Trump Mobile T1 teardown uncovers two-year-old HTC phone inside

Then JerryRigEverything swapped its motherboard with a two-year-old HTC phone, and both devices booted.That's the result of Zack Nelson's teardown of the gold-coloured T1.

It adds a second set of evidence to iFixit's earlier findings that the T1 is a lightly modified HTC U24 Pro.Level 6 scratch occurs on the display screen, while level 7 occurs due to deep scratches.

This is fairly common in modern smartphones.

In addition, the metal frame remained in good shape, and the phone did not break apart.Another interesting thing that Nelson found is a strange feature.

The phone had been exposed to water before, but the liquid damage indicators were white, implying that no water touched them.Compare the inside of the T1 to the HTC U24 Pro released in 2024.

The screws, motherboard design, battery location and even the model number written on the daughter board are the same.Visually, the T1 differs from the HTC only by having the same dimensions, position of buttons, headphone jack, and microSD slot.

What is different is the golden-coloured plastic cover and the camera module.iFixit's earlier teardown put the HTC's motherboard into the T1 in one direction.

Nelson swapped them both ways.

Each phone booted and worked in the other's body.iFixit also found the chipset, RAM and storage match.

It reported the T1 has a larger battery that charges more slowly.

An iFixit engineer speculated that Trump Mobile may have contracted a factory already set up to make the U24 Pro.The T1 deserves credit for surviving the abuse.

But if its motherboard works inside a 2024 HTC, you have to ask what you're paying for that HTC hadn't already built.

Trump Mobile T1 teardown uncovers two-year-old HTC phone inside October 29, 2026.