YouTube has turned to one of its homegrown stars — technology vlogger Marques Brownlee, aka “MKBHD” — for its newest original series.
The video platform has greenlit series “Retro Tech” featuring Brownlee, in which he’ll unbox and review vintage technology products that have defined pop culture. The show, slated to debut in December 2019, follows an original special of the same name that premiered Friday, in which he plays with and details the history of the iconic Nintendo Game Boy, first introduced in 1989. (Watch below or at this link.)
The series six-episode unscripted series is slated to debut on Brownlee’s YouTube channel in December 2019. The show, produced by Vox Media Studios and YouTube, is based on his popular “Dope Tech” segment. The series will guest star YouTube creators, educators and inventors.
“Retro Tech” will be available on a free, ad-supported basis, whereas some YouTube originals are available only through the YouTube Premium subscription service. In the past few months, YouTube has canceled several scripted shows (but it’s retaining a few tentpoles, like “Cobra Kai”) with a programming slate focused on music, education, and YouTube creators like Brownlee.
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Brownlee, 25, has been uploading videos to YouTube since he was 14 from his parents’ house in the New York suburb of Maplewood, N.J. His channel was previously called “MKBHD” before he changed it to his name. Today he’s one of the largest tech-focused creators on the platform with 8.3 millions subscribers and over 1.3 billion views across his channel. Recent top videos include “Talking Tech with Elon Musk” (4.9 million views) and “Google Pixel 3 Impressions” (3.5 million views).
Watch the “Retro Tech” Game Boy special, available in 4K and Dolby 5.1 surround sound: