Technologies

Trump Mobile and its T1 Phone Don’t Make Any Sense, Even for Trump Fans

Commentary: If you make a splashy announcement and expect to be taken seriously, you need to have your specs accurately written.

The Trump Organization launched its own Trump Mobile phone service and a gold-colored $499 T1 Phone on June 16, and while we often see new whitelabeled phone services or phones themed after influential people, this announcement leaves a lot of unanswered questions that you normally should know the answers to before buying a phone plan and a new device.

Trump Mobile’s T1 Phone, and every way it’s misspelled

Starting with the T1 phone itself, the new device was announced with a specs list that didn’t make sense. While there has been a revision of the phone’s product page, there are still key details that are missing. A phone’s processor is one of its key selling points, but at launch under the «Processor & RAM» on the Trump Mobile site, a processor wasn’t listed at all. The processor remains unlisted, but the corresponding column on that page now uses it to state its gold color. After originally claiming 12GB of RAM, that spec has disappeared. But it will have 256GB of internal storage that is expandable with a microSD card slot. There’s no such thing as a «Punch-Hole AMOLED» display, but it appears that’s what Trump Mobile’s website refers to as the space for the front-facing camera. That display is apparently either 6.8 inches or 6.78 — who’s to say? And the «5,000mAh long life camera» originally listed — which probably should have referenced a battery — has since been corrected to reflect a 5,000-mAh battery with a 20-watt charging speed.

In terms of specs that were better spelled out at launch, the phone runs on Android 15, has an in-screen fingerprint sensor, and includes a headphone jack. It will have a 50-megapixel main camera, a 2-megapixel macro camera, a 2-megapixel depth sensor and a single 16-megapixel selfie camera around the front.

There’s no reference to where the phone is assembled, although the main Trump Mobile site exclaims, «it’s proudly made right here in the USA.» That’s particularly eye-opening given that this type of phone — no manufacturer is named — is not currently manufactured anywhere in the US. If it does turn out to be a phone made outside the US, the constantly fluctuating US tariffs are expected to increase the cost of electronics. (Analyst Max Weinbach did some sleuthing and thinks the phone is actually the Chinese-made Wingtech REVVL 7 Pro 5G, which you can buy for $169.) For reference, the only other phone currently manufactured in the US appears to be the Liberty Phone, which is $1,999 and comes with 4GB of memory and 128GB of storage.

If you’re wondering when the release date is, good luck getting a straight answer. It’s either «Coming Soon» in August or September, depending on whether you’re looking at the press release or the website, respectively. And if you do buy it, hopefully you’ll love it, because, according to the terms, «All sales are final and non-refundable» unless otherwise determined on a case-by-case basis. To preorder a T1 Phone costs $100 (or less, if the ordering system is working).

I have to level with you: I wouldn’t give a company $500 if it can’t even list the most basic product information correctly on a page that was clearly thrown together hastily — much less without any sort of refund policy.

Trump Mobile’s phone service has many unanswered questions

While it is attention-grabbing, it’s not all that surprising to see the Trump Organization launch a mobile service. The organization itself has a history of running through lots of different businesses, and other politically bent digital services also have a long history. In 2014, for instance, former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin launched her own streaming service at $10 a month following an initial stint of reality TV hosting and then shuttered it after a year.

Trump Mobile, however, appears to have launched with a plan that uses its namesake’s presidency as its selling point, as opposed to introducing it as a good deal for consumers. There’s one plan named The 47 Plan, which costs $47.45 simply to coincide with President Donald Trump’s status as the 45th and 47th president of the United States. We don’t know what carriers Trump Mobile runs on, but the website claims it’s «working on all three major carriers.» The plan includes «Device Protection» but adds an asterisk that the protection is not insurance, nor does it clarify what it will protect about your device. It also mentions roadside assistance provided by Drive America and telehealth services provided by Doctegrity, which offers «contactless blood pressure [and] heart rate monitoring» — services that Doctegrity may cover, but which likely are not directly tied to the phone. We’ve reached out to Trump Mobile for clarification on these features.

Like with the T1 Phone page, the 47 Plan page includes questionable references and misspellings. Specifically, after checking if your phone is compatible, «then all you need to purchase is a plan that best fits your needs,» but there’s only one plan. There are no other choices. And you can check that compatibility by «Go into Setting on your Phone» listing both «for Iphone» and the correctly spelled «for Android» steps.

One other step is a bit of a throwback: It asks for you to «Remove your phone’s battery» to look for the IMEI on a sticker. And trust me, I miss user-replaceable phone batteries too, but nowadays getting battery access requires a rather complicated self-service repair kit.

While we haven’t tested Trump Mobile, it’s again hard to argue that creating a business relationship like buying cellphone service might not be the best idea when the seller doesn’t appear to have their information organized for potential customers.

Better deals than Trump Mobile and the T1 Phone

There are many better phones that cost $500 or less, and cellphone providers are offering unlimited data plans for less than $47.45.

If you need a phone for $500, Google’s $499 Pixel 9A includes seven years of software support, comes in nice colors like Iris purple, works with nearly every carrier (likely including Trump Mobile) and is available for sale here and now. It runs on a Google Tensor G4 processor. Motorola’s Moto G and Samsung’s Galaxy A lines also provide lots of options for even less money.

On the mobile network side, the sky’s almost the limit when it comes to value-oriented carriers. Verizon’s Visible, T-Mobile’s Mint Mobile and AT&T’s Cricket offer plans that are as low as $25 a month for comparable unlimited benefits. And if you want to break away from the big three carriers, Dish’s Boost Mobile has been building out a new fourth network that’s using price to draw in new customers.

There are just so many options for buying a phone and mobile service that put a better foot forward. And with a selling point primarily based around Trump’s fans, it’s quite possible that someone’s going to sign up for a service and a phone for fandom rather than actually getting a good deal. And even worse, no refunds either.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Dec. 25 #662

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Dec. 25, No. 662.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle has a holiday theme, and if you know a certain Christmas carol, you’ll quickly determine which words to hunt down. Some of the answers are difficult to unscramble, so if you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Carolers count.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Five golden rings.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

RIMS, HIMS, MARS, CHIME, CHIMES, MADS, DATE, DIAL, WAIL

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

LORDS, MAIDS, SWANS, LADIES, PIPERS, DRUMMERS

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is CHRISTMASDAYS. To find it, look for the C that’s three letters down on the far-left row, and wind across.

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Toughest Strands puzzles

Here are some of the Strands topics I’ve found to be the toughest in recent weeks.

#1: Dated slang, Jan. 21. Maybe you didn’t even use this lingo when it was cool. Toughest word: PHAT.

#2: Thar she blows! Jan.15. I guess marine biologists might ace this one. Toughest word: BALEEN or RIGHT.

#3: Off the hook, Jan. 9. Similar to the Jan. 15 puzzle in that it helps to know a lot about sea creatures. Sorry, Charlie. Toughest word: BIGEYE or SKIPJACK.

Technologies

Judge Blocks Texas App Store Age-Check Law

A preliminary injunction found the Texas law, set to begin Jan. 1, is «more likely than not unconstitutional.»

A new Texas state law set to take effect on Jan. 1 would have required app stores to implement age verification processes. But the law has been put on hold, at least temporarily, by a federal court judge.

As reported by the Texas Tribune, Senate Bill 2420, also known as the Texas App Store Accountability Act, is the subject of a temporary injunction issued by US District Judge Robert Pitman.

Pitman said in his decision that the law as written is broad, vague and «more likely than not unconstitutional.» However, he also wrote the court «recognizes the importance of ongoing efforts to better safeguard children when they are on their devices.»

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The Texas law, signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott in May, requires app store operators — including Apple, Google, Nintendo, Steam and more — to build age verification processes for the storefronts and to only allow downloads to minors who obtain parental consent. The injunction is a ruling in an October lawsuit filed by the Computer & Communication Industry Association.

CCIA senior vice president Stephanie Joyce said in a statement, «This Order stops the Texas App Store Accountability Act from taking effect in order to preserve the First Amendment rights of app stores, app developers, parents, and younger internet users. It also protects parents’ inviolate right to use their own judgment in safeguarding their children online using the myriad tools our members provide.»

Other individuals and the advocacy group Students Engaged in Advancing Texas also filed suits over the law, the Texas Tribune reported.

App Store Accountability Act

The bill author, State Senator Angela Paxton, said the bill was meant to give parents «common sense tools to protect their kids and to survive court challenges by those who may have lesser priorities.»

The language of Texas Senate Bill 2420 does not only include mobile app stores from Apple or Google, but any «website, software application, or other electronic service that distributes software applications from the owner or developer of a software application to the user of a mobile device.»

By that definition, websites with links to browser games or mobile game consoles with download options would fall under the Texas law as written. The law also defines mobile devices as including phones and tablets, as well as any other handheld device capable of transmitting or storing information wirelessly.

The parental consent aspect of the law requires those under 18 to have an app store account affiliated with a parent or guardian to purchase or download applications.

Age verification elsewhere

In an effort to keep adult materials out of reach of minors and to protect children from potentially harmful content and interactions, tech companies have been compelled by law or through legal action to verify the age of users.

Roblox, which has a huge audience of minors, began rolling out stricter age verification after investigations and lawsuits hurt its reputation as a safe gaming space. Australia is perhaps the most large-scale example of a government restricting access to online content. In December, Australia began restricting social media access to those 16 and older. Reddit recently challenged that law.

In the US, age verification laws have primarily targeted adult sites. Texas already has a law on the books that requires adult sites to age-block their content. The Supreme Court upheld that law in a June ruling. The UK has also enacted age restriction rules for adult sites as have other US states.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Thursday, Dec. 25

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Dec. 25.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Of course, there’s a very Christmassy clue involved. And once you solve the entire puzzle, look at the letters used in all the answers and see what they have in common. (5-Across will tell you!) Read on for all the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.