Trump Mobile said it would start shipping its in-house smartphone, the T1 phone, this week. But signs of actual shipments have not been confirmed, adding to confusion over the launch. Promotional images also showed an error in the U.S. flag design, widening the controversy.

On May 15, local time, IT outlet The Verge reported that T1 phone buyers could not easily confirm a ready-to-ship status in their order accounts. It also said some promotional materials displayed a different number of stripes on the U.S. flag than in the real flag.

At the center of the controversy is the U.S. flag image on the back of the device. The Verge pointed out that the flag in the final released product images shows only 11 stripes. The U.S. flag should have 13 stripes.

The outlet said early prototype-stage materials it checked in February had the correct stripe count. It added that some stripes appeared to have disappeared later as the logo design changed during the final release process.

Confusion was greater in promotional videos. Most scenes showed 11 stripes, but a specific close-up showed only 9. The Verge said it was "wrong by any standard." It added that even within the same video, the rear logo arrangement differed between shots, leaving it unclear what the final design is.

Other exterior details also differed by scene. The gold finish looked matte in some shots and highly glossy in others. The boot screen and the packaging box design were also seen in 3 versions each.

That led some to raise suspicions that generative AI may have been used in producing the promotional video. The Verge also cited the possibility that actual footage was mixed with other sources, such as a scratch on the camera module that appeared only in certain scenes and then disappeared.

Questions about the shipping timeline are also continuing. Trump Mobile has announced deliveries would begin this week, but The Verge said it was hard to find reliable cases online of people receiving actual shipping notifications.

The Verge said the 2 T1 phones it ordered have not yet been accompanied by shipment notification emails. It added that even in its order account, it was not clearly possible to confirm whether the order had been properly received.

On the order page, an item labeled "T1 Deposit" was displayed, but the report said it was linked to mobile plan information that had not been requested. The expiration date was listed as "To be determined."

The Verge said, "It is not even clear what is set to expire," adding that "expectations of actually receiving the phone are only fading."

Trump Mobile did not provide an official response to questions about the controversy. The Verge added that it asked the company for the first time, "Do you know how many stripes are on the U.S. flag?"

Some in the market are also assessing that the controversy is spreading beyond a simple design mistake to questions over actual launch readiness and the credibility of promotional materials. With buyers still not receiving concrete shipment signals even by the time shipping was promised to begin, some expect confusion over the T1 phone’s actual release schedule and product completeness to persist for some time.