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CNET
3 days ago
- Business
- CNET
The Trump Phone Will Cost You $499. This Is What You Get and What We Don't Know Yet
The Trump Organization now has a wireless business, including a mobile phone plan and a $499 gold-hued phone. On Monday, Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of US President Donald Trump, announced a new wireless venture centered on a service called Trump Mobile. According to the venture's website, a wireless plan is available for $47.45 a month with unlimited talk, text and data and no long-term contract. The price of the service is a callout to Donald Trump's two terms as president: 47 for his current presidency and 45 for his previous one, from 2017 to 2021. Those interested can use their own phone and number. Trump Mobile is offering that $499 phone, called the T1, for preorder ahead of planned availability in September. It comes with a 6.8-inch AMOLED screen and runs the Android 15 operating system. The Trump family licensed its name to the service. The idea for a wireless service promoted around a celebrity or a brand may be an emerging trend. Just a week before the Trump Organization announcement, the popular SmartLess podcast launched its own service. The podcast is hosted by actors Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes. Will the phone be made in the US or elsewhere? In a statement about the service and new phone, the Trump Organization says it will offer customer support through call centers based in the US. The T1 phone is described as "designed and built in the United States." The statement doesn't offer any additional details about sourcing for the phone's manufacturing, but given supply chain realities, it's likely that at least some components in the phone would come from another country, such as China. The Trump administration has been focused on having more manufacturing take place in the US, including pushing Apple to build iPhones here. Francisco Jeronimo, vice president at International Data Corp., told CNBC on Tuesday that the phone could not be assembled or completely manufactured in the US. "That is completely impossible," he said. Eric Trump, the president's younger son, said on Tuesday that the company will build phones in the US, but not right away. "Eventually, all the phones can be built in the United States of America," he said in an interview cited by Wired magazine. Trump Mobile will offer service through AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Trump Mobile President Trump has said he will impose a 25% tariff on all smartphones not made in the US, which would seem to include his own family's proposed phone. In addition to voice and data service, the Trump Mobile plan includes 24/7 roadside assistance through Drive America, telehealth and mental health support services, no credit check and free international calling to 100 countries, "including many with American military bases to help honor the families who are bravely serving in our military abroad." The wireless plan Trump Mobile says the service will run using the networks of the three major US wireless carriers: AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon. To be more precise, it's powered by Liberty Wireless Mobile, an MVNO -- mobile virtual network operators don't own the infrastructure but instead lease it from the big wireless providers and then resell it in their own packages. As CNET's Patrick Holland and Jeff Carlson point out, there are hundreds of US-based MVNOs for you to choose from, including Liberty Wireless, which offers its own $40-a-month plan. Right now, they say, there are still "too many unknowns" about the Trump Mobile plan to allow for a definitive assessment. Check out their breakdown of how Trump Mobile compares to some of the top alternatives. Some details are confusing CNET senior editor Mike Sorrentino noted that the site for the Trump phone went live with numerous errors and omissions. It doesn't list a processor, even under the headline marked "processor." The storage and memory specs are mixed up, listing the RAM as 12GB of storage and the memory as 256GB of internal storage. The site mentions a "punch-hole AMOLED display," which Sorrentino notes does not exist, using the term to refer to the space for the front-facing camera. Two separate sizes are given for the phone display. The site references a "5,000mAh long life camera," but it appears to mean the battery. The battery-camera confusion has been corrected. Meanwhile, the press release for the phone says it will be released in August, but the website says September. Gulf of Mexico label on the map The Trump Mobile site launched with a map showing its coverage area, but that map was pulled after people online noticed that the map used the name Gulf of Mexico for the body of water Trump calls the Gulf of America. Reuters reviewed the website code and noted that the site seemed to be using T-Mobile's network data for the coverage map, and that company uses the Gulf of Mexico name. The Trump Mobile phone plan is priced at $47.45 a month, because Donald Trump was both the 45th and 47th president. Trump Mobile Trump announced the Gulf of America name change on his Inauguration Day in January. He also changed the name of the Alaskan mountain Denali to Mount McKinley. The Associated Press has said it will not use the Gulf of America name for the body of water. A phone with a telehealth plan? The press release promises the phone plan comes with "telehealth services, including virtual medical care, mental health support, and easy ordering and delivery for prescription medications." Don Hendrickson, a spokesperson for Trump Mobile, confirmed at the launch, saying the telehealth services were all included in the plan. As the New York Times notes, it's not clear how a $47-a-month phone plan could afford to cover remote doctor visits and medication. The Trump Mobile site says the telehealth program will require users to sign up with a third-party provider, Doctegrity. The celebrity phone trend The new offerings from Trump Mobile may receive a lot of publicity due to the president's high profile and social media presence, but one wireless executive said they're unlikely to create a major disruption for other wireless carriers. "The US wireless market is over $300 billion a year, and it is not a zero-sum game. New entrants like Trump Mobile or SmartLess typically operate as mobile virtual network operators using infrastructure from the big three," said US Mobile CEO Ahmed Khattak. Khattak's company has served a million wireless customers and has ranked high among the wireless phone plans CNET has rated. "They might carve out a niche based on branding or audience loyalty, but that doesn't fundamentally change the economics or scale advantages of larger MVNOs or the big three carriers," he says. Khattak doesn't believe the new Trump endeavor is a conflict of interest or presents a regulatory conflict because the president has the authority to appoint FCC commissioners. "The FCC is an independent agency," he says. "Commissioners are appointed by the president but confirmed by the Senate, and the FCC does not get involved in MVNO business agreements or commercial launches." The US Mobile CEO also doesn't believe that the new company represents a new wave of celebrity wireless endorsements. "If anything, that era is behind us," he says. "Mint Mobile is often seen as a Ryan Reynolds story, but the reality is that its parent company, Ultra Mobile, was already the fastest-growing private company in America long before he joined." Khattak added: "Most celebrity MVNOs do not last because wireless is an operationally intense business with tight margins. This is not the next celebrity tequila or podcast trend." From Trump phones to Instant Pots, snow globes The president did not appear for the Monday announcement at New York's Trump Tower; his sons headed up publicity for the unveiling. The Trump Organization is a holding company for the president's business interests. According to Reuters, the president has reported $600 million worth of income from various deals and projects, including crypto coins, a sector of business his administration has been bullish on. Recently, the news site Semafor reported that kitchen appliance company Instant Pot will offer a "45/47 Collaboration," marking items with those numbers and the president's "Make America Great Again" slogan. Semafor also reported that tableware and china company Lenox has proposed a line of Trump-related product, including snow globes and dinnerware with the president's face.
CNET
4 days ago
- Business
- CNET
The Trump Phone Will Cost You $499. Here's What You Get and What We Don't Know Yet
The Trump Organization now has a wireless business, including a mobile phone plan and a $499 gold-hued phone called the T1. On Monday, Donald Trump Jr., eldest son of US President Donald Trump, announced a new wireless venture centered on a service called Trump Mobile. According to the venture's website, a wireless plan is available for $47.45 a month with unlimited talk, text and data and no long-term contract. The price of the service is a callout to Donald Trump's two terms as president: 47 for his current presidency and 45 for his previous one, from 2017 to 2021. Those interested can use their own phone and number. The Trump family licensed its name to the service. Its phone is only available for Android users, not users of Apple iPhones. Trump Mobile is offering that $499 phone, called the T1, for preorder ahead of planned availability in September. It comes a with a 6.8-inch AMOLED screen and runs the Android 15 operating system. The company says the service will run using the networks of the three major US wireless carriers: AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon. The idea for a wireless service promoted around a celebrity or a brand may be an emerging trend. Just a week before the Trump Organization announcement, the popular SmartLess podcast launched its own service. The podcast is hosted by actors Jason Bateman, Will Arnett and Sean Hayes. Will phone be made in US or elsewhere? In a press release for the service and new phone, the Trump Organization says it will be offering customer support through call centers based in the US. The T1 phone is described as "designed and built in the United States." The press release doesn't offer any additional details about sourcing for the phone's manufacturing, but given supply chain realities, it's likely that at least some components in the phone would come from another country, such as China. The Trump administration has been focused on having more manufacturing take place in the US, including pushing Apple to build iPhones here. Commentary: Trump Mobile and the T1 Phone Don't Make Any Sense, Even for Trump Fans Francisco Jeronimo, vice president at International Data Corp., told CNBC on Tuesday that the phone could not be assembled or completely manufactured in the US "That is completely impossible," he said. Eric Trump, the president's younger son, said on Tuesday that the company will build phones in the US, but not right away. "Eventually all the phones can be built in the United States of America," he said in an interview cited by Wired magazine. Trump Mobile will offer service through AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile. Trump Mobile President Trump has said he will impose a 25% tariff on all smartphones not made in the US, which would seem to include his own family's proposed phone. In addition to voice and data service, the Trump Mobile plan includes 24/7 roadside assistance through Drive America, telehealth and mental health support services, no credit check and free international calling to 100 countries, "including many with American military bases to help honor the families who are bravely serving in our military abroad." Some details are confusing CNET senior editor Mike Sorrentino noted that the site for the Trump phone went live with numerous errors and omissions. It does not list a processor, even under a headline marked "processor." The storage and memory specs are mixed up, listing the RAM as 12GB of storage and the memory as 256GB of internal storage. The site mentions a "punch-hole AMOLED display," which Sorrentino notes does not exist, using the term to refer to the space for the front-facing camera. Two separate sizes are given for the phone display. The site references a "5,000mAh long life camera" but appears to mean the battery. The battery-camera confusion has been corrected. The press release for the phone says it will be released in August, but the website says September. Gulf of Mexico label on map The Trump Mobile site launched with a map showing its coverage area, but that map was pulled after people online noticed that the map used the name Gulf of Mexico for the body of water Trump calls the Gulf of America. A Reuters review of the website's code shows Trump Mobile appears to have used T-Mobile's network data for its coverage map. The telecom operator's coverage map labels the body of water as the Gulf of Mexico. The Trump Mobile phone plan is priced at $47.45 a month, because Donald Trump was both the 45th and 47th president. Trump Mobile Trump announced the Gulf of America name change on his Inauguration Day in January, also changing the name of the Alaskan mountain Denali to Mount McKinley. The Associated Press has said it will not use the Gulf of America name for the body of water. A phone with a telehealth plan? The press release promises the phone plans comes with "telehealth services, including virtual medical care, mental health support, and easy ordering and delivery for prescription medications." Don Hendrickson, a spokesperson for Trump Mobile, confirmed that at the launch, saying the telehealth services were all included in the plan. As The New York Times notes, it's not clear how a $47-a-month phone plan could afford to cover remote doctor visits and medication. The Trump Mobile site says the telehealth program will require users to sign up with third-party provider, Doctegrity. Late to the celebrity phone trend The new offerings from Trump Mobile may receive a lot of publicity due to the president's high profile and social media presence, but one wireless executive said they're unlikely to create a major disruption for other wireless carriers. "The US wireless market is over $300 billion a year, and it is not a zero-sum game. New entrants like Trump Mobile or SmartLess typically operate as Mobile Virtual Network Operators using infrastructure from the big three," said US Mobile CEO Ahmed Khattak. Khattak's company has served a million wireless customers and has ranked high among the wireless phone plans CNET has rated. "They might carve out a niche based on branding or audience loyalty, but that does not fundamentally change the economics or scale advantages of larger MVNOs or the big three carriers," he says. Khattak doesn't believe the new Trump endeavor is a conflict of interest or presents a regulatory conflict because the president has the authority to appoint FCC commissioners. "The FCC is an independent agency," he says. "Commissioners are appointed by the president but confirmed by the Senate, and the FCC does not get involved in MVNO business agreements or commercial launches." The US Mobile CEO also doesn't believe that the new company represents a new wave of celebrity wireless endorsements. "If anything, that era is behind us," he says. "Mint Mobile is often seen as a Ryan Reynolds story, but the reality is that its parent company, Ultra Mobile, was already the fastest-growing private company in America long before he joined." Khattak added: "Most celebrity MVNOs do not last because wireless is an operationally intense business with tight margins. This is not the next celebrity tequila or podcast trend." From Trump phones to Trump Instant Pots, snow globes The president did not appear for the Monday announcement at New York's Trump Tower; his sons headed up publicity for the unveiling. The Trump Organization is a holding company for the president's business interests. According to Reuters, the president has reported $600 million worth of income from various deals and projects, including crypto coins, a sector of business his administration has been bullish on. Recently, the news site Semafor reported that kitchen appliance company Instant Pot will offer a "45/47 Collaboration," marking items with those numbers and the president's "Make America Great Again" slogan. Semafor also reported that tableware and china company Lenox has proposed a line of Trump-related product, including snow glboes and dinnerware with the president's face.
Washington Post
4 days ago
- Business
- Washington Post
I tried signing up for Trump Mobile service. Here's how it went.
There's a bunch of questions about Trump Mobile, the new wireless service from President Donald Trump's family business. There's the promised $499 'made in America' smartphone, which experts said was probably impossible to make in the United States. There are ethical concerns about another product capitalizing on the president's name brand.
Tahawul Tech
4 days ago
- Business
- Tahawul Tech
Trump launches smartphone mobile service
The Trump Organization has recently launched a self-branded mobile service and a $499 smartphone, dubbed Trump Mobile. Marketed towards conservative consumer, the Organization is keen to position this wireless service as an alternative to major telecom providers. The new mobile venture will include call centres based in the United States and phones made in America. The Trump family, long known for its real estate empire, luxury hotels, and golf resorts, has in recent years ventured into newer arenas including digital media and cryptocurrency. The Trump Organization, which is the main holding entity for most of the U.S. president's business ventures, said ahead of Trump's inauguration that control of the company would be handed to his children, replicating the arrangement from his first term, though concerns about potential conflicts of interest remain and were expressed by a several commentators. 'The new wireless plan and handset announcement is the latest attempt by the Trump organization to capitalize on the President's popularity, much like Truth Social, the DJT stock listing and crypto endeavours', said Gil Luria, Head of Technology Research, D.A. Davidson & Co, Portland. 'No one who has been paying attention could miss that President Trump considers the presidency a vehicle to grow his family's wealth. Maybe this example will help more come to see this undeniable truth', said Lawrence Lessig, Law Professor, Harvard. 'I don't see much impact from Trump mobile across the industry, as half of it's addressable market is negated by political parties, and then from there, this industry already has a lot of stickiness to current providers. These companies need scale to work, and we'll see if the company can execute on the most important thing – consistency of network', said David Wagner, Head of Equities, Aptus Capital Advisors, Cincinnati, Ohio. Source: Reuters Image Credit: Stock Image
Japan Times
4 days ago
- Business
- Japan Times
Trump family launches branded mobile phone service in U.S.
U.S. President Donald Trump's family is getting into the mobile phone business with a Trump-branded service that will rely on existing wireless networks and hardware that is "made in America.' Trump's sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., unveiled the service, dubbed Trump Mobile, on Monday at Trump Tower in New York on the 10-year anniversary of their father's announcement that he would run in the 2016 presidential election. "We've partnered with some of the greatest people in the industry to make sure that real Americans get true value from their mobile carriers,' Trump Jr. said. He and Eric Trump are executive vice presidents at the Trump Organization. The service will use network capabilities from all three major U.S. carriers — T-Mobile U.S., Verizon Communications and AT&T, according to a statement. The family is also launching a Trump-branded mobile phone, the T1 — a "sleek gold' model that will be made in the U.S. and cost $499 This new business venture stands to escalate concerns over how the president's expanding business enterprises conflict with his government responsibilities. Unlike his predecessors, Trump didn't divest his wealth or move his assets into a blind trust with an independent overseer. His sprawling business empire is managed by two of his sons and operates in several areas that intersect with presidential policy. The Trump family, known for its real estate empire, luxury hotels and golf resorts, has expanded its interests throughout two presidencies to include digital media and cryptocurrencies. Some of the businesses have emerged to align ideologically with Trump's conservative base. For example, Trump founded Truth Social in 2022 as an alternative to Twitter. It now boasts millions of active users. A mobile company in particular would run headlong into Trump's trade agenda. Just last month, he threatened Apple with tariffs of at least 25% if it doesn't make its iPhones in the U.S. and signaled that he'd go after other device makers, including Samsung Electronics. It's unclear where Trump will source a significant volume of hardware fully made in the U.S. for a new device. Few — if any — of the world's major phone manufacturers assemble their devices at scale entirely within the country. The president also appoints the head of the Federal Communications Commission, which regulates wireless providers. Trump appointed Brendan Carr to lead the agency, and has recently encouraged the chairman to resolve a dispute with EchoStar over the buildout of its 5G network and the utilization of its wireless and satellite spectrum rights. EchoStar also owns the Boost Mobile network. Prohibitions Trump placed on his businesses in his first term to create an appearance of propriety, like forgoing new foreign deals, have been abandoned in his second. His empire has new projects overseas, including an 80-story Trump-branded skyscraper in Dubai with construction set to start in the fall and plans for branded hotels in Riyadh and Jeddah, plus a golf course in Qatar. The deals are all in countries with significant diplomatic, defense and commercial interests in the U.S. Unlike high ranking officials like Cabinet secretaries and agency heads, the president isn't required to divest assets under the U.S. law that aimed to reduce conflicts of interest in government. Since it was passed in 1978, every president voluntarily took steps to abide by its provisions, except for Trump. The flagship Trump Mobile offering, dubbed the 47 Plan, will offer unlimited talk and text with 20GB of high-speed internet for $47.45 a month. Subscribers will also receive benefits such as telemedicine access, roadside assistance through Drive America and protection services for devices, according to the announcement. A 250-seat customer service center will be set up in the U.S. to assist subscribers. Customers will be able to switch to the Trump Mobile network with their current phones, or connect with the new Android-based T1. Businesses that purchase network capacity from one of the big three U.S. wireless networks — known as Mobile Virtual Network Operators — are an increasingly hot category for reaching niche markets. The trio of actors who host the popular SmartLess podcast, Will Arnett, Jason Bateman and Sean Hayes, recently announced they are starting their own phone company on T-Mobile's network aimed at low-data-usage customers who'd like to save money on their bills each month. Actor Ryan Reynolds was also an investor and spokesperson for Mint Mobile, geared toward people who didn't yet have a wireless account and weren't going to use their phones as much. T-Mobile acquired the brand for $1.35 billion. DTTM Operations applied last week to use Trump's name and the term T1 for telecom services. The applications to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office cover mobile phones, cases, battery chargers and wireless telephone services, as well as, potentially, retail stores. T1 Mobile uses the Trump name and trademark, similar to other Trump-branded ventures. The Trump Organization isn't involved in designing, developing, manufacturing or distributing the cellular service, according to a release.
