Try Gate retired: 6.9 GB / 3 h unpaid, then usage
We dropped the $9 Try Gate chip-in. Evaluation is now the same path as production suite jobs: feel the platform free, then pay only for usage over a clear cap.
Why we switched
Two parallel “try” stories confused people: a paid seat and a metered suite. The suite freemium model is simpler and more honest — showcase power on real bytes, then charge for volume at rates far under typical cloud egress.
What changed (timeline)
- 2026-08-07 Freemium suite pricing shipped. First 100 GiB free per job. Above that: ~1.5¢/GB (0.8¢/GB after 50 GB over free). Min paid charge $0.15.
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2026-08-07
Try Gate retired from public product.
Nav, pricing cards, agent catalog, and discovery no longer push $9 chip-in.
/try308 → /pps. - Still available License packages unchanged. CDDG:Split, ZRW tiers, support/consulting/sponsor — fixed Stripe SKUs for full product access.
- Legacy Old Try Gate payments can still verify on Access if someone already paid. New buyers should not use that path.
How to evaluate now
- Free web — /web for instant compress/decompress demos.
- Free suite — /pps, set size ≤ 1 GB → $0 → continue free → submit.
- Usage — over 1 GB, quote shows cents/GB; pay Stripe (humans) or x402 (agents).
- Full packages — CDDG / ZRW when you want a licensed process product, not just a job.
Pricing vs competition (usage)
Typical cloud egress is often on the order of ~$0.05–$0.09/GB. Our paid suite rate is about 1.5¢/GB after free — intentionally far under that class, so ROI is obvious when compression actually shrinks transfer or storage tax.
Examples (auto · compress): 1 GB = $0 · 9 GB ≈ $0.15 · 50 GB ≈ $0.74.
Agents
GET /api/agent now points starter traffic at /pps and documents freemium suite pricing. POST /api/x402-suite accepts free jobs under 6.9 GB / 3 h without payment; over free, x402 as before. Standing license SKUs remain on the catalog — try-gate is not listed.