i have to pay UNTIL some IT Saviour invents some genious system to make it different. >
  
  No. 
  Android is actually quite good from a privacy standpoint. You can reject app access to almost anything except google/manifacturer apps. Most apps will run fine without it. 
  If your app requires access it shouldn't need, switch app.
  You can run base android/lineageos/grapheneos if you want an even stonger privacy background. 
  This shit isn't really hard to do.
  The ONLY reason we are at this point, is because people are lacy as fuck, and have given up like you. >
  
  Yup, you're not wrong. >
  
  You can always use a fake name and/or a disposable email. There are literally free (yes, free even by your definition) services where you can make a temporary burner email. >
  
  Nothing is free. Every single free app or service is selling your data. The ones that aren't are those sites that have a ridiculous amount of ads and redirects. >
  
  Is that a bad thing? Do you expect people to make services for you with absolutely nothing in return?
  It’s not like you’re a king or that they owe you anything. >
  
  If I am watching ads they are getting their fair share and I shouldn’t have to do anything else >
  
  Ah right. So you deserve an intensive software application maintained and designed by hundreds/thousands of software engineers. 
  Anything more than a 3 second ad, and it’s crossing the fair share, hey. >
  
  It’s a fair argument. Companies could charge for their software but they’ve chosen to make it free with ads. It’s a business strategy that laid the ground work for some of the most successful tech companies. >
  
  I’m not forcing people to pay for things they don’t want to. I’m just saying it’s silly to be outraged that one expects everything to be so convenient and free for them at no cost. >
  
  Remember: if you're not paying for a product, that means you are the product >
  
  Completely agree. If use of the app or service is conditioned on the user giving personal information, then the app or service is not free to the user. >
  
  If it is free you are the product. >
  
  Eh I'm ok AS LONG as they don't send me a poop ton of emails 😂 >
  
  The amount of sites that ask for logins even for the most trivial of things is beyond ridiculous in this day and age. I just use a bogus email and have the same password for everything of this nature. “Security” be damned, if they get the password all they’re getting is some made up details. I’m considering getting a backup phone number too just to keep the cold callers off my back. >
  
  If something is free, then you're the product. >
  
  i agree with this! >
  
  Yes. You aren’t paying with money, but with data >
  
  This isn't an opinion