OnePlus One will not have StyleSwap covers after all

A couple of months ago, OnePlus started teasing StyleSwap covers for their highly sought after OnePlus One smartphone. These covers would have allowed users to personalize their devices in a number of ways. Teased options included Bamboo, Silk White and Sandstone Black. Unfortunately, the company ran into some technical difficulties while mass producing the backplates, which lead to the whole project being shut down completely. According to OnePlus, the covers had creaks that could have exposed the OnePlus One’s battery and leave it vulnerable to damage. Seeing as how the back cover’s purpose is to protect the battery, this was deemed unacceptable and the production was halted.

“We want to note that our “StyleSwap” covers were an ambitious and innovative concept for us; very few companies offer similar options,” OnePlus said in a blog post. “We focused heavily on how it would allow users to personalize and customize their Ones and offer more choice. But now we know that we could have designed the removal process of the back covers better; it’s tricky and makes frequent switches difficult. The swap can also leave the back cover slightly creaky or loose, and it risks damage to the battery which is exposed for a short time. Ultimately, we made the very hard choice to stop production of StyleSwap covers for the OnePlus One. We simply aren’t comfortable mass releasing a product that does not offer the best user experience.”

The company mentions that a small number of Bamboo covers passed the quality test and are considered safe. OnePlus will sell this limited stock at some point in the future and they will also provide instructions on how to replace the cover without damaging your OnePlus One. Speaking of covers, the company is still taking into consideration the possibility of releasing limited edition OnePlus One smartphones that come with Denim or Kevlar covers straight out of the box.