Advertisement
The Trump family has entered the wireless market with the launch of Trump Mobile, a new phone service announced via press release on Trump.com. Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump are the faces behind the launch.
Trump Mobile Plan Details
The service currently offers just one phone plan, aptly named the “47 Plan,” priced at $47.45/month plus taxes and fees. The name and price are symbolic, referencing Donald Trump as the 45th and 47th U.S. President. Here’s what the 47 Plan includes:
- Coverage on the T-Mobile network (see note below*)
- 20GB of high-speed data before throttling
- Unlimited talk and text
- Calling to 100+ international destinations
- Mobile hotspot included
- Talk and text to Canada and Mexico
- Prepaid, no credit checks required
- U.S.-based support, headquartered in St. Louis, MO
- Instant activation via eSIM or physical SIM
- Free roadside assistance, with up to $100 in towing benefits (provided by Drive America)
- Free device protection, up to $2,000/year (Omega Mobile Care)
- Telehealth services, including virtual care and prescription deliveries
Network Confusion
*A press release announcing the new mobile service states that Trump Mobile will offer 5G service through all three major cellular carriers. This implies AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. The release also states "Working with all three major carriers, Trump Mobile is on the nation's largest 5G network, so customers will have a strong signal, coast to coast." The nation's largest 5G network is T-Mobile so I'm not sure how everything fits together. I inspected the code on the Trump Mobile website and there are references to T-Mobile in it, and no other providers, which you can see in the screenshot below.
There's Also A Trump Phone, T1
A $499 phone was also announced with the phone plan called the T1. The gold colored phone is scheduled to release in either August or September but is available for preorder now with a $100 down payment. It has the following specs:
- 6.8" AMOLED display, 120Hz refresh rate
- 50MP main camera, plus 2MP macro and depth sensors
- 16MP front camera
- 5000mAh battery with 20W fast charging
- In-screen fingerprint sensor, AI face unlock
- 256GB storage, expandable via microSD
- 12GB RAM
- 3.5mm headphone jack
It's unknown who the manufacturer of the phone is or even what processor it uses. The phone will supposedly be made in the USA, however, comments made by Eric Trump would seem to indicate it will initially be manufactured overseas. If I had guess, given that Trump Mobile support headquarters is out of St Louis I'd reason the Trump team is working with another company out of St Louis called DIALN to help design the phones.
Editor's Take
This is one expensive phone plan, particularly with the insane amount they are charging for taxes and fees. The taxes and fees in my area when I went through a simulated checkout process totaled an additional $15.62/month. This increased the total price of the bill for me to $63.07/month. I've never seen taxes that high on a $47 phone plan before.
In terms of overall value, the 20GB high-speed data allotment before speeds are throttled is not competitive at all. Using the BestMVNO phone plan comparison tool, you can see that $47.45 is one of the most expensive plans on the market for a 20GB plan with very few providers charging more. A majority of plans on the market cost $30 or less for that data allotment. Many carrier owned prepaid brands right now are even offering truly unlimited 5G data plans for as little as $20/month. This underscores a larger issue that I’ll continue to emphasize as long as it persists: carriers must allow their MVNO partners to offer truly unlimited 5G data plans. Without that, MVNOs can’t compete on equal footing, and the future of the independent MVNO market is at serious risk..
WTH kind of fees are included in the $15.62 “tax”?