Trump Mobile removes ‘made in the USA' tag from its gold smartphone as critics question price tag

Independent

4 hours ago

Trump Mobile, the recently founded cellphone network operator branded by the Trump Organization, quietly removed a 'made in the USA' tag for its smartphone from its website, leaving vaguer claims in its place.
As recently as Saturday, the Trump Mobile website marketed its flagship $499 gold T1 Phone as 'MADE IN THE USA' — seemingly the biggest selling point behind the company's
But that language was removed from the homepage sometime this week, according to The Verge. Statements suggesting the phones are designed and 'brought to life' in the United States were left in its place.
'American-Proud design,' according to the T1 Phone information page, claiming it is 'brought to life right here in the USA.'
'With American hands behind every device, we bring care, precision, and trusted quality to every detail,' the phone's description reads.
President Donald Trump has intensely advocated for companies to bring back manufacturing from overseas to the United States with attempts to lure companies by implementing hefty tariffs on nearly all of the country's major trading partners.
Although the Trump Organization does not sell the phone, Trump Mobile uses Trump's branding for its network and phone.
The Independent has requested comment from Trump Mobile.
A spokesperson for the company told CNBC that 'T1 phones are proudly being made in America.'
'Speculation to the contrary is simply inaccurate,' the spokesperson said.
But it's unclear why Trump Mobile would have removed 'Made in the USA' language if that was the case.
Eric Trump, the son of the president and executive of the Trump Organization, said the phone 'can' be built in the United States but hinted that the first batch would likely not.
'Eventually, all the phones can be built in the United States of America,' he told Benny Johnson on Monday.
Other information about the phone was seemingly changed or removed as well, The Verge reported.
Trump Mobile initially indicated the T1 Phone's screen was 6.78 inches but now claims it's 6.25 inches. It also said the phone had 12GB of RAM, but that has now been removed.
The initial homepage banner also claimed the T1 Phone would ship in September 2025. That statement has been removed.
Experts had already raised questions about the phone's manufacturing claim because the United States does not have the supply chain to manufacture parts for phones exclusively and the $499 price point is too cheap.
'There is no way the phone was designed from scratch and there is no way it is going to be assembled in the U.S. or completely manufactured in the U.S.,' Francisco Jeronimo, vice president at International Data Corp., told CNBC.
'That is completely impossible,' he added.
Jeff Fieldhack, the research director at Counterpoint Research, told CNBC that even if the United States had a manufacturer available, 'the company will have to rely on components that are being imported' from elsewhere.