Remember the buzz around the Trump Phone? It was supposed to be the next big thing, a device that would shake up the smartphone market. But here's the shocking truth: it doesn’t exist—yet. Last week, I revisited the question of its whereabouts (https://www.theverge.com/news/810500/where-is-the-trump-phone), and the answer remains the same: nowhere. No updates, no responses, no signs of life. So, I’m asking again—and I’ll keep asking until I have a T1 Phone in my hands. This is my mission now.
Since my last inquiry, nothing has changed. The website remains stagnant, with no release date beyond the vague promise of ‘this year.’ My emails to Trump Mobile have gone unanswered, and the company’s social media channels are eerily silent. It’s as if the project has vanished into thin air—but not before securing something valuable: people’s money.
And this is the part most people miss: Trump Mobile didn’t just promise a phone; it demanded a $100 deposit for preorders. That’s money early buyers have been without for nearly five months. Now, let’s talk about money—and let me be clear, this is not financial advice—but money has a way of growing. Even if Trump Mobile never built a single smartphone (and there’s no evidence they’ve tried), those deposits alone could generate income. How much, you ask?
Since I’m no financial expert, I turned to the intriguing stoculator.com (http://stoculator.com/) for insights. According to this site—which I’ll trust for the sake of argument—if the Trump family had invested that $100 in Elon Musk’s Tesla on June 16th, the day the Trump Phone was announced (https://www.theverge.com/news/687418/trump-mobile-network-t1-trademark-application), it would now be worth $131.90, a tidy profit of $31.90. Investing in Apple? Even better—$136.57, with a $36.57 gain. The S&P 500 would yield a more modest $110.79, but still, that’s over $10 in profit.
Sure, per phone, it’s not a fortune. But here’s the controversial part: We have no idea how many preorders Trump Mobile sold, how many $100 deposits they collected, or how many $30 returns they’ve processed—or denied. How many people have been left in the lurch, unable to reclaim their money? It’s a question that deserves answers.
The Trump Organization, unsurprisingly, has remained silent despite requests for comment. So, I’ll leave you with this thought-provoking question: Is the Trump Phone a legitimate venture or just another example of vaporware preying on eager consumers? Let’s discuss in the comments—I want to hear your take.
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Dominic Preston
