Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump unveiled a Trump-branded handheld and wireless service on June 16, dubbing itself “a next-generation wireless provider with bold ambitions and a customer-first mission.” More than five months later, those customers are still wondering when they’ll get the phones they ordered, however.
Trump Mobile said its gold smartphone, called the T1, would arrive in August. That date came and went, however, without a release. And there’s still no word from the company on when the phone will land.
That’s likely frustrating to the people who paid a $100 deposit for the $499 phone. Those customers have received no proactive updates in that time.
NBC News pre-ordered the phone to track its development, but said calls to the customer support line have been no more helpful, with either no information or inconsistent dates given. (The most recent promise it got was “beginning of December,” with the operator saying the government shutdown was the cause for the delay, but did not offer details. A separate call from Gizmodo was told the phone would be out at the end of December.
The Trump Mobile website continues to take deposits for the phone and to sign people up for service, but no longer lists a release date.
The T1 phone has been on a rocky road since its introduction. Originally touted to be “made in the USA,” which would keep it in line with Trump administration policies, it backtracked on that claim within 10 days, making its promotional language more nebulous with phrases like: “designed with American values in mind” and “brought to life right here in the USA.”
The specs for the phone were also dialed down, with a smaller screen and a shifting number of camera lenses on the back.
The Trump family has launched or become involved with several new businesses since Donald Trump’s return to the White House, including crypto ventures, a drone company, prediction market Polymarket, and a SPAC, which has filed for a $300 million IPO.
