On Monday, the Trump Organization announced its plans to release a new smartphone, the T1 Phone, which will be supported on its new network, Trump Mobile.
The Trump Mobile network
Trump Mobile will offer 5G service through what the Trump Organization is calling “The 47 Plan” for a flat $47.45 per month, in reference to the U.S. president’s first and second terms.
Compatible with all three major U.S cell carriers, including T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon, Trump Mobile will whitelist its services in much the same way as competitors like the Ryan Reynolds-backed Mint Mobile.
How the tech of Trump Mobile works
Both Mint Mobile and Trump Mobile operate on what are known as “mobile virtual network operators”, or MVNOs. These operators purchase network capacity from the major providers and are generally targeted at niche customer bases.
In an interview held in the same spot where Trump first rode down a golden escalator to announce his candidacy for president at Trump Tower — ten years ago today, by the way — his son Eric Trump told Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo that Trump Mobile would offer “international calling in hundreds of countries for free” on a phone that will be made “one-hundred percent in America.”
Will the Trump Phone be made in the USA? The details are fuzzy right now.
"We are going to be introducing an entire package of products where people can come and they can get telemedicine on their phones for one flat monthly fee, roadside assistance on their cars, unlimited texting to 100 countries around the world," said the president's son.
However, details on exactly how Trump’s Organization plans to manufacture these phones within the domestic U.S. remained scant.
Can we even make a smartphone in the United States?
As the tariff trade wars escalated last month and the President specifically called out smartphone manufacturers like Apple for manufacturing their products in China, much of the tech news media wondered whether it would even be possible to make a smartphone within U.S. borders.
A modern smartphone often contains hundreds, sometimes even thousands, of individual components sourced from an interconnected global supply chain: tin from Africa, chips from Taiwan, displays from South Korea, and so on.
The idea that all of these parts could somehow be repatriated before the phone’s supposed release date in September of this year is, put frankly, ridiculous, and may seal its fate as a product with a doomed launch.
For now, when Laptop Mag contacted Trump’s hotline for the phone at 888-TRUMP45 and emailed the company at care@trumpmobile.com, we were only told that the phone would be “made in America.”
This almost certainly means the company plans to assemble the phones domestically, but will still use the same global parts as every other smartphone provider. Until we know more, the only information we have on the underlying tech of the Trump T1 phone is a small collection of specs, seen below:
Processor |
Unknown |
|
RAM |
12GB RAM |
|
Storage |
256GB (Expandable via card slot) |
|
Display |
6.8" Punch-Hole AMOLED |
|
Security |
In-Screen Fingerprint Scanner and AI Face Unlock |
|
Rear Camera |
50MP Main Camera |
|
Front Camera |
16MP |
|
Battery |
5000mAh |
|
Ports |
USB Type-C, 3.5mm Headphone Jack |
|
Operating System |
Android 15 |
When can you buy the Trump T1 Phone?
Preorders for the T1 started Monday on the company's website, priced at $499 with a $100 down payment to secure your own model.
However, reports are already coming in that this process is anything but smooth. When Joseph Cox of 404 Media tried to order his own, the site automatically charged his card for the wrong amount ($64.70 instead of $100), and he was never even given an opportunity to provide Trump Mobile with a shipping address.
The phone is said to start shipping in early September of 2025, and a representative vaguely told us that some of the phones will be new, and “some will be refurbished.”
Given the mystery surrounding the Trump T1 phone’s actual components, construction, and distribution, we’ll update this story as additional information becomes available. Stay tuned for more!
This is not the first phone linked to Trump
In 2021, the Freedom Phone debuted, also costing $499. It is still for sale and is marketed as "a free speech and privacy first focused mobile device built on an open-source Android OS." As PC Mag reported, it gained popularity among supporters of Donald Trump, and not long after, The Daily Beast reported that the phone bore an uncanny resemblance to one made by a Chinese firm that was selling on AliExpress for $119.
