Google Scraps Moto X Inscriptions for Launch

When Google’s Moto X smartphone goes on sale this Friday, it will do so without one of the key personalization features it was to originally debut with.

Quality issues with customized engraving, one of the handful of built-to-order design features offered for the Moto X through Google’s Moto Maker service, has forced Google to scrap that option at launch. Evidently, the company doesn’t quite have customized engraving dialed in yet.

“As with all testing programs, we are adapting and changing the process based on what we learn,” a Motorola representative said in a comment given to GigaOM. “One item that requires some additional work before we launch is creating a custom signature on the back of the phone. As such, creating a custom message is no longer available at this time.”

So much for that “Phone Calls Monitored by NSA” inscription I’d been planning …

A disappointment for customers hoping to engrave a message on their new Moto X, and for Google, which should have worked out issues like these in quality testing. That said, I can’t imagine the absence of an engraving option will have much of an effect on early sales. After all, personalized messages on smartphones and tablets often undermine their resale value.