OnePlus co-founder explains why the 1+1 is so hard to get a hold of

OnePlus co-founder, Carl Pei, recently sat down with PC Magazine to discuss the rollercoaster year the company had, and how it manages the supply chain to meet demand. Without the resources of an Apple or Samsung, the company can’t take the same risks as the big boys, which is why consumers can’t just buy units all willy-nilly. Instead, OnePlus has relied on an invite system, along with occasional pre-order events.

There may never be enough OnePlus Ones. The OnePlus One is the hottest, cult smartphone out there, in part because it’s extremely difficult to buy. It costs only $299 but has the features and design of a $650 flagship, with some extra geek-button-pushing features like Cyanogenmod’s Android software thrown in to get the enthusiasts extra enthused. We gave it a glowing review and an Editor’s Choice, which we later had to pull because any phone we recommend must be available for actual purchase in the U.S. That’s the thing about the OnePlus One: it’s so back-ordered, it’s only available by limited invitation and occasional, flash pre-sales. (We’ll be offering up some invites on Twitter next week.) OnePlus founder Carl Pei (who is Swedish-Chinese and speaks English with an American accent) came into our offices to emphasize that while there never seem to be enough OnePlus Ones, they’re a real thing.