Donald Trump Jr. participates in the announcement of Trump Mobile, in New York’s Trump Tower, Monday, June 16. Richard Drew/APNew YorkCNN —
When the Trump Organization unveiled its new Trump Mobile wireless service on Monday, it said its upcoming T1 smartphone will be “proudly designed and built in the United States.”
But experts told CNN they’re skeptical that a smartphone can be built in the US based on the specifications, price and timeline laid out by Donald Trump, Jr., and Eric Trump, when they announced the phone.
Experts pointed out striking similarities between the T1’s specifications and an already available, Chinese-made phone.
“Unless the Trump family secretly built out a secure, onshore or nearshore (fabrication) operation over years of work without anyone noticing, it’s simply not possible to deliver what they’re promising,” said Todd Weaver, CEO of Purism, one of the only known companies to actually manufacture a cell phone in the United States.
CNN has reached out to the Trump Organization for comment.
President Donald Trump is not involved in the daily operations of the Trump Organization, which is run by the president’s eldest sons, the company said in January. The announcement comes as the president has been pushing to bring manufacturing jobs back to the United States, particularly in the tech industry. He’s pressured companies like Apple and Samsung to manufacture their phones in the US, saying companies who make their phones elsewhere will face a tariff of at least 25%.
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