- Trump Mobile announces it will ship phones this week
- A new video gives a glimpse of the retro-looking device.
- It will be shipped with its own clear case.
The Trump Mobile T1 Gold phone will arrive in the hands of consumers this week. That’s right, the long-promised but never-delivered gold Android phone, which prominently features an American flag and Trump’s name, is a real product, and now the company is promising, in a Facebook post, delivery to customers who started pre-ordering almost a year ago.
The actual wording of the post was a little less subdued: ‘Phones start shipping this week!!!’
The news comes just a day after International Business Times UK discovered risky new language in Trump Mobile’s Terms of Service, which seemed to indicate there might not even be a product. As stated in the ToS:
A deposit on the phone. “is not a purchase, does not constitute acceptance of an order, does not create a contract of sale, does not transfer ownership or title, does not assign or reserve specific inventory, and does not guarantee that a device will be produced or available for purchase.”
That, however, turns out to be just cover language from Trump Mobile’s lawyers. If, for any reason, the T1 Gold was never shipped, Trump Mobile would not be responsible. Of course, that wouldn’t protect the cellular upstart from angry customers.
It’s real and they’re excited.
Now, however, perhaps those who paid a $100 deposit for the aurum-hued device are smiling. Their long-awaited phone, which will run on Trump Mobile’s MVNO, “has arrived!!” according to the Facebook post.
Assuming Trump Mobile delivers (a considerable assumption, to be sure), it’s been quite a ride for the T1, which began almost a year ago with a different look and a promise that it would be made in America. Trump Mobile, however, quickly realized the realities or limits of American mobile technology manufacturing and updated the site to say that the Android phone would be “American Proud Design.”
In April of this year, the site quietly unveiled a new design of the Trump Mobile T1 Gold. Gone is the look and feel of the iPhone, replaced by an aesthetic that would have been at home in 2012.
Even today, Trump Mobile falls short (at least on the surface) on specific details. This is how it lists the specifications on the main pages:
- Model: T1 Phone (gold version)
- 6.78-inch AMOLED display
- 120Hz refresh rate
- 50 MP main camera + 8 MP wide angle + 50 MP camera (2X Tele) + 50 MP front camera
- 5000 mAh battery/30W fast charging
- Fingerprint sensor and AI face unlock
- Snapdragon® Mobile Platform
- Android operating system
However, details reveal that it is inexplicably an Android 15 phone running a next-gen Qualcomm Snapdragon 7. It also still has a 3.5mm headphone jack which, depending on your perspective, may or may not be one of the few positive specs on offer.
It’s notable that, given all this time, Trump Mobile still can’t offer a completely modern phone. Of course, that’s not the reason thousands of people put down a deposit for the $499 phone. They are buying the Trump name and other intangibles. As the video notes, the phone is “designed for performance, reliability and a real American value.” And while it supposedly has no relation to the 47th president of the US, it does feature his favorite material (gold), and the mobile plan on offer is called “47.”
At least the Facebook video gives us a first, clear and complete look at the phone. We can see details like the SIM slot (we bet eSIM support is not included), the USB-C port, the speakers, and the Trump Mobile camera bump.
This is, by the way, one of the rare new phones that still ships with a charging brick (and cable, of course), and even its own transparent case. Score some points for actual value.
As I write this, it’s Wednesday, May 13, which gives Trump Mobile a few days to make good on its promise, and who knows, some customers may have the phones right now.
Let us know in the comments if you received yours, and if so, describe the unboxing and first experiences. We are all ears.
