It was released a few years ago to replace the original and beloved Microsoft Paint app, but it’s just been confirmed that fan-favourite app Microsoft Paint 3D will be going the way of the technology graveyard later this year.
As spotted by Windows leaker phantomofearth on X, Microsoft has started displaying banner notices in the Paint 3D on Windows computers that says it will not receive updates from 4th November 2024 – and that it’ll also be removed from the Microsoft Store so no one will be able to download it in future. This applies to both Windows 10 and Windows 11.
The death of Paint 3D is more than just a little ironic given the app was introduced in 2017 and pitched as a replacement for the class Paint app that had graced Window machines for years. Now, Paint has evolved to be far more useful and will outlive Paint 3D.
Paint 3D has languished and has not really been updated in any real way since 2019. Instead, the original Paint has gained several new features and is included with Windows 11, whereas modern PCs do not come with Paint 3D pre-installed. You only have until 4th November to download it if you want to see what Microsoft thought Paint should be until it changed its mind.
The whole idea of evolving Paint to have 3D elements is not a terrible idea, but Paint 3D is about as far from Photoshop or professional graphic software as you can get. It was made in the era of Microsoft UWP, which stands for Universal Windows Platform. This was back when you could still buy Windows phones, and Microsoft wanted to design apps that would work across Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile, as well as Xbox consoles.
In reality, it just meant that apps were underpowered and feature-light, and when Microsoft threw in the towel for Windows 10 Mobile, apps like Paint 3D fell by the wayside.
Though not all Windows fans will be that bothered by this news, there are still people out there who use Paint 3D and have been saddened by the news.
“Paint 3D will be missed. I use it almost everyday,” said @KevinRo79372761 on X.
“Would be great if some of the features from Paint 3D were integrated with Paint. Cropping on image in Paint 3D is so much better than in Paint as is resizing the canvas and the image”.
“It’s better than classic MS Paint, and has no AI or MS accounts unlike the new Paint. This is just good, and it must live on,” added @nuggynet.
Even though Windows 11 was released as a free upgrade to millions of Windows 10 users in 2021, Windows 10 still has a commanding lead for worldwide usage – this year still close to 70 percent of Windows devices worldwide run the older Windows 10.
Many people have refused to upgrade due to hardware limitations and fear of their machines running slower with the newer software. Others may be unaware there’s a big free upgrade waiting to be installed, or simply do not want the update to make their PC look and feel different to use day to day.