New owners of Google's six-inch Nexus 6 smartphone have cropped up online complaining about a defect in their devices, which causes the phone's back panel to come off.
Users have taken to Twitter, Reddit and developer forums to ask if anyone else has been having the same problems.
One user complained on Reddit that he and four other friends have seen the cover on their Nexus 6 phones dropping off. However, he said they didn't mind so much and have simply covered their phones with a thermoplastic polyurethane case because they think any replacement would have the same problem anyway.
The problem appears at first to be an issue with the glue that Motorola used to secure the back panel into place. Other users, however, believe the defect seems to include an expanding battery pack that could be a fire hazard and should be reported immediately to Motorola.
The defect seems to manifest itself in various degrees. Some users have reported that the rear panel came off the moment they took the phone right out of the box, while others said it took them several days to a few weeks to notice the phone's back cover peeling off.
Motorola has confirmed that it is "seeing a few" cases of the Nexus 6's back cover coming unglued, although it did not specify what could be the reason for the defect. In addition, the company has promised to offer replacements, a promise that Motorola seems to be keeping, as other customers who reported the defect said they were promptly given replacements.
@MotorolaSupport my nexus 6's back cover is coming away from the body.. Already happened once and had a replacement. What's going on??
— Chris Cannon (@ChrisCannon396) January 11, 2015
@ChrisCannon396 We're seeing a few -- bad luck to get two! Do you need help getting this one replaced? — Motorola Support (@MotorolaSupport) January 11, 2015
Customers were also advised to properly dispose of their old Nexus 6 batteries by placing them in an air-tight, fire-proof box and taking them to a hazardous waste collection site. Alternatively, they can take old batteries to a battery recycling center.
"Make sure to check for battery expansion pushing the back cover off, happened to my father's N6," said one commenter on the XDA Developer forums. "So we got a replacement unit, and TMO (T-Mobile) told us to take the phone to a dump and safely dispose of it. We decided to wait and see the outcome (in a fire-proof box), the battery has continued to expand, completely removing the back cover."
Another user said on Reddit that Motorola added a SUPCASE for his new Nexus 6 for free.
