A truly 'Made in USA' phone.

With some components manufactured in the US, the Liberty Phone has low specifications, does not run Android, and has a price tag of $2,000.

The front of the Liberty Phone. Photo: Purism .

The Liberty Phone is a smartphone developed by Purism. According to founder Todd Weaver, it is the closest thing to President Donald Trump's "Made in the USA" dream.

Despite its shortcomings, such as low specifications and high price, the Liberty Phone offers a realistic perspective on smartphones manufactured in the US. The device also reflects why large companies are hesitant to pursue this strategy, even though Trump has repeatedly urged and even threatened them with tariffs.

Limitations of manufacturing in the US

Since announcing the tariffs in early April, Trump has repeatedly urged companies like Apple to move iPhone production back to the US. Even the Trump Organization launched the T1, a $500 phone advertised as "Made in America," although this claim was quickly removed.

Supply chain analysts believe that currently, the US cannot compare with Asia in terms of the quality and scale of smartphone production lines. However, Liberty Phone still exists with some components manufactured in the US.

According to the WSJ , the Liberty Phone's motherboard was developed in-house by Purism, the processor chip was manufactured in Texas, and assembly took place in California. Other components were imported from China and several Asian countries.

“I’ve been pursuing this plan for 10 years. We’re doing everything we can to build up our operations in the U.S. There are still some parts that don’t have a domestic supply chain, and we’ll continue to increase production until we reach that goal,” Weaver shared.

The Liberty Phone's motherboard is manufactured at Purism's factory in California. Photo: Purism .

A Purism representative stated that the company can produce approximately 10,000 Liberty Phones per month, but sales to date have been less than 100,000 units. For comparison, Apple is expected to ship around 225 million iPhones in 2024, according to Canalys statistics.

The Liberty Phone doesn't run Android or iOS; instead, it uses Purism's own PureOS operating system, which only supports calling, texting, web browsing, and a few pre-installed applications. The processor chip is manufactured by the Dutch semiconductor company NXP in Texas and is designed for cars, not smartphones.

The Liberty Phone's screen and battery come from China, while the rear camera is manufactured in South Korea. Weaver emphasized that it's not yet possible to manufacture all smartphone components in the US due to a lack of infrastructure. For example, there are no factories in the country that mass-produce phone screens.

According to analysts, these factors explain why Apple and other phone manufacturers have not yet been able to move their high-end smartphone production lines back to the United States.

"Even with lower specifications, it would still take many years for smartphone manufacturing to come entirely from the US."

"Aside from the cost, we don't have the factories to build application processors, high-end displays, or most of the components in smartphones," said Jeff Fieldhack, Director of Research at Counterpoint Research .

Why Apple hasn't manufactured iPhones in the US.

According to Weaver, the production cost of the Liberty Phone is around $650 . For comparison, TechInsights estimates the production cost of the iPhone 16 Pro Max in China to be around $550 .

To offset high labor costs in the US, Purism had to cut back on many components of the Liberty Phone, such as a single-lens rear camera, a lower-resolution screen, and halved RAM.

A company representative asserted that the Liberty Phone does not compete with the iPhone. According to Weaver, the $2,000 retail price offers a phone with a secure supply chain and high standards. Approximately half of Purism's customers are from U.S. government agencies.

“For consumers, we cater to those who prioritize security, parents looking to buy phones for their children, seniors, or customers who don’t like Big Tech. Those who need super-powerful cameras are not our target customers,” Weaver said.

Some parts and assembly processes for the Liberty Phone take place in the United States. Photo: Purism .

A company representative estimates that within the next six months, they can expand production to 100,000 devices per month. To achieve this, the company needs to invest in machinery, operators, and factory space. Purism does not use venture capital, relying solely on revenue and crowdfunding.

Currently, tariffs have not affected production costs because Purism has already ordered a large quantity of components. The founder asserts that in the long term, tariffs could help make Liberty Phone's production costs more competitive because the cost of inexpensive components will only increase slightly, while some components may soon be manufactured domestically.

However, unlike Purism, analyst Jeff Fieldhack argues that large companies still lack sufficient reason to move the majority of their manufacturing operations to the United States.

"Many factors don't stem from cutting-edge technology; instead, they are due to high costs and still take a long time," emphasized an analyst from Counterpoint Research .

Source: https://znews.vn/day-moi-la-smartphone-made-in-the-usa-thuc-thu-post1564200.html