"Inside the Trump T1: All Chinese Parts, Identical Screws... The Truth Behind the Boasted Gold Phone"

Almost Identical to China-Made HTC U24 Pro
Internal Layout Matches Exactly; Only Battery and Exterior Differ

An analysis has revealed that the 'T1' smartphone released by the family of U.S. President Donald Trump is almost identical to an older Chinese-made smartphone. Although the product was launched last month with a focus on being assembled in America and marketed as American-made, it has been found that the actual hardware is nearly the same as that of a Chinese-manufactured smartphone released two years ago.

Trump Mobile T1 Phone. Trump Mobile

On June 12, Yonhap News reported this by citing iFixit, a website specializing in consumer product repair guides. According to iFixit, which conducted a CT scan and a physical teardown of the T1 on June 10 (local time), the internal structure of this smartphone is almost exactly the same as that of HTC's 'U24 Pro', which was released in June 2024.

Trump Mobile T1. Screenshot of the Trump Mobile homepage

Although HTC is headquartered in Taiwan, the U24 Pro is an Original Design Manufacturer (ODM) product made by Yuanchang Electronics in Guangdong Province, China. iFixit explained that, during the CT scan phase before disassembly, it was confirmed that the internal layouts of the two devices were nearly identical. While there were slight differences in the position of the camera flash and the speaker grille pattern on the exterior, opening the back cover revealed that the flash’s internal component location was the same—only the flex cable had been lengthened in one device. The speaker components and their arrangement were also identical. The core circuit boards of both devices were completely the same, and both used the third-generation Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 (SM7550) system-on-chip (SoC). iFixit reported that removing the mainboard from the U24 Pro and swapping it with the T1’s mainboard resulted in perfect functionality.

For the multi-chip package that contains the RAM and storage, the T1 used Micron components while the U24 Pro used SK hynix components in the units compared. However, iFixit noted that the sourcing of such parts can vary even within the same model due to supply chain or tariff issues, and therefore is not particularly significant. Additionally, the shapes, layouts, screw positions, and tamper-evident sticker locations of other components were also found to be nearly identical. Both models use a 'Pentile' 1080×2436 OLED display, and microscopic comparison showed that the pixel density and arrangement matched 100%.

The only differences were in the battery capacity and the exterior finish. The T1 uses a 5,000mAh battery supplied by Neurix Manufacturing from the Philippines, whereas the HTC U24 Pro uses a 4,600mAh battery supplied by Huizhou Highpower Technology from China. Due to the battery difference, the T1 can only be charged at a maximum of 30W, while the U24 Pro supports up to 60W charging. In conclusion, except for the fact that the Trump Mobile T1 features a gold-colored finish, a slightly larger battery, and half the charging speed compared to the HTC U24 Pro, the two devices are effectively almost identical models.

iFixit assessed the T1, stating that it was “designed in China, manufactured in China, and most of its components are Chinese-made.” The site also pointed out that, while the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has very clear requirements for labeling a device as 'Made in America,' the policies regarding labeling as 'Assembled in America' are not as clearly defined.

After several launch delays, Trump Mobile’s T1 was officially released for sale in May, with a price of $499 (approximately 760,000 won).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.