In June 2025, The Trump Organization, run by the oldest sons of President Donald Trump, announced Trump Mobile with promises of a Made in America smartphone. Over a year later, consumers are finally starting to get their smartphones, but breakdown experts say they are far from the Made in America claims.
The Trump Organization previously got rid of its Made in America claims, using phrases like "Designed with American Values," "Proudly American" and "American Proud Design" to describe its T1 phone.
A new teardown of the T1 phone by iFixit and NBC reveals the phone is nearly identical to the HTC U24 Pro, a smartphone made in China for the Taiwanese company.
"The only place the T1 could have been made in the very short time the brand has existed, in the limited quantities being produced, and at the same price point as the U24 Pro, is at factories with preexisting tooling and production lines for this phone," iFixit said.
The breakdown went on to allege that the phone was likely "designed in China, made in China, with the vast majority of parts sourced from China."
Benzinga reached out to the Trump Organization and the White House for comment and did not hear back.
The teardown showed that one difference was the battery being made in the Philippines for the Trump phone, but most of the other components were made in China. Another difference was the Trump phone having a chipset package from Micron Technology Inc
The T1 Trump phone contains a Snapdragon processor from Qualcomm Inc
HTC previously told The Verge that it "does not design or manufacture phones for third parties." The Verge previously alleged that HTC may contract a third-party company to make the U24 Pro and Trump Mobile used the same third-party company to make the T1 Phone, with both likely made in China.
Delays and Slogan Changes
Trump Mobile - run by Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump - has undergone multiple delays to get its phones out.
The company has also changed its slogans and wording on its website multiple times.
The change from Made in America to "shaped by American innovation" was among the big changes that went viral and saw questions on just where the T1 phone was going to be made.
Members of the Democratic Party also attacked the phone company over potential conflicts of interest with members of the president's family running operations.
"The media's continued attempts to fabricate conflicts of interest are irresponsible and reinforce the public's distrust in what they read. Neither the president nor his family have ever engaged, or will ever engage, in conflicts of interest," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt previously told Benzinga.
Surrounded by delays and controversy, phones for Trump Mobile recently began shipping to those who pre-ordered.
