Maior Tech YouTuber CANCELADO 🚫 🚫 🚫 | MKBHD | Marques Brownlee

Summary

The speaker discusses the controversy surrounding Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) and his recently launched 'Panels' app. Known for high-quality tech reviews, Brownlee faces backlash for his wallpaper app, priced at $50/year, which users felt was overpriced and lacked innovation. The app’s excessive data permissions and reliance on third-party ads also raised concerns. While acknowledging Brownlee’s respectable career, the speaker critiques the app’s quality, technology choices, and user expectations, highlighting the gap between reviewing products and creating them. The speaker also promotes other apps from friends for feedback.

Takeaways

• 📦 Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) has been creating tech review content for over 15 years and is regarded as one of the most influential tech reviewers.
• 🖥️ MKBHD recently launched a new app called 'Panels', a wallpaper app that has been criticized for its high price ($50/year) and excessive permissions.
• 👎 Some users felt disappointed by the app due to the high cost, the unnecessary permissions, and the expectation of better quality given MKBHD’s tech expertise.
• 🚪 A meme was created portraying Marques 'killing' startups with his harsh reviews, especially after he reviewed a startup called Human AI, which later failed.
• 💬 Marques acknowledged the criticism and addressed issues with the app's privacy settings, stating that data collection from third-party ad libraries was unintended.
• 💡 Marques emphasizes the challenge of launching a product, acknowledging that receiving public feedback is an important part of the process.
• 🛠️ The app was built using Compose, a cross-platform framework, but some users and developers criticized it for not delivering a smooth native experience.
• 🎨 Critics pointed out that artists who created wallpapers for the app might lose potential earnings due to users illegally sharing wallpapers on GitHub.
• 📱 Despite the criticism, Marques remains respected for his sensible approach to tech reviews, and he’s learning that building a product is different from reviewing one.
• 🤖 The developer also compared MKBHD’s app to other tech-related projects and concluded that cross-platform development technologies like Compose could have impacted the app’s overall quality.

Q & A

Who is Marquez Brownlee, and why is he significant in the tech world?

Marquez Brownlee, also known as MKBHD, is one of the most prominent tech reviewers globally. He has been creating content on YouTube since 2008, amassing over 20 million subscribers and more than 4 billion views. He is known for his in-depth reviews of technology products, including hardware, software, and even cars.

What recent product did Marquez Brownlee launch, and why is it controversial?

Marquez Brownlee recently launched a wallpaper app called 'Panels,' which has received significant criticism. The controversy arises from the app's high price point of $50 per year, the extensive permissions it requests, and the fact that it doesn't seem to meet the high-quality expectations people have for a tech expert like Brownlee.

Why do people have high expectations for Marquez Brownlee's app?

People have high expectations for Marquez Brownlee's app because he has built his reputation on reviewing tech products with a strong focus on quality and user experience. Fans expect that, given his deep understanding of tech, any product he releases would reflect the same high standards.

What kind of criticism is the app receiving, and why do some people find it justified?

The app is being criticized for several reasons: its high cost for a simple wallpaper service, its extensive data permission requests, and the fact that it doesn't offer much beyond basic functionality. Some critics believe this goes against Brownlee’s previous ethos of criticizing overpriced tech products.

How did Marquez Brownlee respond to the backlash about his app?

Brownlee acknowledged the criticism, especially regarding the data permissions and pricing. He explained that the app's broad data permissions were mostly due to third-party ad libraries, not intentional data collection by the app itself. He also committed to addressing these issues in future updates.

What comparison is being made between Marquez Brownlee and the companies he reviews?

A common comparison being made is that Brownlee, who has built a reputation for critiquing overpriced or low-quality tech, has now become like the companies he once criticized by releasing an expensive app with limited features. Some fans feel betrayed, as it seems he is going against his own principles.

What specific technological criticisms does the script mention about the app?

The script mentions that the app does not feel native, which is surprising for a product created by someone who values platform-specific experiences. The app is built using Compose, a cross-platform technology, which the speaker finds suboptimal for delivering the kind of polished, platform-native experience Brownlee has often praised.

What are some of the ethical concerns around Marquez Brownlee’s app and its content?

Ethical concerns include the use of artwork from artists that may not be compensated fairly if people exploit the app's wallpapers for free. Additionally, users have already created repositories to download the wallpapers outside the app, potentially depriving the creators of their due compensation.

What impact has Marquez Brownlee's review style had on tech startups, according to the script?

Marquez Brownlee's reviews are so influential that they have been credited with significantly impacting the success or failure of tech startups. An example mentioned in the script is Human AI, whose AI Pin product failed shortly after Brownlee’s critical review, leading some to attribute its downfall to his influence.

What insights does the script offer about the challenges of transitioning from tech reviewer to product creator?

The script highlights that creating a product is vastly different from reviewing one. While Brownlee excels at identifying issues in products made by others, launching his own product exposed him to the difficulties of satisfying consumer expectations, especially when those expectations are shaped by his own high standards.