Expert "dissects" Trump Organization's newly launched phone model

(NLDO) - The Trump Organization's T1 phone model was initially likely manufactured by a Chinese company despite being advertised as a US-made device.

The Trump Organization, owned by US President Donald Trump's family, has just introduced the T1 phone model, running the Android operating system and expected to retail for $499.

The Trump Organization said the phone would be “made in the USA,” but experts say the device is more likely to be designed and manufactured by a Chinese company.

“There is no way this phone was designed from scratch and there is no way it was assembled or manufactured entirely in the United States. It is absolutely impossible,” Francisco Jeronimo, vice president of market research firm International Data Corp., told CNBC on June 17.

T1 phone model. Photo: trumpmobile.com

Mr. Jeronimo said that the phone will likely be made by a Chinese original equipment manufacturer (ODM), which is a company that designs and manufactures products according to specifications from another company.

Analyst Blake Przesmicki from Counterpoint Research (USA) also said that the original device was likely manufactured by a Chinese ODM despite being promoted as a phone made in the US.

The US “does not have” the domestic manufacturing capacity available, added Jeff Fieldhack, research director at Counterpoint Research.

Smartphone manufacturing has become a hot topic after Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on devices imported into the U.S. Although the tariffs have yet to be implemented, the U.S. President has put pressure on Apple’s supply chain by calling on the iPhone maker to bring production of the device back to the United States.

It is part of a broader effort by Donald Trump to bring electronics manufacturing back to the US.

Trump Organization's Trump Mobile brand was launched on June 16. Photo: Axios

However, many experts say that manufacturing iPhones in the US is almost impossible and will certainly increase the price of the product significantly. Moreover, building large-scale manufacturing capacity in the US will take years.

Even though some manufacturing is done in the US, the smartphone supply chain is global and phone components come from many different countries.

The T1 phone is no exception to this fact. While there is no specific information about the components, the published specifications can give some hints about its production.

The device will have a 6.8-inch AMOLED display – a type of display mainly produced by Samsung and LG (Korea) and BOE (China).

At $499, the T1 will likely use a MediaTek processor, manufactured in Taiwan. If it uses a Qualcomm chip, it will likely be manufactured in Taiwan.

The device’s advertised 50-megapixel camera will require image-sensor chips—a market dominated by Japan’s Sony in smartphones. Smaller suppliers from China and elsewhere may also be involved.

Memory is one area where technology from the US, such as Micron, which has factories in the US, could be used. However, companies like Samsung could also be potential suppliers.

“Even if it has the ability to produce domestically, the company will still have to rely on imported components from outside the US,” said Fieldhack, an expert at Counterpoint Research.

Source: https://nld.com.vn/chuyen-gia-mo-xe-mau-dien-thoai-moi-ra-mat-cua-trump-organization-196250618091956935.htm