Developers Report Staining Problem with White Nexus 7

Pre-orders of the Nexus 7 started arriving on people's doorsteps late last week. No doubt those that have already received their shiny new toy are excited to have the latest Google gadget in their hands and those that haven't yet gotten theirs are waiting by the door, Scott Pilgrim-style. Meanwhile, devs that attended Google I/O have had the tablet for weeks. However, just as the tablet arrives in the hands of the excited common consumer, developers are finding that their limited edition white model of the Nexus 7 is rather prone to staining.

Irish developer Steven Stroughton-Smith tweeted the picture above of his Nexus 7. "The Nexus 7 back plate just doesn't clean; very susceptible to dye" he told his followers. "The white model was a terrible idea." Stroughton-Smith says the stains you see in the photo are the result of carrying the tablet in a lint-free glasses bag. "Nothing I've tried removes the stain," he said.

Posters on XDA Developers are also having a similar problem. When one member enquired as to where he could get a white Nexus 7, senior member fungflex told him not to bother with the white one.

"Don't mean to thread crap or ruin your deal. But buy a black one, you will be much happier. I have a white I/O model and the smallest amount of contact and the thing stains SUPER easily and is impossible to clean," fungflex wrote, adding that he's tried several methods to remove the stains. "I tried soap, bleach, magic eraser, alcohol, and a few other options and nothing works. The only thing that removed my stain was nail polish but it also completely removed the "soft touch suede" feeling and made it much more plasticky. I strongly prefer white gadgets myself, but save yourself a headache and don't buy the white one."

The white model of the Nexus 7 isn't available to the general public. These models were only distributed to developers at Google I/O. It's likely you won't have any issue with the dark gray model Google has been selling via the Play Store, but if you do have a white model, we suggest you do your best to keep it clean and bide your time until cases become available.

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