26.06.2025 22:20
Just one week after its much-hyped launch, Trump Mobile quietly retracted its prominent "Made in the USA" claim from its website. This significant reversal of its core marketing promise leaves consumers questioning the phone's origins and the company's overall transparency.
Instead of the bold assertion of American manufacturing, the Trump Organization now employs ambiguous phrasing, stating the phone was merely "brought to life right here in the USA" and "designed with American values in mind." This subtle shift in language follows reports from the Financial Times, indicating a deliberate effort to downplay the phone's actual manufacturing location.
Furthermore, the company has also altered its shipping timeline. Initially promising August shipments, the website now vaguely states that the T1 smartphone will arrive "later this year," a considerable departure from its initial commitments. Ambiguity surrounds the phone's specifications as well, with the advertised screen size shrinking from 6.78 inches to 6.25 inches, and the previously boasted 12GB of RAM disappearing entirely from the product description.
This backtracking on both manufacturing claims and technical specifications follows justifiable skepticism from tech experts. The inherent difficulty in sourcing all necessary components within the United States to create a competitively priced smartphone was widely anticipated. Major phone manufacturers, including Apple and Samsung, demonstrate this reality through their reliance on Asian-based manufacturing. The intricate supply chains and cost considerations involved in complete domestic production make Trump Mobile's initial claims appear unrealistic.
The involvement of Liberty Mobile, responsible for service provision, further complicates the picture. Considering over 80% of smartphone components originate in China, the challenges of achieving a truly "Made in the USA" product become readily apparent. The Federal Trade Commission's stringent requirements for a formal "Made in America" label, demanding "all or virtually all" components be domestically sourced, underscores the near-impossibility of fulfilling such a promise for a modern smartphone. Donald Trump’s past criticism of Apple’s overseas manufacturing only highlights the persistent challenges of domestic smartphone production, which Trump Mobile’s experience dramatically exemplifies.
