OnePlus pulls back on requiring contest winners to smash a phone

Last month, we told you about OnePlus' promotion that would allow 100 people who smash their current phone on video, to buy a OnePlus One handset for $1. Unfortunately, many smartphone users hoping to win a OnePlus One did not read the rules, and quickly uploaded video to YouTube showing them smashing their daily drivers. Phones like the HTC One (M7), Apple iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S III were smashed, many by ingenious means. What these people failed to read was that OnePlus would first pick the 100 contestants randomly. Only then, would these people be asked to make a video showing the destruction of their current phone. To quote the great Scooby-Doo, "Ruh Roh."

But OnePlus, which has suffered through some negative publicity related to another contest, started to worry about the negative backlash it might receive by asking people to brutally destroy working devices. In addition, there is always the possibility that someone could get permanently injured from carrying out a stunt like this. A piece of glass to the eye, a sawed off finger or a burn from an exploding battery, are some of the things that a jury just might consider to be the fault of the company that sponsored the contest.

If we've learned one thing about OnePlus, it is that the company is flexible, and is more than willing to make changes if needed. With the forum posts contest, OnePlus realized where it was wrong, and did what it had to do to make things right. And now, it is giving those 100 people who would have had to smash their current phone, another way out. Instead of playing Whack-A-Mole with their handset, the 100 people selected by OnePlus can now elect to donate their current model to Medic Mobile. This is a charity that accepts donations of handsets, and gives them away to active healthcare workers in poorer regions of the world. Just remember not to donate your phone until you receive your new OnePlus One.

It turns out that 140,000 entries were received for the contest, with the 100 winners to be contacted by OnePlus starting today. So you can get rid of the dynamite, or the hacksaw, or any of the other tools of destruction that you were going to use to win the contest. If you are chosen as one of the 100 winners by OnePlus, you can donate your current handset and turn this into a win-win situation.


source: OnePlus via AndroidAuthority