Deploying APIs in the cloud for primary use in mobile apps is an oft-repeated/able task, and it doesn't seem like there's anywhere near enough value in the Parse API on top of what you get from the native SDKs and a solid combination of open source stack software supported by an enterprise track record more promising than a Series A round a few months ago.
Also, as the comments here suggest, there are a lot of slight modifications to the default use case that reward having solidly built a stack not built on yet high-level PaaS abstraction. Sorry, but a JSON representation of your data is the low bar, not some instant proof that the product is magic.
Parse isn't a high level abstraction, they just like to make certain things more convenient, if you want you can just use them as a database with a rest api over it.
In terms of value ... I'm really not sure how you lose - if your app is a flop you're going to coast along on the free plan, if it's a success you can focus on your app rather than your stack, and you can migrate away from them when you feel like it.
Deploying APIs in the cloud for primary use in mobile apps is an oft-repeated/able task, and it doesn't seem like there's anywhere near enough value in the Parse API on top of what you get from the native SDKs and a solid combination of open source stack software supported by an enterprise track record more promising than a Series A round a few months ago.
Also, as the comments here suggest, there are a lot of slight modifications to the default use case that reward having solidly built a stack not built on yet high-level PaaS abstraction. Sorry, but a JSON representation of your data is the low bar, not some instant proof that the product is magic.