Published 11/22/2023
You might take your iPhone for granted, or maybe you can’t live without it. But how much do you know about its development and introduction? This week, Tidbits dials up some facts about this revolutionary invention.
• Apple started working on its secret project, the iPhone, in 2005 under the code name “Project Purple 2.” Only a very limited number of engineers and employees were privy to the confidential venture. A touchscreen smartphone had been in their minds long before.
• Steve Jobs introduced the first iPhone to the world in San Francisco on January 9, 2007 with the words, “Today, Apple is going to reinvent the phone.” It was 16 GB phone with 128 MB of memory and a 2.0 megapixel camera offering internet access on a phone! About 300,000 were sold over the first weekend after the debut, with a sticker price of $499, about $700 in today’s dollars.
• The first iPhone was sold only with AT&T (Cingular) contracts, and buyers were unable to use any other carrier without unlocking the device. AT&T charged a fee of $175 for those who discontinued the service before the end of their contract.
• There was no iPhone 2. In June, 2009, Apple introduced the 3G and the 3GS, which weren’t much different than the original, except the 3GS had a 32GB storage option. And although every smartphone today comes pre-installed with an app store, Apple was the first to offer consumers the App Stores that offered the legal download of apps, added to the 3GS.
• When a consumer purchases an Apple device, an End User License Agreement is included with the product. It’s likely that most people don’t read it, considering that the document is about 18,000 words.
• Why do Apple devices start with the letter “i”? According to Steve Jobs’ statement when he debuted the iMac in 1998, the “i” stands for “internet.” He later added the words Inspire, Instruct, Individual, and Inform.
• Selfies became the new thing in 2010 with the launch of the iPhone 4. It was the first iPhone to have a front-facing camera. In October of the following year, the 4S was released, with sales of 4 million in the first week. Eleven months later, the iPhone 5 experienced sales of 5 million units in its first week.
• Major improvements were made to the phone’s camera in 2016, with the release of the iPhone 7, with continued advancements since then. From the first iPhone to today, the camera has increased from 2 megapixels to an astounding 48 MP. The current phone’s battery is able to support 28 hours of non-stop video playback.
• Since the beginning, Apple has released close to 40 new iPhones. The lastest iPhone 15 Pro, with a minimum of 128 GB storage capacity and available up to 1 TB, has a starting price $999, while the Pro Max, with its minimum of 256 GB, starts at $1,199. • Of the many products offered by Apple, including Mac Pro, IPad, Apple watch, iTunes, Apple TV, and a host of others, the iPhone is responsible for about 55% of Apple’s total revenue. During 2022, they earned about $205 billion strictly from sales of the iPhone. There are over 900 million iPhone users worldwide, with the majority of them in China. The U.S. has upwards of 110 million iPhone users, accounting for 45% of all smartphone use in the nation. The estimated value of the Apple Corporation is close to $2.75 trillion.
