“Spray painted gold so the idiots stand out:” who would buy Trump Mobile?
All that glitters is not gold, and neither is the T1 Phone, say netizens, with an expert presenting two sides of the same coin.
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All that glitters is not gold, and neither is the T1 Phone, say netizens, with an expert presenting two sides of the same coin.
The Trump Organization recently launched a mobile service together with a $499 smartphone.
Trump Mobile is a new wireless carrier offering 5G service, unlimited calls, texts, and data for $47.45 a month that can be used on consumers ' already existing phones.
But those who want to “boost” their experience can also pre-order the “gold version” T1 Phone for $499.
The news about the Trump Organization’s new venture started a discussion online, mostly focusing on the launch of T1 Phone.
“Surely, the phone is made in the USA, right?” asked one user, with another replying, “Not for $500, it ain't.”
A number of netizens commented on the smartphone’s design.
“The thing looks horrible, spray painted gold so the idiots stand out,” wrote one user.
“I like my idiots to stand out. That way I can avoid them,” added another.
“Guess that Emoluments Clause really is meaningless,” noted another user, referring to a clause that restricts certain government officials from accepting gifts, offices, titles, and similar from foreign governments. The clause is designed to prevent corruption.
At the beginning of the year, Trump introduced new tariffs that would affect a number of consumer goods, including electronics.
Some users took this situation into consideration, by stating that “it's pointless to say but putting tariffs on competition to raise their prices then releasing your own products seems hella illegal.”
“This explains why he’s fucking with Apple so much,” noted another netizen. Last month, it was reported that Trump warned the company that it would have to pay a 25% tariff if its products weren’t made in the US.
“If this thing isn’t 100% made in America, everything from aluminum to chips, to phone OS, will that be Art of the Deal, America First, an act of Stable Genius or what?” wrote another user with another netizen stating: “Trump logo makes it ok, no tariffs needed because Trump is le patriot.”
“A thousand percent this is to collect and sell user data. Everything is a grift with this douche,” wrote another Redditor.
Michael Ashley Schulman, partner and chief investment officer at Running Point Capital Advisors, explains that “Trump Mobile is basically a celebrity-branded MVNO that will resell capacity it buys wholesale while wrapping the plan in red, white, and gold marketing.”
While the organization tries to brand the deal through “made-in-America,” online discussion raises the question of how many people will actually buy it.
Nevertheless, Schulman notes that “the suite of services being offered – including roadside assistance, telehealth, and complete device protection (the kind of services sometimes offered by high-end credit cards), if they really come to fruition, could make the plan quite competitive.”