Inside Trump’s $499 T1 phone: Gold outside, HTC inside

The newly launched Trump Mobile T1 smartphone has made waves in the U.S. market, but a recent teardown by iFixit raises questions about its originality. The T1 is found to be strikingly similar to the HTC U24 Pro, an Android device introduced by HTC in 2024. Using advanced X-ray computed tomography, iFixit discovered that the two smartphones share the same fundamental design and hardware. A detailed physical teardown confirmed these findings, revealing that most internal components are either identical or closely aligned. The primary distinctions between the two models are largely cosmetic, with the Trump Mobile T1 featuring a gold exterior and slight modifications to its chassis and speaker grille. Despite these superficial changes, the T1 retains the core specifications of the HTC U24 Pro, which boasts a 6.8-inch display powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 processor. Both devices come equipped with 12GB of RAM and storage options of 256GB or 512GB. They also feature a similar triple-camera arrangement, including two 50-megapixel sensors and an 8-megapixel camera, along with a robust 4,600mAh battery. Interestingly, iFixit noted a slightly larger battery in the Trump-branded version. The teardown revealed that several components of the T1 were sourced from the Philippines, which may point to an effort to reduce reliance on Chinese manufacturing for critical parts, particularly batteries. While the HTC U24 Pro was priced at $469.99 upon its release, the Trump Mobile T1 enters the market at $499, reflecting a modest premium for a device based on hardware that debuted two years prior. Once a dominant player in the Android smartphone sector, HTC has seen its influence wane significantly over the years.