Marques Brownlee’s Wallpaper App Faces Shutdown Amid Controversy

Marques Brownlee, popularly known as MKBHD, has announced the impending closure of his wallpaper app, Panels, merely 15 months after its launch. The application encountered significant criticism right from its inception due to its pricing strategy and ad integration.

On September 23, 2024, MKBHD introduced Panels, responding to numerous inquiries about the mobile wallpapers he utilized in his widely-viewed tech videos. Initially, the app offered hundreds of wallpapers for free, but the catch was the limited resolution, requiring users to watch two advertisements before accessing the lower-quality downloads. For those seeking high-resolution options, purchasing bundles for $8 USD each or a subscription for $11.99 USD per month was mandatory.

Almost immediately, Panels faced backlash, prompting Brownlee to acknowledge his misstep. He candidly expressed that he “dropped the ball” on the app’s initial offerings.

Panels wallpaper app from MKBHD — YouTube: Marques Brownlee

The effective discontinuation of Panels is scheduled for December 31, 2025.

The Unraveling of the Panels Wallpaper App

In response to early criticism, Brownlee took swift action. By early October 2024, he referred to the app’s launch as a “misjudgment, ” admitting that it was “terribly communicated” and emphatically stated that it should have been offered as a free app.

He remarked, “If I was reviewing this app, I wouldn’t have been very nice, ” recognizing the need for significant alterations.

This led to the removal of certain advertisements and allowed users to download full-quality versions of selected wallpapers. Nevertheless, a premium subscription option remained, albeit at a reduced yearly price of $24 USD.

Ultimately, Panels achieved over two million downloads, as noted in a final blog post. Yet, Brownlee revealed that these numbers were insufficient for the app’s sustainability, declaring in his recent YouTube upload, “After a lot of deliberation, I’ve decided to sunset the Panels app.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICuEkKYAVk0

Following its closure on December 31, 2025, any wallpapers that users have downloaded or purchased will remain in their ownership indefinitely. In addition, refunds will be issued to those with active annual subscriptions.

To foster further innovation, Brownlee and his team have decided to release the app’s code as open-source. This initiative enables developers to explore the app’s framework and inspire the creation of new products.

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