Why is Marques Brownlee shutting down his wallpaper app, Panels?

Popular tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee, also known as "MKBHD," has announced that he is shutting down his phone wallpaper application, Panels. For those unaware, Brownlee launched the Panels wallpaper app last year, in September 2024. The initial reception was not too positive, with netizens expressing dissatisfaction with the $49.99 annual subscription plan.

The New Jersey native eventually responded to the backlash by announcing a new pricing structure, as well as improvements to the free version's user experience.

On November 30, 2025, Marques Brownlee posted an unlisted YouTube video titled Panels update, in which he announced the end of his project.

According to the 31-year-old, his phone wallpaper app was shutting down because it "wasn't able to sustain," adding that he and his team "made mistakes."

Marques Brownlee elaborated:

"At the end of the day, it wasn't able to sustain. You know, we knew it was niche, but you know, we made mistakes in making our first app, and ultimately we weren't able to turn it into the vision that I had. So, I do want to thank all the artists that took the plunge with us. You know, we've had conversations with each and every one of you. And it's a bummer to let you down by not getting over the hill to that vision that we had shared, but it was awesome to work with all of you."

Timestamp - 00:50

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Marques Brownlee announces that the code for his wallpaper app, Panels, will be made open source following its shutdown

At the one-minute-27-minute mark of the video mentioned above, Marques Brownlee announced that the code for Panels will be made open source following its shutdown.

He explained:

"So now, while the app itself is shutting down, we will be making the code open source and available on GitHub. So, if you have dreams of making a wallpaper app, if you want to pick up where we left off, you have a great launching point. Easiest way to find that will be just on panels.art."

Furthermore, Brownlee announced that he and his team will provide prorated refunds to everyone who purchased the annual pass for Panels, and he expressed gratitude to those who gave his phone application a shot.