Google and Levi’s new Commuter Trucker jacket is said to have a 10-wash limit, meaning that you’d only be able to have a handful of times with which you’d be able to toss it into the washer with other pairs of clothing. This is sure to turn some heads of interested consumers as one wouldn’t normally think of a pair of clothing as only being able to receive a wash just a handful of times, but according to a new report from SFist, any more than ten washes and the Jacquard fibers in the left sleeve will apparently begin to stop working properly.
This might be more of an interesting notion to think about if you watch the promotional video for the new piece of smart clothing as it’s referenced as being washable as long as you remove the smart tag which connects to the fibers and to your phone through Bluetooth. This is also mentioned in the official blog post about the jacket when it was announced as being available this week, so you might think that removing the tag would be all that’s needed, but if the wash limit is correct than any customers who pick this up might have to be a little more careful with what they spill on the jacket to ensure it stays as clean as possible.
It’s also noted that the wash limit is merely “up to” ten times, with it being stated that the experience could vary from user to user, with various factors like wash cycle and usage playing a part in how many times the jacket can be washed. That might seem like a significant disadvantage for a piece of clothing that costs $350, but there could be a potential silver lining in that many denim enthusiasts believe that denim is better off if not washed often, as this will break down the fibers and durability of the material faster. That said, this jacket is positioned at cyclists, who are likely to have more opportunities to dirty up the piece of clothing than someone who is wearing it while simply walking around. What’s more is that the jacket can’t be dry cleaned. All that said, one has to remember that while this is made of denim which tends to be very durable especially if taken care of, it still has smart technology woven into it, so perhaps this isn’t that surprising. Then again, if you’re worried about how many times your jacket can be washed and if you’re worried about feeling clean while wearing this thing if it hasn’t been washed according to your typical cycle, then it might be worth considering holding off on it.