Pony
Consumer and social
slow messaging app
SHOW HN2021
693points
238comments
#24of 2,533 in 2021
Top 1%of 2021 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
46 positive, 38 neutral or asking, 6 mixed, 17 critical, out of 107 comments about the project. Thread score +0.32.
Idea: 38 for, 12 againstPrivacy: 1 for, 3 againstDesign: 3 for, 0 againstExecution: 1 for, 2 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Unique idea that resonates with users
From 1 comment
Hey thanks a lot. Network effects will definitely be the #1 challenge. I considered integrations—I first tried Pony as an email service, actually. I wanted it to be as accessible…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
Objections
Network effects make adoption hard
From 2 comments
Hey thanks a lot. Network effects will definitely be the #1 challenge. I considered integrations—I first tried Pony as an email service, actually. I wanted it to be as accessible…
dmitryminkovsky on HNYes, that will definitely be the big challenge. I don't think we will convince everyone. Not everyone wants or needs the type of interpersonal connection that Pony is designed to…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
Once-a-day delivery is too slow for many conversations
From 1 comment
Thanks a lot for the detailed feedback and kind words yumraj. My thoughts: > once a day delivery is going to be problematic. Perhaps a once an hour, or once every 2-3 hours…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
No end-to-end encryption
From 1 comment
Thank you! I really appreciate it. > However, no mention of monetization strategy. Thanks for bringing this up. I was hoping to give a brief introduction and then to field…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
Requests
Add email or SMS integration
From 2 comments
> I love this thought process. Thank you so much. > but I wonder if you could still integrate as an email/sms app and allow temporary overrides ... like how pihole let's you…
dmitryminkovsky on HNSorry for the slow response! I also tweak a bit after posting, and that Pony helps with that. I don't usually edit and edit forever, but it helps me get the message how I want…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
Configurable delivery frequency per thread
From 2 comments
Thank you rekoros! More delivery modes is something I am really excited to explore, especially slower ones. I think pickup/delivery should always remain once a day, but you could…
dmitryminkovsky on HNMine too! That's what my user experience with this thus far has let me to believe, too. I am thinking of creating a way to specify the delivery settings per-thread, such that…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
Questions
Will there be monetization and how?
From 1 comment
Thank you! I really appreciate it. > However, no mention of monetization strategy. Thanks for bringing this up. I was hoping to give a brief introduction and then to field…
dmitryminkovsky on HN
Alternatives named
Slowly
From 1 comment
I hadn't seen Slowly. That's awesome—thanks for sharing. I really like how it's tied to physical distance. I really want to add more delivery modes, with geographical distance…
dmitryminkovsky on HN