Last week, the Trump Organization announced the Trump Mobile wireless service as well as the T1, a gold-plated, Trump-branded smartphone that it claimed will be made in America. Many were doubtful of such assertions, as it’s no secret that the U.S. lacks the infrastructure to manufacture many critical smartphone components.
It now looks as though Trump Mobile is softening its language regarding exactly where the T1 will be manufactured.
The ‘made-in-America’ Trump Mobile phone sure looks like a made-in-China phone
As spotted by The Verge, the T1 phone’s listing on the Trump Mobile website has been quietly updated to remove all references to the device being made in America. While earlier this week it described the T1 as “proudly made in America,” as of June 25 the page merely states that the phone has an “American-proud design.”
Below this, Trump Mobile’s previous claim that the T1 is “proudly made right here in the USA” has been replaced with the much more ambiguous statement that “it’s brought to life right here in the USA,” declaring that there are “American hands behind every device.”
Left: Trump Mobile’s T1 Phone listing on June 23. Right: The same listing on June 25.
Credit: Mashable
Such changes are also reflected on the Trump Mobile homepage, which previously encouraged people to pre-order the “MADE IN THE USA” T1 phone (emphasis original) and stated that it would be available from September. While the homepage does still encourage users to order a T1, it no longer claims that the device is made in the U.S., and the delivery date has been removed altogether.
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Top: A banner on the Trump Mobile homepage on June 17. Bottom: The same banner on June 25.
Credit: Mashable
The T1’s advertised manufacturing location isn’t all that’s changed either. The phone’s specs have also been slightly tweaked, downgrading its previously advertised 6.8-inch punch hole AMOLED screen to 6.25 inches. Its previously listed 12GB of RAM has been entirely removed as well, with no further information added to replace it.
Exactly what an “American-proud design” entails is unclear, however it seems reasonable to conclude that the T1 will not be made in America in light of these changes to its webpage. Even the claim of “American hands behind every device” could merely mean that people in the U.S. handle the phone at some point before it reaches customers.
Despite this, Trump Mobile is reportedly maintaining that the T1 will indeed be made in the U.S., though it has not addressed the change in language on its website.
“The T1 phones are proudly being made in America,” a Trump Mobile spokesperson said in a statement to Ars Technica. “Speculation to the contrary is simply inaccurate. We’re excited to launch the phones later this year.”
Mashable has reached out to Trump Mobile for comment.
It would be unsurprising for Trump Mobile to walk back its promises of a U.S.-made smartphone. Analysts have determined that a smartphone manufactured in the U.S. would have a potential retail price of up to $3,000, six times the T1’s $499 price tag.
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