Featured Image Credit: Getty Images/The Washington Post
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics, US News, Technology
Jen Thomas
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics, US News, Technology
Critics have called Donald Trump's phone company, Trump Mobile, a 'scam' and alleged that they are selling refurbished phones.
Fans have been waiting for a golden 'T1' smartphone, which Trump Mobile said was being made for 'real Americans'.
The phone company was established earlier this year by Trump's family business, The Trump Organization, which is run presently by his sons, Don Jr and Eric.
The company is yet to produce the promised 'golden phone', and is allegedly offering a refurbished Apple or Samsung device instead, from several years ago, at a significant markup.
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According to The Independent, one phone was being offered for $225 more than it was priced on Amazon.
They had previously claimed that the phones would be 'MADE in America', until experts pointed out that the facilities supposedly manufacturing the devices simply didn't exist.
Back in June, the firm said the 'T1 Phone' would be available in August, while the phone plan would cost $47.45 a month. The new mobile venture, they claimed, would also include call centers based in the United States and phones made in America.
Some of the phones which have been listed for sale include Samsung S23s, S24s, and Apple iPhone 15s and 16s.
They also sell a Trump-branded SIM-only phone plan.
One critic of the scheme slammed it: "Trump Mobile ended up being so much of a scam that it even scammed the NBC news station out of their money.
"They ordered a phone and paid the required $100 deposit, but the company keeps changing the release date now. You can’t make this s*** up."
They shared it alongside screenshots of a story by NBC News, titled: 'The Trump mobile phone is nowhere to be found after months of delay'.
The screenshot also claimed: "Trump Mobile has posted conflicting photos of the phone and scrubbed mentions of its 'Made In The USA' promise."
NBC claims to have paid a $100 down payment for a phone, which they said would enable them to track the development of the $499 Trump phone.
After that...not much else happened.
It's alleged they received 'no proactive updates' about their order, and then they made five separate calls to chase the whereabouts of the device between September and November.
They were offered a delivery date of November 13, which was then delayed to the beginning of December.
As of today (December 6), they still have not received the phone.
UNILAD has reached out to Trump Mobile for comment.