In January 2007, Steve Jobs took the stage at the Macworld Conference & Expo to introduce the world to his latest creation: the iPhone. At that time, no one imagined what this small device would represent for the technology and communication industry. The original iPhone forever changed the way we interact with technology and each other.and laid the foundation for the modern era of smartphones.
The launch of the original iPhone was a big risk for Apple. The company was already successful with its line of iPods, but the iPhone was an entirely new device that required a completely different approach and design. Jobs gambled all or nothing with several risky decisions, such as the removal of the physical keyboard in favor of a touch screen, which caused a great deal of controversy at the time. But Jobs was confident that the innovation and simplicity of the iPhone would be enough to make it a success.
“Look, let me show you something”
A dinner, a few months before the launch of the iPhone, brought Steve Jobs and his wife Laurene together with Marc Andreessen, a pioneer in the development of Internet browsers, and his wife. During the evening in Palo Alto and while they were queuing to sit down, Steve Jobs took his personal iPhone prototype out of his pocket to show Andreessen its features and capabilities, saying “Look, let me show you something”.
As reported in Forbes, Jobs gave a full tour of the iPhone that Anderseen still remembers: “After a proper amount of oooh and aaah, I ventured a comment. BlackBerry aficionado like myself, I said, ‘Let’s see , Steve, don’t you think it’s going to be a problem not having a physical keyboard? Are people going to be okay typing directly on the screen?’Jobs stared at him and said, “they’ll get used to it”.
Jobs had unwavering faith in the idea of the iPhone, even as critics questioned its design and functionality. But the success of the iPhone proved him right. Since its launch in 2007, Apple has sold millions of iPhones around the world, making it one of the best-selling smartphones in history.
When you have a good idea, you have to go for it
The original iPhone, while missing a few things, ushered in an era of innovation in the smartphone industry. Before their release, mobile phones were primarily devices for making calls and sending text messages. But the iPhone changed that by combining a phone, music player, and navigation device into one. In addition, the iPhone allowed us to browse the Internet and use applications, which revolutionized the way we interact with technology.
And much of it was possible thanks to the fact that the screen did not have a keyboard under it getting in the way. The keyboard appeared when needed, and disappeared when not needed. A key and also courageous decision to which, certainly, we have all become accustomed and take for granted.
Although the iPhone has evolved significantly since its original release, the idea of an all-in-one device with a touch screen remains a key concept in the smartphone industry. Smartphone manufacturers have embraced the design and functionality of the iPhone and added their own features to try to differentiate themselves. But the original iPhone laid the foundation for this evolution and remains an icon in the history of technology. An icon to which we have become accustomed and enjoy every day.
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