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My partner's really enjoyed Brilliant for a coupla months now! I hope they add biology stuff (or more chemistry), I do genuinely miss the joy of Learning Stuff from my academia days.
@@NerdSyncProductions Don’t get videos like this no one said no to him, really bro? It’s fine not to get the concept but clearly the demographic for this product is people who can afford it. That’s business he’s not running a charity I personally don’t get it but there are plenty of people who have the means and look for shit like this to make there life simpler and more exciting. You’re wrong to make this about money🙄 it’s not a moral dilemma. Clearly you could’ve said no to all the burgers and burritos you consume but that’s no body’s business.
@@ccayco I’m someone who does both. On my desktop or laptop I’ll go around the internet and download wallpapers and set them that way. However, I have also bought wallpaper apps before, Backdrops and Vellum to be specific. I like having them because they’re easier to access, have a large variety, are sorted into logical groups…. They’re a lot more convenient when on a phone, I guess. Those apps weee both one-time purchases, though. I really like MKBHD in general but I think this launch was insane, $12/month is highway robbery. Or $50/year. Either way is ridiculous, especially when the app is kinda crummy compared to the other two I mentioned (which, again, were one-time purchases).
Because someone realized there are people inept enough using phones who can't do anything that an app isn't telling or showing them while holding their hands. As ridiculous as it sounds we are living in a time with more technology than ever and at the same time a vast majority of the people using the tech have absolutely no idea how even the basics work. And it's not just elderly peoply but all ages.
I "think" the idea was a good faith (?) attempt to have a gallery of curated wallpapers that you can choose from AND support the artists. The execution, on the other hand... Also yeah there's always the option of finding "the right wallpaper" yourself.
@@HenkkaArtGamesI also doesn't get that people this oblivious should have phone in first place. "Average Person" is very hoax. Like "AP cannot distinguish between 60 hz or 120 hz". Yeah , but that doesn't give any right ripoff the person.
@@Skyline_NTR I just don't get why anyone would want wallpapers someone else picked and chose, regardless of the cost. It's your phone, you should have the bare minimum of responsibility to decorate it yourself.
For 12 dollars a month you probably can supoort directly 2 or 3 artists in patreon that do wallpapers. Or spend those 50 dollars in a commission for a great wallpaper every year.
sooo, stay off the app and hope a patron will come along or get on the app, get exposure in front of thousands already interested in supporting your kind of work, probably get more than one random commission on top of a new passive income stream? hard choice
@@davidpachecogarcia But what about volume? What if Brownlee can bring in more subscribers for the artist than the artist can on their own? Getting a lower rate but at a higher volume could yield more money. If not paid subscribers, at least bring more attention to the artists that people will end up supporting the artists directly.
not to mention that there is AI art mixed in to the listings. direspectful to the artists (that do much more than just an orange BG) and disrepectful to the paying customers who could just generate an AI wallpaper themselves for free
Are people really changing their wallpapers like non-stop?? I've had the same shit on mine for yearsssssss. And it's just photos I've made . . . You telling me there's a market for this?? The phone screen that is only visible when it's idle, but before it goes to sleep? The Picture you can only view in between app icons, in between switching apps??? WHY???
I change mine if I get new interests, like if I’m really into Dragon Ball I’ll have a Dragon Ball one for a couple of months. I don’t use an app though, I just use Google or make my own
I’ve been using the same photo since 2014, with no plans to change. And if I were to change it, I’d use a new picture that I took - I’m not buying a wallpaper!
I change mine if I am in the mood or want to see something different. I used to be a Windows Phone user and I used to change the theme colour daily. Everyone is different.
Why doesn't the app just let you pay like 50c for a wallpaper? Add an option to buy an artist's catalogue or a pack of wallpapers for like 5$ They get their money and don't have to worry about this stupid subscription model. If people like using the app they'll spend more money on it, incessant ads are not the way chief.
I unsubbed from MKBHD some time ago because his reviews became about how cool the camera shots were instead of offering his audience in-depth analysis of a product. Also, I was tired of him not using the "included paid promotion" flag on his video when they were clearly paid promotions.
Same. All popular sponsored tech youtubers are like this, same with popular streamers on Twitch. They all get many things for free in order to advertise it to their viewers. "Interactive Advertisers" is what I call them nowadays lol. Not worth a sub or my time anymore imo because they're just peddling a product they themselves spent little to no money on. Chances are they don't want to piss anyone off, especially the hands that feed them. I don't think their opinions hold any weight for the average person lol.
What bothered me were his car reviews, although he has no idea about cars. He just does reviews on the infotainment systems and if he does not like a screen or does not want to use a system of a car, that means the whole car is crap
Why not make an app actually relevant to his channel? Like, some kind of app/browser extension that lets you see trusted reviews for tech stuff when shopping for them online or something? So bizarre.
ya ... the team talk about photography so much you would think it would be relevant to have a collection of there best photos for phone backgrounds that have personally taken... but are they even in the list of the artists you need 5 to follow?
The worst part is they used a development kit for a music/podcast app and just removed the music player component. the onboarding process looks very similar to several podcast apps I've tried in the past
@@Turtlpwr It still would have entertainment value if it lived up to the aesthetics or if it was like The Flash. I still remember seeing the video game quality cutscene which was shot as if it were leading to a boss battle. It's probably the only thing I've seen of it besides the trailer.
@@kiattim2100 AHAHAHAHAHAH imagine paying for some pics that are also ai generated, AND those people are also casually " your friends " hahahahaa. i dont understand why fans are so dumb.
The biggest flaw to this app is that only tech youtubers who constantly switch phones and weird tech bros actually give any thought to their wallpapers. The rest of us uses the same 1-3 wallpapers for years and years, never met anyone who spends more than 5 minutes of thought deciding on their wallpapers. Who in the world needs a dedicated app for that?
Enough that an actual community of people exist for it. To my understanding it isn't crazy big. But there is definitely a market for it that isn't just tech bros and youtubers.
@@gemevelyn2660there is also a market for $700 wheels Apple sells… most people get a wallpaper and stick with it for familiarity it’s usually a photo they have taken of loved ones or an event in their life. The sad fact is that MKBHD could easily have made a free app for his fan base and made money by getting companies that work with him to give discounts through the app.
in my circles we change our wallpapers all the time but its to like... significant others, pets, travel, and like, musicians or tv show characters. im trying to think of the person who wants a generic cityscape or a generic forest
Spending all his years build reputation by criticizing tech companies n their despicable actions. Yet willingly to put his name on a scummy app. Greed never fails to cease me 😂
I think it varies from country to country, that's why it pays to use a VPN when signing up for subscription services, you can save a lot of money that way. In Slovakia, I pay €7.19 a month for YT Premium + YT Music, with the family plan costing about €10. I am sure I'd be able to get the price even lower if I set my location to some middle eastern country, for example. Price of the subscription won't change when you revert your location back to normal, I tested this. Even worked in the US, when I worked there a few months back I still paid only €5 a month for Spotify premium.
@@mipmipmipmipmip-v5xwhich is a great deal, five people get it for less than $6.00 a month if you can avoid paying through an iOS device. MKBHD doesn’t even offer a family plan for his overpriced wallpapers.
@@NakamaCamping maximum potential user base. It's not the whole story, but it's easily a big chunk of it. If those services had to scale down to serve the same numbers of paying users panels projected, I wouldn't be surprised if they cost double or more.
From my experience, most people use a photo in their gallery as a wallpaper or they download something off of google images, I don't see many (if any) people asking for an app. People can find images with a higher resolutions than 1080p pretty easily
Yh pretty much also wallpapers apps are nothing new ,there are a lot of wallpapers apps that are free ,also like you said you can get free 4k wallpapers on the internet
You're forgetting a huge group of users who just keep whatever default wallpaper came with the phone because why would you care about something you almost never see while actually using the phone?
The reason the side of the screen is black is just my monitor that's in front of the camera. Normally I move it out of the way when I record at my desk but since I was doing a lot of stuff on my computer, I needed the monitor close by. Sorry if it's annoying.
Not annoying at all. Btw, I want to say how much I appreciate the video you reference here where you talked about Amazon breaking comixology. I downloaded it to my phone a few months ago when I had surgery, along with a few other videos, and it made my hospital stay genuinely pleasant. I can't tell you enough how much that means to me or how much long hospital wait time before a surgery can otherwise be rough. Thank you.
While it is true that I don't really care about tech reviews, I just enjoy to listen to your thoughts on stuff. And hey, I didn't really care for Scooby do before but that changed dramatically for some reason so, who knows?
In the past 10 years, I have had two wallpapers so obviously I’m not the target demographic for this app. In a vacuum this app is unoffensive because that’s kinda where most apps are nowadays. But after watching most of Marques’ videos and podcasts, a lot of this does feel very hypocritical. If him and the team have dreams and aspirations for their app, then great! But the current pricing and user experience should be reflective of what’s available now.
Who even is the target audience of those wallpapers? Apart from companies that build software, computers, or phones? Maybe wallpapers like that would attract them. Most people go for their favourite characters from films, their pets, their food, their artworks, their faces... etc. Or download pictures from sites like unsplash.
I thought Marques could do no wrong but he started dropping shoes and ridge wallet collaborations, now he's got a $50/yr wallpaper app maybe he should review his own product
The 50/50 split is wild! If y'all need wallpapers that bad, SO many artists sell them in Ko-Fi shops, and the artists get 95% of the cut. If he decides to keep the app running, I hope he makes some major changes. The whole thing overall just seems like a mess.
honestly love watching videos where it's people talking about stuff i don't care about, like yesss tell me all about this thing that is so vastly outside of my interests
You see the beginning of the video? Where he states this is outside of his norm? And you continued to watch it and complain? Hm maybe go outside and find a hobby
Just wanted to comment that I'm in the middle of the Venn diagram that matches your audience and MKBHD's. I go waaaay back. Honestly, I fell off your content a while ago as I followed you for your super hero stuff, I even remember some tough times for your channel. Then, all of a sudden there were Scooby Doo videos (not my cup of tea). But watching this video made me miss the good old days. I didn't follow many channels back then and I used to actually watch everything from my subscription page daily, like every single video, you two were definitely there together some times, and actually made me realize you share two things with him, things that I value a lot, excellent video quality and lighting, and excellent audio. Just wanted to say hi and wish you the best!
ahh yes a video about my favorite scooby-doo villain! Capitalism Seems like people don't understand what a joke is so let me spell it out for everyone arguing in my comments IT'S A JOKE, if you seriously think you need to debate shit go touch grass
@thekeepr it's literally Capitalism. They're trying to do whatever they can to drain your bank account by making the user experience as inconvenient as possible
I- don't know any internet user that would buy backgrounds for 50 dollars. When you can also just go on any social media, find your fav artist, and be like "hey mind if I use this for a personal desktop background?" and they'll probably be like "yea sure" or maybe "I have a bundle of wallpapers on my site for 5 dollar" I use wallpapers from Pikaole (artist) and give them 8 dollars on patreon every month... and that's for tons of wallpapers, icons, and physical merch. I bet you can find a fav artist w/ a patreon with like access to tons of wallpapers for like 5 dollars.
Well technically his app is less then 5 dollars a month if you think about it .. 5 dollars a month times 12 is 60 dollars.. so yeah technically it's less then 5 dollars a month 🤷🏽♂️
@@yordytorres5675 Idk where my original reply went :/ but its 12 a month as he says in the video. It's only 50 if you have that money up front to pay out of the gate. vs handing over 5 dollars to your fav artist, download all their current wallpapers they have on their patreon, and then just cancel your subscription.
Hell, wallpapers are usually given out for free as a form of marketing. There's tons of high quality wallpapers given out by videogame companies and such.
I feel like the audience they are trying to target aren't so much "internet users" as they are "tech enthusiasts". Like, the people who buy hardware a lot because it Looks nicer irl, but doesn't actually want to spend a lot of time interacting with software, so they are theoretically willing to pay that much for the "convenience" of this app.. with the convenience being that they don't have to research wallpaper apps, because they trust Marques, so if he says it's his app and it's good, then they don't have to think further about it, if that makes sense (Also just to be clear, I am not one of those people, but I do see a lot of people like that in tech youtubers comment sections)
He's released a new video today addressing many of these concerns. It's still a 50/50 split with artists, but in-feed ads are gone, and it's a single 30 second ad to get full-res versions of wallpapers. I haven't tried the initial, or updated version of the app, so I'm curious your thoughts on the changes, and his update video.
Thing is, the entire business model is wrong.... he's trying to sell a subscription for a product that doesn't need one. It's like car manufacturers trying to sell subscription services for seat heaters - if I want it, I'll pay once to install it but why the hell do I need to continue paying them for it? Artists can sell their work through marketplace apps & get anywhere from 80-100%, so where's the value-add that justifies Panel taking half? And we're taking _his word_ that it's 50/50, but this is coming from the guy who thought that ridiculous pricing, invasive ads & an egregious data-mining ToS were acceptable enough to launch... so who knows how many other fees & charges Panel loads on top of that 50% from artists. You only get one chance to make a 1st impression, and unfortunately Marcus has not only blown it but he's also undermined trust in the integrity of his reviews too.
let's be real, marques sold out years ago, he's no longer "another concerned consumer" and is now a rich, corporate pet - whoever that still thinks his opinions are anything other than paid advertisements deserves to be taken advantage of
He didn't learn anything from the shoe that he released. It was a cheaply made shoe with cheap materials, sold at a premium price. Also, they could've still had ads, but not timed ads and not download ads. They could've had like 1 banner ad at the bottom of the screen, and the option to unlock a premium wallpaper for maybe a week if you watch an ad. There are so many better options.
Actually I’ll disagree with u there. Have a pair of the all black ones and have been some of the best shoes I hav3 bought in years. Actually bought an another pair of atoms shoes because of these and they are also good quality.
I'm shocked the guy that reviews Lamborghini's and Cybertrucks is out of touch. More Scooby-Doo sfx would make your drama videos sing, I liked the small amount you included.
@@sugarfrosted2005 it's a niche market. Some people will pay artists for their work rather just downloading a copy somewhere else. There are things that they do to fix though. Don't allow the artist to upload previous artwork they've had for free, it should be unique/exclusive to the app.
I have been following MKBHD for legitimately over a decade and it is actually true... nearly on every single video in the comments he would get that question asked. With the growth of the channel obviously that isn't on the surface much but it isn't something he is making up.
I do follow tech tubers. Specifically GN and a handful of other more technical types. That app is as you said… bonkers. Maybe he has been driving too many million dollar cars to realize $50 is not chump change for the average American. That represents 2-3 hours of work for most.
As soon as he said tech TH-camr, GN came to mind. With all due respect to MKBHD, GN has far better information on tech. And Mrwhosetheboss is my preferred source for phone reviews. So I don't even watch MKBHD very much.
When you first exclaimed "12 dollars a month for wallpapers?!?!" in the first 3 seconds of the video, I thought you were talking about real wallpapers for your house. Even that doesn't make any sense, because who changed their wallpapers often enough for that to be remotely worth it? But somehow paying that much for digital wallpapers sounds even more bonkers.
Yh if it was actual an art app where you could buy artist painting that would have been more interesting ,but even then having a subscription wouldn’t have make sense ,it would make sense however to pay for the artist directly, like a auction .But having an art app where you can buy artist painting could have been great ,small artist creators could have the chance to get their name out there and most people wouldn’t have any issue with it .
i have some that cycle on my PC that i paid a whapping 5 bucks for the app like forever that was a good buy it also has a phone app if i so choose to care
I just keep thinking about when he made a video after one of those AI things failed where he was like "I will always be critical if a product has problems" but he filmed it inside his Cybertruck that he drives everyday
He wouldn't still have the Cybertruck if he could sell it. He's mentioned this before since he has no reason to have it after he got it. It's his least driven vehicle.
0:45 yes, same here. i also slowly unsubbed from all tech youtubers for one reason or another. be it shilling too hard for a product, misinformation, or knowingly doing ads for scam products or talking about my domain getting it so wrong they lost all credibility to me.
For me, LGR (Lazy Game Reviews) is the only youtuber I follow that exists within the tech realm, but for vintage tech and games. And obscure items. And besides the subject matter, he is very enjoyable and pleasant to listen to.
If anything, this will definitely change how I see him. He's always seemed so down-to-earth and personable in his videos, and while I'll still enjoy his stuff, the fact that he developed this app and agreed to this pricing schema and user experience will make me question his sense of pricing and valuement of work for the foreseeable future.
@YTYogaFlame24 the problem is that most ppl don't pay OF models 1000 dollars a month. In addition, OF models have two different pay tiers. Panels only have a monthly and yearly subscription deal. Sure, this app is for a niche audience, but it is clearly a cash grab.
@@YTYogaFlame24I'm a game developer and have helped develop multiple pieces of software. I absolutely understand how you can get in your own head with the amount of effort and work that these types of things take, but I don't think there's any universe in which I charge such an astronomical sum of money for an app. In fact, all of my current work was developed and priced free BECAUSE I'm learning and I don't know what I'm doing. I'm growing! That's part of the process!! While Marques is clearly still an excellent reviewer, he also clearly doesn't have a reasonable perspective of finances anymore, and that's good for me, as a financially rocky person, to know while watching his reviews and his perspectives on pricing.
@YTYogaFlame24 at least they get feet lol. This is $50 for something you can get not only for free, I can screenshot your comment and use that as a wallpaper. Now that would be weird of me, but it's hard to describe how free visuals are on the internet. It's more available than the air we breathe.
People are ridiculous. How can you act like you know his true character? He’s delivered perfection for over a decade, but one slip-up and suddenly he isn't a down to earth person? Hope you don't hold everyone to those same impossible standards.
Scott...I will watch you talk about anything. Literally. Like, let's be clear I came for Scooby Doo...but I stay for Youby You. Serve us more random internet drama!!!
Quick correction Scott: Marques said the split for artists is 50% of profit, not revenue, so unless he misspoke - so sounds like even less is going to the artists...
@@mipmipmipmipmip-v5x it's possible, unfortunately, that's why when any business says that "X% of profits goes to ____" I get way more suspicious because there are more ways to mess with profit amounts on the books. Though I definitely don't think that Marques intends to do something super shady like that here, there's no evidence of that, but you're right in that using profit instead of revenue not only means less money is going to artists, it importantly also means less transparency unless the company is gonna let literally every artist look at their detailed accounting records.
I bet a bunch of people working for him asked for a raise, and he was like 'no, think of an idea and I'll pump it' All of the wallpapers are made by people he employs. He did this instead of a raise....
Basically all illustrators sell wallpapers on their own websites or like on etsy, gumroad, kofi, itch io, etc. its the easiest art to format and sell. What the hell
Saying Marques is out of touch is the biggest problem with all these "big" tech TH-camrs. The same goes for Linus Tech Tips. They are out of touch with the real world. They get all these expensive products for free and are living the high life. They don’t know how it feels to live paycheck to paycheck. They don’t know how it feels to save money each month for years just to get a new phone. That’s okay if you stay humble, but here’s the problem: they’ve also lost their humility.
They used to know but they are definitely now out of touch. That's why I like Paul from Paul's Hardware. He is definitely humble and it shows through his videos. He never comes off as arrogant like Linus,but people still defend LTT.
the reviewers that complain that a model upgrade for this year over last year being minimal not realising most people will be waiting 3 or more years before upgrading things are pretty common now.
i remember seeing a video of "react" youtuber complaining and almost crying because his monthly revenue dropped from 15k to "just" 10k. 😐 like dude... And it wasn't even some big channel. mkb is probably making 100k month
I never really saw him as a tech reviewer, at least not an honest one. Him bashing the AI scams was actually surprising to me. I see him as more of frivolous spender content creator. How do you monetize your rich boy spending habits? He pulls it off. But also, he's a walking advertisement for Apple, because he can be easily bought by tech giants. So it's hard to take his reviews seriously. Because he's a frivolous spender content creator, this is right up his alley. The 50/50 split is SAD. The greed is unreal.
He's not nearly as much of an Apple (and other big brands) shill as some other creators like iJustine. I never found him to be the most outside the box in terms of his content or takes, but he's also not afraid to be critical of a product whenever the audience turns against a brand. I just feel that he's more of a follower than a leader on that front. He wants the appearance of going against the grain in those cases and being unbiased and unfiltered, but he only gets into that mode AFTER he sees enough other people call out said thing. But at the same time, at least he doesn't live in denial about it like a true shill.
1:49 I was assuming the price was because they were giving artists a lot of the money they deserve but 50/50 feels like a cash grab 70/30 would be much more reasonable
@@Null0ne-or8il is it really a cash grab? Because honestly, this app exists solely because of Marques. Without him nobody would care and the artists would be able to sell their wallpapers. It's not that they only create the marketplace, they use their name to promote it. I don't know what the average contracts are there, but if a famous celebrity promotes your wallpapers to their audience that is (in theory) much more inclined to pay for such a thing than the average user, of course they will get a larger cut...
In its defence, Zedge did the same thing but better To put it down, Zedge was free and offered so much more. (Ringtones, games, wallpapers, etc.) Only didn't survive because Google snuffed it unfairly to absolutely no repercussions.
Hey Scott, I work in mobile game development and the say you have over what ads get played is actually incredibly minimal. You pick an ad provider based on the kind of deal you have, and some of them listen if you have specific requests (eg; adult themed ads being played to children) but in most cases it's just based on whatever data they've pulled from the user :/ it's a lawless land
"People won't upgrade to get rid of ads" Yepp. I have an adblock on my phone, I only pay for the premium versions if the app impressed me and I want to support the developer. And if it's a one time payment... seriously why does every stupid thing need to be a subscription service? Just let me pay for the product.
No one should be surprised, Marques is a massive sellout. He says everything is good as long as its from big tech. Hes not a tech guy, hes just a salesman.
I'm a first time watcher who is subbed to Nebula and actually saw your video come up in my feed there! After watching, I immediately had to come here to upvote. I'm in the tech space, but prefer to stay out of any kind of drama until someone I trust makes a video or post breaking things down for me. 😅 I think I avoid a lot of toxicity that way- I get to understand the controversy without having to wade through all the muck myself, if you get me. Anyway, you have a new subscriber! I may be one of few people who watched purely for the topic (and to support smaller creators on Nebula). And if I hadn't seen this video first, you might never have ended up on my radar, because your other content isn't the type of thing that would normally grab my attention/interest. (No offense meant!) But I like the vibes you seem to have curated here on your channel, and thought you were funny and entertaining. So I'll stick around! And give your other videos a try; I think there's a strong possibility that I'll find plenty I enjoy, even if the topic doesn't seem like it'd overlap with my normal interests. Maybe I'll even pick up some new interests as a result, who knows! 😊 (As an aside, you remind me a bit of Hbomberguy... If he were younger, happier, American, and had fully embraced his hair situation. 😂 I don't know if that makes sense to you, but I mean it as a compliment! Because you also strike me as the kind of person who can take any topic that interests you, and your enthusiasm will be contagious enough to draw other people in. For example, I watched his 2-hour long video essay on the origin of the Roblox "oof" sound, which I would not have been REMOTELY interested in otherwise- because I knew from his previous content that he can make literally anything entertaining and engaging.)
You know what I get for less than that wallpaper app? For $9.99/month I get Marvel friggin' Unlimited. All the Marvel comics I can eat, for $2/month less than this crummy wallpaper app!
THIS is Marques' independent business move?? Basically selling the most basic digital merch for phones (wallpapers instead of skins or cases), and with ads on top? Wow, that's so lame. I expected so much more from such a genuinely high quality youtuber.
Paying money for something that most people don’t look at more than a minute at a time is ridiculous. I’ve had the same wallpaper for a year now and barely notice it or think about it much. He is normally a more well-thought-out creator but this is truly an out-of-touch move
11:35 .. excellent point man and I don't know what kind of background Marquez comes from but I think unless you've been in the position where ten to twenty dollars more would make a big difference in your life. I assume it's hard to imagine because some people seem to not be able to fathom it.
This is probably more likely geared towards people who get the app once, use it a couple times then uninstalled. I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure most people who use a wallpaper app don't use it very often meaning the ads are to try and sustain off of those few clicks. My rational are those who swap wallpapers a lot and want to support will pay. Those who just want a couple wallpapers then almost never come back are for the ads. If they uninstall after it doesn't matter because they probably weren't going to stay anyway. I don't think those people overlap often enough or the wallpaper app business would be very different. Maybe once the app as a business gets bigger they will refine it and try to get those audiences closer and closer. But starting off like that doesn't seem to be their aim.
The crazy thing for me is most people just use screenshots of stuff they find online or family photos or pictures they take themselves ... This is really only an app for MKBHD fans, which is probably the thinking behind the charge. His fans will pay because it's his app. The revenue thing sounds obnoxious though. Is he going to split every 50¢ on the dollar between all the artists involved? That sounds almost as bad as "doing this work will give you exposure that's better than the money you'll earn." nonsense.
Commenting for the algo! Also I'm enjoying the random little commentary vid on a subject that interests you. I think I'd enjoy watching you talk about anything lol
As soon as I got my first Smartphone I got some Middle-earth themed art got my lock and unlocked screens and have never seen anything better. My Lock Screen is a Dwarf Fortress and unlocked is Bree :)
MKBHD has explained that none of the photos are fully AI but the artists have used it as a tool in their work and transform parts of an image they create.
@@Gloomdrake The example I heard in his podcast is that he knows one of the artist will have a picture of a skyscrapper. Then have the AI turn the skycrapper into a city landscape and then make any other ajustments to the image himself.
I honestly don't think its a bad idea for an app. People look at their phones more than their loved ones faces, so having curated art for your phone that you can refresh regularly makes sense. But research into user price sensitivity is one of the most important things to do BEFORE launch. $1.99/month with an 80/20 split in favor of the artist, maybe.. ... rather than literally the cost of a full streaming service.
lol people can just save anything they want and use it as wallpaper. no payment needed. and when people use their phones, they're not looking at the wallpaper
Bro who TF looks at the wallpaper on their phone so much they'd pay for it? Most people either have pictures of people as their wallpaper or pictures they can just download on the Internet for free.
Honestly, I can't even see the justification for the existence of a free wallpaper app. Do people really need a dedicated source of constantly updating wallpapers? The last time I changed mine was about 4 years ago.
Oh.. Its AI wallpapers then, just as subscription model.. When people go "artist may or may not chose to use AI" yes they will use it. AI art is not artist making something but a computer doing it, yes it can look good, but personally i want something made by others not robot copy paste of others work with a change in resolution, colour, depth etc, without giving actual artists their credits.. I do think that all companies that just fed art and creations, stories, characters to bots are very scummy and trash.
10:09 Unfortunately not. As a developer, you get the ads they offer. Most engines or tools for software have plugins that automatically integrate the ads into your app at the programming level. But you can't fine-tune them. As a developer, you can't literally say, I don't want these ads. Another reason is that the advertising business is heavily geared towards advertisers. If you want to place an ad, you can choose which group and category you want to publish it in. But on the receiving end, you are basically in the hands of the advertising business.
That's complete bullshit, there is more to advertising than Google. You can have complete control over the ads on your platform, the difference is that most developers are disgustingly greedy and go for the largest profit margin instead of curation.
Making user choosing the artist without knowing their names, what kind of artworks their makes (atleast 5 examples artworks) is really dumb. And no wallpapers tag from the get go is hilarious
I think when you boil it down, the most important thing to take away from all of this is《to unlock the rest of this comment, please view 2 additional NerdSync videos or leave a SuperThanks!》
Visit brilliant.org/NerdSync to try everything Brilliant has to offer for free for a full 30 days. You’ll also get 20% off an annual premium subscription!
My partner's really enjoyed Brilliant for a coupla months now!
I hope they add biology stuff (or more chemistry), I do genuinely miss the joy of Learning Stuff from my academia days.
i remember that comixolgy app video. It was good.
brilliant costs over 100 a year
Why would I pay $100 for something that's already free on TH-cam or anywhere else?
@@NerdSyncProductions
Don’t get videos like this no one said no to him, really bro? It’s fine not to get the concept but clearly the demographic for this product is people who can afford it. That’s business he’s not running a charity I personally don’t get it but there are plenty of people who have the means and look for shit like this to make there life simpler and more exciting. You’re wrong to make this about money🙄 it’s not a moral dilemma. Clearly you could’ve said no to all the burgers and burritos you consume but that’s no body’s business.
Genuine question: What's wrong with just downloading high res pics and setting them as your wallpaper? Why would one need an app for this?
@@ccayco I’m someone who does both. On my desktop or laptop I’ll go around the internet and download wallpapers and set them that way. However, I have also bought wallpaper apps before, Backdrops and Vellum to be specific. I like having them because they’re easier to access, have a large variety, are sorted into logical groups…. They’re a lot more convenient when on a phone, I guess. Those apps weee both one-time purchases, though. I really like MKBHD in general but I think this launch was insane, $12/month is highway robbery. Or $50/year. Either way is ridiculous, especially when the app is kinda crummy compared to the other two I mentioned (which, again, were one-time purchases).
Because someone realized there are people inept enough using phones who can't do anything that an app isn't telling or showing them while holding their hands. As ridiculous as it sounds we are living in a time with more technology than ever and at the same time a vast majority of the people using the tech have absolutely no idea how even the basics work. And it's not just elderly peoply but all ages.
I "think" the idea was a good faith (?) attempt to have a gallery of curated wallpapers that you can choose from AND support the artists.
The execution, on the other hand... Also yeah there's always the option of finding "the right wallpaper" yourself.
@@HenkkaArtGamesI also doesn't get that people this oblivious should have phone in first place.
"Average Person" is very hoax.
Like "AP cannot distinguish between 60 hz or 120 hz". Yeah , but that doesn't give any right ripoff the person.
@@Skyline_NTR I just don't get why anyone would want wallpapers someone else picked and chose, regardless of the cost. It's your phone, you should have the bare minimum of responsibility to decorate it yourself.
‼I forgot to say this in my video but PLEASE DO NOT harass Marques or anyone who works with him.
Wouldn’t dream of it, but good to tell people regardless. The internet makes monsters of us all, if we aren’t careful.
I keep forgetting people do that
This is just controversial. I still love his videos. I’m sure he’ll learn something. S**t happens and we learn.
aww i was totally gonna do that till I was told not too
Congratulations, you solved harassment. Thank god you mentioned it.
For 12 dollars a month you probably can supoort directly 2 or 3 artists in patreon that do wallpapers. Or spend those 50 dollars in a commission for a great wallpaper every year.
Honestly, commissioning a custom wallpaper is such a great idea if you are into that
Right? I mean… you can join 4 artists’ $1 patreon tier and still come under the discounted yearly price
At least patreon’s split is way better than MKBHD’s 50/50.
sooo, stay off the app and hope a patron will come along or get on the app, get exposure in front of thousands already interested in supporting your kind of work, probably get more than one random commission on top of a new passive income stream? hard choice
@@davidpachecogarcia But what about volume? What if Brownlee can bring in more subscribers for the artist than the artist can on their own? Getting a lower rate but at a higher volume could yield more money. If not paid subscribers, at least bring more attention to the artists that people will end up supporting the artists directly.
It must take a incredibly talented “artist” to create a solid orange wallpaper for a phone
@@holsteincowboy there is a solid teal also. If you pay 12$ per month you can get millions of teal pixels. Else it will be cut into 1080p teal
@@vsk5573 Orange?? Did he pay Linus for that one?
Exactly what I thought…
not to mention that there is AI art mixed in to the listings. direspectful to the artists (that do much more than just an orange BG) and disrepectful to the paying customers who could just generate an AI wallpaper themselves for free
Bro just made a weaker Pinterest for $50💀
"incredible compulsion to talk about it" is my favorite reason any TH-camr makes a video. ☺️
They are genuinely always the best kind of videos
Jenny Nicholson's core genre
It's the old school style of TH-cam, feels nostalgic
Nowadays they create new channels for that tho.
It really is. It’s such a good phrase that shows how much the TH-camr cares about something. Love it.
Are people really changing their wallpapers like non-stop?? I've had the same shit on mine for yearsssssss. And it's just photos I've made . . .
You telling me there's a market for this?? The phone screen that is only visible when it's idle, but before it goes to sleep? The Picture you can only view in between app icons, in between switching apps??? WHY???
1 wallpaper per phone and if that phone lasts 4 years, so be it.
Yeah... Mines a picture of my cats!
I have cats and a camera... I have no use for wallpaper app....
I change mine if I get new interests, like if I’m really into Dragon Ball I’ll have a Dragon Ball one for a couple of months. I don’t use an app though, I just use Google or make my own
I’ve been using the same photo since 2014, with no plans to change. And if I were to change it, I’d use a new picture that I took - I’m not buying a wallpaper!
I change mine if I am in the mood or want to see something different. I used to be a Windows Phone user and I used to change the theme colour daily. Everyone is different.
Why doesn't the app just let you pay like 50c for a wallpaper? Add an option to buy an artist's catalogue or a pack of wallpapers for like 5$ They get their money and don't have to worry about this stupid subscription model. If people like using the app they'll spend more money on it, incessant ads are not the way chief.
But the subscriptions! Predictable revenue stream, investors love that shit. Why do you think we have a trillion subscriptions now?
@@Korra228 yeah and it sux so bad
@@SolaireIntensifies he hoping people will forget about it
@@Korra228they all figure "why let people own things when we can just make them rent it in perpetuity??"
@@oskeewootwoot OMG SO ACCURATE
I unsubbed from MKBHD some time ago because his reviews became about how cool the camera shots were instead of offering his audience in-depth analysis of a product. Also, I was tired of him not using the "included paid promotion" flag on his video when they were clearly paid promotions.
@@C_M_R fame and fortune may have gone to his head.
Same. All popular sponsored tech youtubers are like this, same with popular streamers on Twitch. They all get many things for free in order to advertise it to their viewers. "Interactive Advertisers" is what I call them nowadays lol. Not worth a sub or my time anymore imo because they're just peddling a product they themselves spent little to no money on. Chances are they don't want to piss anyone off, especially the hands that feed them.
I don't think their opinions hold any weight for the average person lol.
The camera is the only thing different on phones at this point so it's the only thing left to talk about
@@nurgles_be_saggy That's what I'm thinking too. LOL
What bothered me were his car reviews, although he has no idea about cars. He just does reviews on the infotainment systems and if he does not like a screen or does not want to use a system of a car, that means the whole car is crap
I have an OLED phone. My favourite wallpaper is plain black
Finally someone said it!
Likewise.
Why not make an app actually relevant to his channel? Like, some kind of app/browser extension that lets you see trusted reviews for tech stuff when shopping for them online or something? So bizarre.
ya ... the team talk about photography so much you would think it would be relevant to have a collection of there best photos for phone backgrounds that have personally taken... but are they even in the list of the artists you need 5 to follow?
@@armourosat least one of them is I saw actually.
@@audoodle9963 that makes a bit more sense then .
@@ShinoSarna you are loosing money my dude.
@@audoodle9963 thats good ....wate if the artist gets 50% are they paying themselves....it's confusing
You think the audience who mourns Coyote vs. Acme and Scoob Holiday Haunt wouldn’t appreciate a callout of blatant greed?
I still want Batgirl
@@gapsule2326 I would like all three. And that other one.
@@gapsule2326that was an absolute travesty
The worst part is they used a development kit for a music/podcast app and just removed the music player component. the onboarding process looks very similar to several podcast apps I've tried in the past
@@Turtlpwr It still would have entertainment value if it lived up to the aesthetics or if it was like The Flash. I still remember seeing the video game quality cutscene which was shot as if it were leading to a boss battle. It's probably the only thing I've seen of it besides the trailer.
One thing you failed to mention is that at least some of the "artists" are actually his current employees.
so hes taking 50% ON TOP of the surplus value of the work they already did?
And some wallpaper are AI generated
@@kiattim2100 AHAHAHAHAHAH imagine paying for some pics that are also ai generated, AND those people are also casually " your friends " hahahahaa. i dont understand why fans are so dumb.
The biggest flaw to this app is that only tech youtubers who constantly switch phones and weird tech bros actually give any thought to their wallpapers. The rest of us uses the same 1-3 wallpapers for years and years, never met anyone who spends more than 5 minutes of thought deciding on their wallpapers. Who in the world needs a dedicated app for that?
Enough that an actual community of people exist for it. To my understanding it isn't crazy big. But there is definitely a market for it that isn't just tech bros and youtubers.
@@gemevelyn2660there is also a market for $700 wheels Apple sells… most people get a wallpaper and stick with it for familiarity it’s usually a photo they have taken of loved ones or an event in their life.
The sad fact is that MKBHD could easily have made a free app for his fan base and made money by getting companies that work with him to give discounts through the app.
I have a default one that came with the phone, because I couldn't decide on a good picture and eventually just gave up.
in my circles we change our wallpapers all the time but its to like... significant others, pets, travel, and like, musicians or tv show characters. im trying to think of the person who wants a generic cityscape or a generic forest
Spending all his years build reputation by criticizing tech companies n their despicable actions. Yet willingly to put his name on a scummy app. Greed never fails to cease me 😂
You get TH-cam Premium + TH-cam Music for 12,99 €, let that sink in... and he comes up with mere Wallpapers, sorry it's insane.
TH-cam just jumped the family membership from about €18 to about €25
I think it varies from country to country, that's why it pays to use a VPN when signing up for subscription services, you can save a lot of money that way. In Slovakia, I pay €7.19 a month for YT Premium + YT Music, with the family plan costing about €10. I am sure I'd be able to get the price even lower if I set my location to some middle eastern country, for example. Price of the subscription won't change when you revert your location back to normal, I tested this. Even worked in the US, when I worked there a few months back I still paid only €5 a month for Spotify premium.
@@mipmipmipmipmip-v5xwhich is a great deal, five people get it for less than $6.00 a month if you can avoid paying through an iOS device.
MKBHD doesn’t even offer a family plan for his overpriced wallpapers.
@@mipmipmipmipmip-v5x i mean if u can have idk 6 people on it then the match is pretty cheap for everyone to have music and premium
@@NakamaCamping maximum potential user base. It's not the whole story, but it's easily a big chunk of it. If those services had to scale down to serve the same numbers of paying users panels projected, I wouldn't be surprised if they cost double or more.
From my experience, most people use a photo in their gallery as a wallpaper or they download something off of google images, I don't see many (if any) people asking for an app. People can find images with a higher resolutions than 1080p pretty easily
@@JaveyCyber exactly this. I don't think I know anyone who doesn't have a photo they took as a wallpaper.
I use one of the images that is already on the phone
Yh pretty much also wallpapers apps are nothing new ,there are a lot of wallpapers apps that are free ,also like you said you can get free 4k wallpapers on the internet
You're forgetting a huge group of users who just keep whatever default wallpaper came with the phone because why would you care about something you almost never see while actually using the phone?
The reason the side of the screen is black is just my monitor that's in front of the camera. Normally I move it out of the way when I record at my desk but since I was doing a lot of stuff on my computer, I needed the monitor close by. Sorry if it's annoying.
Not annoying at all. Btw, I want to say how much I appreciate the video you reference here where you talked about Amazon breaking comixology. I downloaded it to my phone a few months ago when I had surgery, along with a few other videos, and it made my hospital stay genuinely pleasant. I can't tell you enough how much that means to me or how much long hospital wait time before a surgery can otherwise be rough. Thank you.
Honestly, I didn't notice until I read this.
Literally didnt even notice until i saw this comment
You faded it pretty well, I hadn't noticed until it was pointed out
Was too busy doing laundry to see it...
Biggest tech youtuber by numbers not by technical knowledge.
Hes got Technical knowledge
I think he lacks Finacial Knowledge
True zero technical knowledge about security 😂 and he thinks publishing app on Android and app store is big feat
💯
100% right. That app is a mixture of greed and incompetence.
This one was just for me
@@NerdSyncProductions I actually heard about this yesterday via TechNews, but I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on it.
While it is true that I don't really care about tech reviews, I just enjoy to listen to your thoughts on stuff.
And hey, I didn't really care for Scooby do before but that changed dramatically for some reason so, who knows?
Maybe. I’m still gonna watch it
I'm part of the demographic subscribed to both of you, and I'm pretty pleased that I did, in fact (18:46), know where you were going with that.
More just for you then
Panels shares a name with a comic reader app so this is technically related
I thought it sounded familiar!
I KNOW SOMEONE ALREADY SAID THIS ABOVE BUT OMG THANK YOU, I SWEAR THAT IVE DOWNLOADED AN APP WITH THIS NAME ALREADY BEFORE AND IT WAS DRIVING ME CRAZY
And it's a fantastic comic reader that still gets updates and has great support!
Arguably the best comic reader too lol
@@troyoboyo17just wish it had page turning animations for more formats
In the past 10 years, I have had two wallpapers so obviously I’m not the target demographic for this app. In a vacuum this app is unoffensive because that’s kinda where most apps are nowadays. But after watching most of Marques’ videos and podcasts, a lot of this does feel very hypocritical. If him and the team have dreams and aspirations for their app, then great! But the current pricing and user experience should be reflective of what’s available now.
Yes the guy is a joke just like most tech TH-camrs 😂
Who even is the target audience of those wallpapers? Apart from companies that build software, computers, or phones? Maybe wallpapers like that would attract them. Most people go for their favourite characters from films, their pets, their food, their artworks, their faces... etc. Or download pictures from sites like unsplash.
I thought Marques could do no wrong but he started dropping shoes and ridge wallet collaborations, now he's got a $50/yr wallpaper app maybe he should review his own product
The 50/50 split is wild! If y'all need wallpapers that bad, SO many artists sell them in Ko-Fi shops, and the artists get 95% of the cut. If he decides to keep the app running, I hope he makes some major changes. The whole thing overall just seems like a mess.
Just the random Scott out of genre video is cool
Also boosting video so Scott gets paid
Scott could teach me about the Dewey Decimal System and I’d still watch it
@@dibsdibs3495 Scott would make a great video on the Dewey Decimal System
@@dibsdibs3495 wait I kinda want that
@@dibsdibs3495 ...that actually sounds like something I can imagine him making ngl
honestly love watching videos where it's people talking about stuff i don't care about, like yesss tell me all about this thing that is so vastly outside of my interests
Its all fun and games, until something actually piques your interest and you become invested 😭
I love listening to the passion behind their points even if idc about their points lol
Yes to ALL of the above. 🤣
You see the beginning of the video? Where he states this is outside of his norm? And you continued to watch it and complain? Hm maybe go outside and find a hobby
@@llamaestingpie who is complaining here?
I feel like $50 feels like what the price would be for an IRL wallpaper subscription service
a year????
So what’s an example of an irl wallpaper subscription service that exists hm?
....do people not just realize you can just search for any image? Why would somebody pay money for phone or desktop backgrounds?
@@KrashyKharmaI think OP means physical wallpaper you put on your walls in your house.
@@audoodle9963As a 30+ year old, I resent being prompted to say, “Back in my day…”
Step one: Download color black
Step two: Choose color black as background
.
Just wanted to comment that I'm in the middle of the Venn diagram that matches your audience and MKBHD's. I go waaaay back. Honestly, I fell off your content a while ago as I followed you for your super hero stuff, I even remember some tough times for your channel. Then, all of a sudden there were Scooby Doo videos (not my cup of tea).
But watching this video made me miss the good old days. I didn't follow many channels back then and I used to actually watch everything from my subscription page daily, like every single video, you two were definitely there together some times, and actually made me realize you share two things with him, things that I value a lot, excellent video quality and lighting, and excellent audio.
Just wanted to say hi and wish you the best!
I'm only greedy for more Scott videos
me too
wait a second, I've watched some of your DND videos
I'm a fiend for them
Always
you can search "Phil greedy for scott" on your work computer to know more
ahh yes a video about my favorite scooby-doo villain! Capitalism
Seems like people don't understand what a joke is so let me spell it out for everyone arguing in my comments IT'S A JOKE, if you seriously think you need to debate shit go touch grass
The real monsters and ghosts are just us, people all along.
Capitalism has nothing to do with it
@thekeepr it's literally Capitalism. They're trying to do whatever they can to drain your bank account by making the user experience as inconvenient as possible
@@thekeepr😂😂😂😂😂
@@thekeeprYeah, like profit motive has never ever have influence on anything xD
I- don't know any internet user that would buy backgrounds for 50 dollars. When you can also just go on any social media, find your fav artist, and be like "hey mind if I use this for a personal desktop background?" and they'll probably be like "yea sure" or maybe "I have a bundle of wallpapers on my site for 5 dollar"
I use wallpapers from Pikaole (artist) and give them 8 dollars on patreon every month... and that's for tons of wallpapers, icons, and physical merch.
I bet you can find a fav artist w/ a patreon with like access to tons of wallpapers for like 5 dollars.
Well technically his app is less then 5 dollars a month if you think about it .. 5 dollars a month times 12 is 60 dollars.. so yeah technically it's less then 5 dollars a month 🤷🏽♂️
@@yordytorres5675 Idk where my original reply went :/ but its 12 a month as he says in the video. It's only 50 if you have that money up front to pay out of the gate. vs handing over 5 dollars to your fav artist, download all their current wallpapers they have on their patreon, and then just cancel your subscription.
Hell, wallpapers are usually given out for free as a form of marketing. There's tons of high quality wallpapers given out by videogame companies and such.
I feel like the audience they are trying to target aren't so much "internet users" as they are "tech enthusiasts". Like, the people who buy hardware a lot because it Looks nicer irl, but doesn't actually want to spend a lot of time interacting with software, so they are theoretically willing to pay that much for the "convenience" of this app.. with the convenience being that they don't have to research wallpaper apps, because they trust Marques, so if he says it's his app and it's good, then they don't have to think further about it, if that makes sense
(Also just to be clear, I am not one of those people, but I do see a lot of people like that in tech youtubers comment sections)
@@yordytorres5675yeah but it's still $5 a month and not one time $5 when you want a new wallpaper
He's released a new video today addressing many of these concerns. It's still a 50/50 split with artists, but in-feed ads are gone, and it's a single 30 second ad to get full-res versions of wallpapers. I haven't tried the initial, or updated version of the app, so I'm curious your thoughts on the changes, and his update video.
Thing is, the entire business model is wrong.... he's trying to sell a subscription for a product that doesn't need one. It's like car manufacturers trying to sell subscription services for seat heaters - if I want it, I'll pay once to install it but why the hell do I need to continue paying them for it? Artists can sell their work through marketplace apps & get anywhere from 80-100%, so where's the value-add that justifies Panel taking half?
And we're taking _his word_ that it's 50/50, but this is coming from the guy who thought that ridiculous pricing, invasive ads & an egregious data-mining ToS were acceptable enough to launch... so who knows how many other fees & charges Panel loads on top of that 50% from artists.
You only get one chance to make a 1st impression, and unfortunately Marcus has not only blown it but he's also undermined trust in the integrity of his reviews too.
let's be real, marques sold out years ago, he's no longer "another concerned consumer" and is now a rich, corporate pet - whoever that still thinks his opinions are anything other than paid advertisements deserves to be taken advantage of
I mean, this is the truth.
he constantly gargles apple's balls
He didn't learn anything from the shoe that he released. It was a cheaply made shoe with cheap materials, sold at a premium price. Also, they could've still had ads, but not timed ads and not download ads. They could've had like 1 banner ad at the bottom of the screen, and the option to unlock a premium wallpaper for maybe a week if you watch an ad. There are so many better options.
Actually I’ll disagree with u there. Have a pair of the all black ones and have been some of the best shoes I hav3 bought in years. Actually bought an another pair of atoms shoes because of these and they are also good quality.
The app isn't even his. I'm pretty sure I saw this exact same wallpaper app on the appstore's quite a while before Marquess "announced his app"
I'm shocked the guy that reviews Lamborghini's and Cybertrucks is out of touch. More Scooby-Doo sfx would make your drama videos sing, I liked the small amount you included.
4:48 Massive loss of respect by that tweet alone. So I’m paying money for AI wallpapers, the fuck?
Clearly, the right path is if MKBHD really sell this thing as a way supporting artists, he needs take a solid no for AI. AI bros ≠ artist
Just google wallpaper with the resolution you want, 0$ a year.
Use that $50 to buy gas and go somewhere you like and take a photo.
I still can't understand paying $50/yr for wallpaper on a phone, which is basically just a placeholder image for when you're not using it.
@@sugarfrosted2005 it's a niche market. Some people will pay artists for their work rather just downloading a copy somewhere else. There are things that they do to fix though. Don't allow the artist to upload previous artwork they've had for free, it should be unique/exclusive to the app.
reminds me of ringtone business/scam in the past
To me the silliest part is where he claims people are constantly asking him where he gets his wallpapers.
I have been following MKBHD for legitimately over a decade and it is actually true... nearly on every single video in the comments he would get that question asked. With the growth of the channel obviously that isn't on the surface much but it isn't something he is making up.
I do follow tech tubers. Specifically GN and a handful of other more technical types. That app is as you said… bonkers. Maybe he has been driving too many million dollar cars to realize $50 is not chump change for the average American. That represents 2-3 hours of work for most.
As soon as he said tech TH-camr, GN came to mind. With all due respect to MKBHD, GN has far better information on tech. And Mrwhosetheboss is my preferred source for phone reviews. So I don't even watch MKBHD very much.
@@rodh1404 dude mistermobile is the only trustworthy phone reviewer on youtube, try to watch his video's you will change your mind straight away
@@rodh1404 honestly GN has better information, and much better methods of financially supporting their channel.
I am assuming: GN -> gamersnexus?
@@stevengeens3055 yes
I literally use random pictures for wallpapers for years at a time. Who on earth would need or want to pay 50 dollars a year to have wallpaper?
Bro could have 1$ per month subscription and would have been fine
that's still way overpriced tbh, considering the competition: "Google images"
I have a picture of my dog on my phone. Fucked if I could ever find ANYONE to make anything better looking than that!
When you first exclaimed "12 dollars a month for wallpapers?!?!" in the first 3 seconds of the video, I thought you were talking about real wallpapers for your house. Even that doesn't make any sense, because who changed their wallpapers often enough for that to be remotely worth it? But somehow paying that much for digital wallpapers sounds even more bonkers.
Yh if it was actual an art app where you could buy artist painting that would have been more interesting ,but even then having a subscription wouldn’t have make sense ,it would make sense however to pay for the artist directly, like a auction .But having an art app where you can buy artist painting could have been great ,small artist creators could have the chance to get their name out there and most people wouldn’t have any issue with it .
i have some that cycle on my PC that i paid a whapping 5 bucks for the app like forever that was a good buy it also has a phone app if i so choose to care
I just keep thinking about when he made a video after one of those AI things failed where he was like "I will always be critical if a product has problems" but he filmed it inside his Cybertruck that he drives everyday
He wouldn't still have the Cybertruck if he could sell it. He's mentioned this before since he has no reason to have it after he got it. It's his least driven vehicle.
What an unoriginal boring idea for an app as well.
Omg I almost lost it when you quoted MK don’t buy something based on a promise etc - he died on his own sword.
Tech TH-cam is about as fun as actual Tech is nowadays. So not fun at all.
0:45 yes, same here. i also slowly unsubbed from all tech youtubers for one reason or another. be it shilling too hard for a product, misinformation, or knowingly doing ads for scam products or talking about my domain getting it so wrong they lost all credibility to me.
For me, LGR (Lazy Game Reviews) is the only youtuber I follow that exists within the tech realm, but for vintage tech and games. And obscure items. And besides the subject matter, he is very enjoyable and pleasant to listen to.
If anything, this will definitely change how I see him. He's always seemed so down-to-earth and personable in his videos, and while I'll still enjoy his stuff, the fact that he developed this app and agreed to this pricing schema and user experience will make me question his sense of pricing and valuement of work for the foreseeable future.
@YTYogaFlame24 the problem is that most ppl don't pay OF models 1000 dollars a month. In addition, OF models have two different pay tiers. Panels only have a monthly and yearly subscription deal. Sure, this app is for a niche audience, but it is clearly a cash grab.
@@YTYogaFlame24I'm a game developer and have helped develop multiple pieces of software. I absolutely understand how you can get in your own head with the amount of effort and work that these types of things take, but I don't think there's any universe in which I charge such an astronomical sum of money for an app. In fact, all of my current work was developed and priced free BECAUSE I'm learning and I don't know what I'm doing.
I'm growing! That's part of the process!!
While Marques is clearly still an excellent reviewer, he also clearly doesn't have a reasonable perspective of finances anymore, and that's good for me, as a financially rocky person, to know while watching his reviews and his perspectives on pricing.
@YTYogaFlame24 at least they get feet lol. This is $50 for something you can get not only for free, I can screenshot your comment and use that as a wallpaper.
Now that would be weird of me, but it's hard to describe how free visuals are on the internet. It's more available than the air we breathe.
People are ridiculous. How can you act like you know his true character? He’s delivered perfection for over a decade, but one slip-up and suddenly he isn't a down to earth person? Hope you don't hold everyone to those same impossible standards.
That is a pretty normal and sane reaction tbh. Reevaluating your opinion when you get new information is good.
that's why I'm not keen with his channel even from the start 😮💨
Anyone remember when Zedge was popular? This is Zedge.
@@iso_2013 I was scrolling hoping someone made this comment
Scott...I will watch you talk about anything. Literally. Like, let's be clear I came for Scooby Doo...but I stay for Youby You. Serve us more random internet drama!!!
Quick correction Scott: Marques said the split for artists is 50% of profit, not revenue, so unless he misspoke - so sounds like even less is going to the artists...
He just can charge his promotion of the app as a cost to his company, getting a zero profit for the accounting books
@@mipmipmipmipmip-v5x it's possible, unfortunately, that's why when any business says that "X% of profits goes to ____" I get way more suspicious because there are more ways to mess with profit amounts on the books. Though I definitely don't think that Marques intends to do something super shady like that here, there's no evidence of that, but you're right in that using profit instead of revenue not only means less money is going to artists, it importantly also means less transparency unless the company is gonna let literally every artist look at their detailed accounting records.
i mean he is the one that always says "buy a product for what it is right now and not what it promise to be" but....2:25
I bet a bunch of people working for him asked for a raise, and he was like 'no, think of an idea and I'll pump it'
All of the wallpapers are made by people he employs. He did this instead of a raise....
That is a wild reach... Based on absolutely nothing.
@@doufmech4323 welcome to the internet
Basically all illustrators sell wallpapers on their own websites or like on etsy, gumroad, kofi, itch io, etc. its the easiest art to format and sell. What the hell
Saying Marques is out of touch is the biggest problem with all these "big" tech TH-camrs. The same goes for Linus Tech Tips. They are out of touch with the real world. They get all these expensive products for free and are living the high life. They don’t know how it feels to live paycheck to paycheck. They don’t know how it feels to save money each month for years just to get a new phone. That’s okay if you stay humble, but here’s the problem: they’ve also lost their humility.
Exactly, linus is the prefect example.
They used to know but they are definitely now out of touch. That's why I like Paul from Paul's Hardware. He is definitely humble and it shows through his videos. He never comes off as arrogant like Linus,but people still defend LTT.
exactly i recently got a new phone and i love it but my last phone was on its last legs after 8 years
the reviewers that complain that a model upgrade for this year over last year being minimal not realising most people will be waiting 3 or more years before upgrading things are pretty common now.
i remember seeing a video of "react" youtuber complaining and almost crying because his monthly revenue dropped from 15k to "just" 10k. 😐 like dude...
And it wasn't even some big channel. mkb is probably making 100k month
I never really saw him as a tech reviewer, at least not an honest one. Him bashing the AI scams was actually surprising to me.
I see him as more of frivolous spender content creator. How do you monetize your rich boy spending habits? He pulls it off. But also, he's a walking advertisement for Apple, because he can be easily bought by tech giants. So it's hard to take his reviews seriously.
Because he's a frivolous spender content creator, this is right up his alley.
The 50/50 split is SAD. The greed is unreal.
THIS! I only saw a few of his vids and all of them screamed exactly this! Bloke scams rich people and gets rich by doing so aka Marques Brownlee.
He's not nearly as much of an Apple (and other big brands) shill as some other creators like iJustine. I never found him to be the most outside the box in terms of his content or takes, but he's also not afraid to be critical of a product whenever the audience turns against a brand.
I just feel that he's more of a follower than a leader on that front. He wants the appearance of going against the grain in those cases and being unbiased and unfiltered, but he only gets into that mode AFTER he sees enough other people call out said thing. But at the same time, at least he doesn't live in denial about it like a true shill.
Yes, while I'm not mad at him for bashing scam products it is clear he will not properly criticize big sponsors like Apple
1:49 I was assuming the price was because they were giving artists a lot of the money they deserve but 50/50 feels like a cash grab 70/30 would be much more reasonable
@@Null0ne-or8il is it really a cash grab?
Because honestly, this app exists solely because of Marques. Without him nobody would care and the artists would be able to sell their wallpapers.
It's not that they only create the marketplace, they use their name to promote it.
I don't know what the average contracts are there, but if a famous celebrity promotes your wallpapers to their audience that is (in theory) much more inclined to pay for such a thing than the average user, of course they will get a larger cut...
And because they got ads in there it should be 80/20 or 90/10
As someone who changes his phone's wallpaper like every 10 years, known of this makes any sense to me.
In its defence, Zedge did the same thing but better
To put it down, Zedge was free and offered so much more. (Ringtones, games, wallpapers, etc.)
Only didn't survive because Google snuffed it unfairly to absolutely no repercussions.
I knew it had to be bad when I saw YOU posted about it lmao
Hey Scott, I work in mobile game development and the say you have over what ads get played is actually incredibly minimal.
You pick an ad provider based on the kind of deal you have, and some of them listen if you have specific requests (eg; adult themed ads being played to children) but in most cases it's just based on whatever data they've pulled from the user :/ it's a lawless land
I mean isn’t being out of touch a prerequisite of being a tech reviewer?
"People won't upgrade to get rid of ads" Yepp. I have an adblock on my phone, I only pay for the premium versions if the app impressed me and I want to support the developer.
And if it's a one time payment... seriously why does every stupid thing need to be a subscription service? Just let me pay for the product.
No one should be surprised, Marques is a massive sellout. He says everything is good as long as its from big tech. Hes not a tech guy, hes just a salesman.
I'm a first time watcher who is subbed to Nebula and actually saw your video come up in my feed there! After watching, I immediately had to come here to upvote.
I'm in the tech space, but prefer to stay out of any kind of drama until someone I trust makes a video or post breaking things down for me. 😅 I think I avoid a lot of toxicity that way- I get to understand the controversy without having to wade through all the muck myself, if you get me.
Anyway, you have a new subscriber! I may be one of few people who watched purely for the topic (and to support smaller creators on Nebula). And if I hadn't seen this video first, you might never have ended up on my radar, because your other content isn't the type of thing that would normally grab my attention/interest. (No offense meant!)
But I like the vibes you seem to have curated here on your channel, and thought you were funny and entertaining. So I'll stick around! And give your other videos a try; I think there's a strong possibility that I'll find plenty I enjoy, even if the topic doesn't seem like it'd overlap with my normal interests. Maybe I'll even pick up some new interests as a result, who knows! 😊
(As an aside, you remind me a bit of Hbomberguy... If he were younger, happier, American, and had fully embraced his hair situation. 😂 I don't know if that makes sense to you, but I mean it as a compliment! Because you also strike me as the kind of person who can take any topic that interests you, and your enthusiasm will be contagious enough to draw other people in. For example, I watched his 2-hour long video essay on the origin of the Roblox "oof" sound, which I would not have been REMOTELY interested in otherwise- because I knew from his previous content that he can make literally anything entertaining and engaging.)
21:31 Brennan Lee Mulligan would like a word
You know what I get for less than that wallpaper app? For $9.99/month I get Marvel friggin' Unlimited. All the Marvel comics I can eat, for $2/month less than this crummy wallpaper app!
I can justify $12/year for a wallpaper app. But get f*&ed if you think that's worth $12 every month.
THIS is Marques' independent business move?? Basically selling the most basic digital merch for phones (wallpapers instead of skins or cases), and with ads on top? Wow, that's so lame. I expected so much more from such a genuinely high quality youtuber.
Marques is probably bracing for all his losses when Tesla goes bankrupt 😬
Paying money for something that most people don’t look at more than a minute at a time is ridiculous. I’ve had the same wallpaper for a year now and barely notice it or think about it much. He is normally a more well-thought-out creator but this is truly an out-of-touch move
Not to mention: someone splitting 50/50 with the artists and what’s effectively a distributor is bonkers
The artists are mostly his employees and they're allowed to use AI to make the art. So it's basically just AI crap...
So my question... who the F is buying wallpapers in 2024?! Especially as a yearly subscription?? Especially at $50 a year?!?!
He apparently fixed most issues . He made a video
11:35 .. excellent point man and I don't know what kind of background Marquez comes from but I think unless you've been in the position where ten to twenty dollars more would make a big difference in your life. I assume it's hard to imagine because some people seem to not be able to fathom it.
This is probably more likely geared towards people who get the app once, use it a couple times then uninstalled. I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure most people who use a wallpaper app don't use it very often meaning the ads are to try and sustain off of those few clicks.
My rational are those who swap wallpapers a lot and want to support will pay.
Those who just want a couple wallpapers then almost never come back are for the ads. If they uninstall after it doesn't matter because they probably weren't going to stay anyway.
I don't think those people overlap often enough or the wallpaper app business would be very different.
Maybe once the app as a business gets bigger they will refine it and try to get those audiences closer and closer. But starting off like that doesn't seem to be their aim.
i feel that ive been checking facebook marketplace daily to see if someone wanted to buy a bike i listed for 20 bucks lol
The crazy thing for me is most people just use screenshots of stuff they find online or family photos or pictures they take themselves ... This is really only an app for MKBHD fans, which is probably the thinking behind the charge. His fans will pay because it's his app.
The revenue thing sounds obnoxious though. Is he going to split every 50¢ on the dollar between all the artists involved? That sounds almost as bad as "doing this work will give you exposure that's better than the money you'll earn." nonsense.
Commenting for the algo! Also I'm enjoying the random little commentary vid on a subject that interests you. I think I'd enjoy watching you talk about anything lol
This is just as bad as when unbox therapy launched their phone case that was clearly a rip off of another product.
As soon as I got my first Smartphone I got some Middle-earth themed art got my lock and unlocked screens and have never seen anything better.
My Lock Screen is a Dwarf Fortress and unlocked is Bree :)
17:53 not only is the revenue split insane, portions of that revenue are going to AI “artists” who contributed nothing
MKBHD has explained that none of the photos are fully AI but the artists have used it as a tool in their work and transform parts of an image they create.
@@gemevelyn2660 I don't consider that better
@@gemevelyn2660 assuming you mean generative AI?
@@Gloomdrake The example I heard in his podcast is that he knows one of the artist will have a picture of a skyscrapper. Then have the AI turn the skycrapper into a city landscape and then make any other ajustments to the image himself.
@@gemevelyn2660 okay, so that's not better at all
“We’ll put a pin in that” bro your putting so many pins that you’ll need a pin cushion
14:26 Theft king jumpscare
HE IS NOT MORE THAN A PUPPET FOR THE BIG TECH.
App devs don't control what ad networks choose to advertise
I honestly don't think its a bad idea for an app.
People look at their phones more than their loved ones faces, so having curated art for your phone that you can refresh regularly makes sense.
But research into user price sensitivity is one of the most important things to do BEFORE launch.
$1.99/month with an 80/20 split in favor of the artist, maybe..
... rather than literally the cost of a full streaming service.
lol people can just save anything they want and use it as wallpaper. no payment needed. and when people use their phones, they're not looking at the wallpaper
@@angeleaishida But what if.... artists could be compensated for their work?
Bro who TF looks at the wallpaper on their phone so much they'd pay for it? Most people either have pictures of people as their wallpaper or pictures they can just download on the Internet for free.
Honestly, I can't even see the justification for the existence of a free wallpaper app. Do people really need a dedicated source of constantly updating wallpapers? The last time I changed mine was about 4 years ago.
Oh.. Its AI wallpapers then, just as subscription model.. When people go "artist may or may not chose to use AI" yes they will use it. AI art is not artist making something but a computer doing it, yes it can look good, but personally i want something made by others not robot copy paste of others work with a change in resolution, colour, depth etc, without giving actual artists their credits..
I do think that all companies that just fed art and creations, stories, characters to bots are very scummy and trash.
10:09 Unfortunately not. As a developer, you get the ads they offer. Most engines or tools for software have plugins that automatically integrate the ads into your app at the programming level. But you can't fine-tune them. As a developer, you can't literally say, I don't want these ads. Another reason is that the advertising business is heavily geared towards advertisers. If you want to place an ad, you can choose which group and category you want to publish it in. But on the receiving end, you are basically in the hands of the advertising business.
That's complete bullshit, there is more to advertising than Google. You can have complete control over the ads on your platform, the difference is that most developers are disgustingly greedy and go for the largest profit margin instead of curation.
Wallpaper Engine is a one time purchase of ten dollars and you get all of the wallpapers at any resolution you want, why can't they do that?
I wouldn't consider subscribing to that $50 plan, UNLESS, it has a full BLUE highres wallpaper, not ORANGE!
Omg Scott posted?? I was gonna try and fix my sleep schedule but FUCK that, nerdsync posted
Making user choosing the artist without knowing their names, what kind of artworks their makes (atleast 5 examples artworks) is really dumb. And no wallpapers tag from the get go is hilarious
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Take a shot everytime NerdSync says "A Wallpaper App" 😆