Featured Image Credit: Panels Wallpaper Mobile App LLC/Marques Brownlee
There are a few unspoken rules of the internet. One, don't ask about the game. Two, 'never try to charge for something that was already free'.
These words were shared by well-known tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee, also known as MKBHD. However, it appears as though the celebrated content creator has gone back on their own words, and is facing backlash as a result.
The tech YouTuber who has a whopping 19.5 million subscribers as of writing, is facing the heat after releasing a brand-new app.
Panels, the app in question, provides smartphones and other devices with a range of high-quality and full resolution 'art pieces'. These pieces can be used as a phone's wallpaper. However, it's not the flashy art that has people riled up, but the fact there are ads and a paywall in its midst.
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For £6 a month, you can access Panels' library of wallpapers, available for both iOS and Android-based devices. Or, you can watch ads to view them.
Or, for a measly sum of free, you can simply save images directly onto your phone of your choosing.
One wallpaper, which requires 2 ads to unlock, features just the colour orange. As reported by Forbes, the simply entitled 'Orange' art-piece has been widely mocked throughout X.
Since its announcement on Brownlee's X, formerly Twitter, official page, the app has been heavily criticised.
Many questioned its price point, like one X user who stated, "Imagine having a large enough audience to make almost any idea work, then settling on a subscription-based wallpaper app."
You only need to look at the app's reviews on the Google Play Store, to see a glimpse of the criticisms faced by the popular YouTuber. As of typing, it sits with a 1.7 rating out of 5. There's a total of 2.82k reviews, each blasting the Panels app for its paywalls.
Some of the top reviews, shared that not only do you need to pay £6 to unlock some collections, but some full resolution wallpapers are locked behind a further price of £11.50.
It wasn't just the Google Play Store where concerns were on full display. X users like sagarcasm, stated, 'MKBHD, tech guru who always warns us about overpriced gadgets, has just released a $12/month wallpaper app.'
The unofficial MKBHD subreddit was also alight with over 700 comments, each sharing a similar vein of disappointment over the app's paywall.
One user r/mkbhd stated, 'He should do a video review of his own app'. Meanwhile, another user stated, 'You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.'
Brownlee wasn't immune to the feedback, and posted to X on the same day as the original announcement. The YouTuber was quick to share that he was going to fix the 'excessive data disclosures' and dial back the frequency of ads.
However, when it comes to its pricing, the tech creator was less up front.
Brownlee explained, 'As far as pricing, I hear you! It's our own personal challenge to work to deliver that kind of value for the premium version.'
It's doubtful the Panels app alone could have a real effect on Brownlee's reputation. Especially with 19.5 million subscribers under his belt. However, hopefully over time, the Panels app can become an app more in-tune with Brownlee's reputation.
Featured image credit: Panels Wallpaper Mobile App LLC/Marques Brownlee
