Marques Brownlee’s Panels wallpaper app is shutting down on December 31st, barely a year after its controversial launch. “We made mistakes making our first app, and ultimately, we weren’t able to turn it into the vision I had,” Brownlee said in a video on the MKBHD YouTube channel.
The Panels launch in September 2024 was met with a flood of criticism over its expensive subscription pricing and advertising setup. “Earlier this year, the makeup of the development team changed, and despite our best efforts to bring in collaborators who shared our passion and vision, we weren’t able to find the right fit,” reads a message on the Panels website. “Rather than keeping the app running without being able to grow it in the way we originally envisioned, we felt it was best to make a clean break.”
All user data will be deleted following the app shutdown, with Brownlee then planning to make the Panels code open source and available on GitHub. All subscriptions will be automatically canceled when Panels is pulled from app stores, and refunds for active subscriptions will be issued after December 31st.