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XM Radio Rant

cderk

Well Known Member
I?ve been seeing this ad on Facebook recently for XM Radio subscriptions for $4.99 a month for 12 months (probably because I recently canceled to play their pricing game). Just for the heck of it, I plugged in the XM radio ID from my GDL51R. Not surprisingly, it identified it as an aviation receiver and brought me to a menu of options for XM weather. It allows you to decline weather and get to just the music page.

The cheapest music package is $10.99 a month. I?m sorry, but this is complete BS. Whether the radio is in my car or plane, the service is the same, and doesn?t cost them any more money. It pisses me off that they probably think GA is filled with a bunch of rich guys who can afford to spend twice as much for the same service they?re getting in their cars.

Smells like an interesting class action for discrimination :)

</rant over>

Charlie
 
they probably think GA is filled with a bunch of rich guys who can afford to spend twice as much for the same service they?re getting in their cars

Maybe not rich but definitely not poor .. you do fly an RV-10 .. just sayin :p
 
Tesla options are expensive too. Doubt if that warrants a law suit.
ADS-B provides decent WX products, and you already paid for it.
On the positive side...XM just made me feel better about my income.
 
Same reason I don't have cable anymore. Tired of their pricing games. Plus not watching TV gives me more time to fly.
 
Tesla options are expensive too. Doubt if that warrants a law suit.
ADS-B provides decent WX products, and you already paid for it.
On the positive side...XM just made me feel better about my income.

You?re missing the point.
A) I?m not interested in weather, just music
B) The radio service is the same in the air or on the ground.

The comparison to Tesla options makes no sense. Apples vs Oranges.
 
Possible Solution

I think I?ve figured out a solution to the problem with pricing. Just for the heck of it I went in to my auto subscription that is now $4.99 a month (I?m a sucker for discounts). I told it I wanted to transfer the service to another radio. It wants to charge $15 to do it, but it looked like it was going to work fine.

I?m not flying yet, but will give this a try in a few months. Then I?ll just go back in and add my car back as a new radio.
 
No, I got the point. Just noticed the word lawsuit and decided to post my sarcasm. I should have poured more coffee instead of annoying people.
Sorry about that.
 
Never give 'em a credit card! The stuff you got for $49/year is suddenly $25/month when they automatically renew.
 
Never give them a legit phone number (if you gave them your actual one go back and give them a bogus one otherwise they'll endless harass you) and NEVER let them keep a credit card number DEMAND they remove it the moment the purchase transaction is made... you will get multiple annoying letters and lots of forewarning that payment is due don't worry. For your car or plane google "best XM or SIRI deals" as you'll likely save @ 75%. The only company with worse billing scams was AOL, thankfully they fell on their sword. Decent product despicable business model when it comes to payment
 
....and, watch out for the bottom line. Once upon a time, they just charged an advertised rate. Now, they advertise a ?subscription? cost, then add in fees that are really THEIR overhead, like ?Music Royalty Fee?, etc.
 
Apple music etc

I find it easier these days to stream apple music or pandora etc. from the phone to either the intercom or the Bose A20. You can download smart playlists to play when no cell reception. Got tired of dealing with XM a couple of years ago and have never regretted dropping them.
Figs
 
Just forget about using the Garmin and use the smart phone app. You can then BT it through your audio panel or headset. And your not limited to using it just in the plane. I've had it for about 4 months now @ the $4.99 (actual closer to $7 after all the taxes & fees). No issues thus far and in no way affiliated with SiriusXm.
 
What?s an XM?

I texted my college attending daughters what XM Radio is. And is it relevant. One texted back an eye roll emoji. The other replied, ?XM = BetaMax = Zune = cable TV = telegraph = your vinyl record collection? Jeez, harsh! ;-) I?m impressed she included a BetaMax!
 
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