PDFpen/Nitro and Cleverbridge
There used to be a great PDF app for the Mac called something like PDFPro [PDFpen]. At some point it got acquired by @NitroHQ, and began to ask to upgrade to a new version seemingly every time I launched it—up to version 13.
Today, on macOS 15, I needed it, but it wouldn’t launch. So I visited the website and it’s been acquired by a faceless enterprise company called @cleverbridge.
Version 14 for Mac is $170 (!) but I needed it so off to checkout. I enter my details, all fields light up green, and—purchase failed, please fix the “incomplete fields”. Wtf.
They double-billed him and signed him up for an unwanted subscription.
Not only that but I get activation instructions for the Windows version of the app! The Mac version simply shows a login screen.
But I don’t have an account! Create an account with the same email address, and their system doesn’t recognize I’ve purchased the app.
[…]
Visiting the “customer support portal” and trying to submit a request results in a—blank page.
As far as I can tell, Nitro purchased Cleverbridge and is using it to process payments:
Online orders of Nitro PDF Pro are processed (payment and order fulfillment) by our partner, Cleverbridge, Inc.
If you are an account admin who has purchased a Nitro Pro subscription through our partner reseller CleverBridge, you can now purchase additional licenses directly from within the Nitro Admin app.
[…]
When your payment is successfully processed, you will be directed to a Purchase Confirmation page with your CleverBridge Order number and invoice.
But if you need a refund you’re supposed to contact Nitro:
If you recently purchased Nitro Productivity Suite and wish to request a refund, please contact Nitro directly via their website. They would be happy to assist you with your request. While Cleverbridge is a partner of Nitro, we do not currently process their refunds.
It’s too bad that Smile didn’t want to keep developing and supporting the app.
Previously:
- The State of Mac PDF Software
- The Top PDF Reader in the Mac App Store
- PDFpen Acquired for $6 Million
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Maybe this is just me, but it sure feels like the vibrant indie software ecosystem around the Mac has been deteriorating for the last few years. PDFPen was one of many polished Mac apps made by small(ish) developers that were native, great, and better than any equivalent on Windows or desktop Linux.
For my taste, pdfpen was still too expensive when Smile owned it (I needed it for accessible form-filling). But I never really enjoyed using it, and of course nowadays that functionality is built-in and is just about at feature-parity. So while it's sad to see yet another casualty of the great commodification of software, it's also not something I'll be losing much sleep over. Apple will do what they always do, which is to bake in half-way-usable solutions, then make them "marketable" through an API that a thousand devs will use to produce near-identical clones of the same app to exercise it.
Purchased a copy of PDFPen during my visit at Apple HQ. At the time still at Infinite Loop and exposing a row of Mac OS X retail boxes behind an office window near the entrance. Upgraded the app a few times until few years ago. Not anymore. Next time I will need to OCR will try OwlOCR again. Itself sold to an obscure firm part of a matryoshka of companies. Not sure what my options will be for simple PDF editing.
As mentioned by @Nils, PDF Expert is a reliable substitute, on both iOS and macOS.
I am not exactly thrilled by Readdle’s rushed foray into “AI Chats,” which are implemented in a way that destroys the app’s privacy promises and makes a mockery of document confidentiality, but it is nothing that Little Snitch cannot block.
Apart from this, PDF Expert has been for me what PDFPenPro never was and Preview has long stopped being, a powerful but uncomplicated app to knock PDFs into shape with as little friction as possible.
I just wish Readdle added better compression features, which still give ABBYY FineReader PDF for Mac® an edge — and yes, that app is as ugly as its official name, all in caps with a “registered” symbol, implies. [Shudder]
Update from Nitro — Due to a bug in their website and confirmation emails, they claim that I actually purchased a lifetime license for the Windows version, even though I entered the Mac purchase workflow. They asked me to request from them to refund the two charges (unsure why they didn't just refund them straightaway), and then I can consider purchasing the Mac version, making sure that I'm first logged into my account, so that the purchase will be associated to me.
I did take a look at PDF Expert in the meantime, but it didn't feel "Mac-like" and I found the UX confusing.
>it’s been acquired by a faceless enterprise company called @cleverbridge.
>As far as I can tell, Nitro purchased Cleverbridge
I’ve used Cleverbridge with other software, and best as I can tell, they’re just a payment provider specialized in software, like Kagi and eSellerate used to be. I think Nitro still owns PDFpen?
Another update — Nitro said I should see my two $170 "Windows lifetime purchase" refunds within the next week, and that I could go ahead and login to my account at gonitro.com and purchase the Mac license. Turns out, the Mac license is $170, and the only option is an annual subscription. The consensus seems to be that PDF Expert is the only real option, and it doesn't feel like a Mac app.
Michael, maybe an opportunity for a new app in your portfolio? 😄
