I've onboarded a lot of people with Phoenix. So far I've never had anyone complain about the fees. Spending a few dollars to create your wallet the first time doesn't seem to bother people. Lots of financial services charge registration fees.
Discussion
Phoenix is great, I don't mind paying extra fees, knowing I have full custody over my lightning channel
A good service needs to earn if you want it to stay in business
I wish the lightning fees were capped at on-chain fee levels. It's crazy to often find on-chain to be cheaper than lightning. Like this, lightning won't become the default in low fees.
Lightning is a much better service than on-chain for many purposes. Unsurprising that it can have higher fees.
Phoenix is great, the fees are totally worth it