Trump T1 Phone could be scrapped before launch

The Trump T1 Phone was officially announced last June. The smartphone from US President Donald Trump's mobile carrier was to be launched on the market for $499, which would put the device in competition with smartphones such as the Motorola Edge 2025 ($464 on Amazon). The T1 was to be manufactured in the USA. Customers were able to pre-order the device and had to pay a deposit of $100 - the launch was said to be a success.

In the months following the launch, however, Trump Mobile changed both the design and the features of the smartphone several times and withdrew the claim that the smartphone was manufactured in the USA. The last time the Trump T1 Phone fundamentally changed was in mid-April - the latest version is apparently based on the HTC U24 Pro. Trump Mobile has now changed the terms and conditions for the pre-orders. In the new terms and conditions, Trump Mobile explicitly states that the deposit does not complete a purchase contract, but only gives customers the opportunity to buy the smartphone "if" it comes onto the market.

The pre-order would not guarantee that the device would ever be manufactured or sold. Not even the advertised price of $499 is guaranteed to pre-order customers. After all, customers are supposed to receive a refund of their deposit if Trump Mobile decides to discontinue the smartphone before its launch. Whether this is true remains to be seen - on Reddit several customers have commented that they have received an email from Trump Mobile stating that the Trump T1 Phone has been discontinued but the deposit will not be refunded.