(Image credit: Trump Mobile)
Almost a year after the launch of Trump Mobile and nine months after the Trump T1 Phone was supposed to reach customers, the golden phone bearing the President's name is finally here. Well, kind of, anyway, and the early verdict is... not great.CNET and NBC News have both received T1 devices, with the former doing a more in-depth review of the phone's capabilities. However, we should point out that CNET claims their order was expedited by Trump Mobile, and as best as I can tell, no other outlets have been able to review the Trump T1 for themselves.With NBC News not assessing the phone in great detail, it means the only strong impressions we currently have of the T1 come from Cnet's one hands-on review. That's worth bearing in mind, though it doesn't change the fact that the Trump T1 seems embarrassingly mediocre.Trump T1 Phone: The Good
(Image credit: Trump Mobile)Software is apparently the stock version of Android, which means there's no specialist "TrumpOS" skin layered over the top. This means software updates should be fairly easy, though we don't know what kind of support the T1 will actually get. Bloatware is minimal, comprising the Truth Social and Doctegrity telemedicine apps — and yes, they can both be uninstalled.The battery is also listed as having 5,000 mAh of capacity, which is always a fairly good sign for longevity. Stress-testing saw the battery drop by 10% after 45 minutes, and down by 22% after a three-hour YouTube binge. This isn't amazing battery performance, and means the T1 isn't going to land a place on our best phone battery life page, but it also isn't particularly bad battery life, either.The 30W charging speed also isn't terrible, and a full recharge apparently takes around an hour. Oh, and there is a charging brick included, which means you can get those speeds right out of the box.Trump Mobile has done more than make this phone, and the company is powered by the Florida-based Liberty Mobile mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). Liberty is powered by T-Mobile, which means you should get similar levels of coverage as you would with T-Mobile and other MVNOs that utilize its infrastructure. Call quality was nothing to write home about, but it also apparently wasn't that bad either.Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips.There's also a 3.5mm headphone jack, which is a rarity these days, but something that I do dearly miss on flagship phones, and you get a basic transparent case in the box.Trump T1 Phone: The Bad
