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16 Years Ago Today, Steve Jobs Introduced the iPhone

When the iPhone first came out, it was more exciting and innovative then, to what is today.

Since the X the changes are only small leaps with the main focus being the camera. For this years iphone 15 pro max, I do not merit the rumoured changes to buttons or to the frame as being innovative.

I am only excited to see a usb c port being adopted. Don’t get me wrong I love Apple products, their simplicity, device integration and the OS robustness

But I think in 2024 it’s time Apple ditched the notches dynamic island’s and go full screen. We need a design overhaul & a new improved display, better audio to justify the high price tag.

Apple also needs to opt out the subscription route for every small feature they introduce like car crash detection this is not innovative it’s a cash cow.

We need simplicity & change not subscriptions & Apple Card’s.
 
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philcourage said:
The 4GB or the 8GB one?
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I got the 4GB versions - not knowing whether I would need 8BG for a phone. I also remember showing a business friend the iPhone - she was a huge Blackberry fan and didn’t understand why I would want a fancy iPod phone…until I showed her how I could access a website and have it look just like a laptop or desktop view of the site - vs the BB version that replaced images with name tags and was an unusable hot mess. Being able to zoom into emails was also so easy vs her looking at what must have been 4pt font on her tiny BB screen.
 
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jmgregory1 said:
I got the 4GB versions - not knowing whether I would need 8BG for a phone. I also remember showing a business friend the iPhone - she was a huge Blackberry fan and didn’t understand why I would want a fancy iPod phone…until I showed her how I could access a website and have it look just like a laptop or desktop view of the site - vs the BB version that replaced images with name tags and was an unusable hot mess. Being able to zoom into emails was also so easy vs her looking at what must have been 4pt font on her tiny BB screen.
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Yes, I remember what the web used to look back then on mobile phones. Actually Jobs call it the "baby internet" in the keynote if I'm not misremembering.
 
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Marty80 said:
When the iPhone first came out, it was more exciting and innovative then, to what is today.
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True the iPhone 1 was exciting and innovative. Features like copy and paste were defining characteristics. /s. The next exciting model was the 4. 4s was iterative. Everyone has their own opinion on what constitutes innovation and excellence and spends their money accordingly.
Marty80 said:
Since the X the changes are only small leaps with the main focus being the camera. For this years iphone 15 pro max, I do not merit the rumoured changes to buttons or to the frame as being innovative.
Click to expand...
Sine the X there has been plenty of innovation.
Marty80 said:
I am only excited to see a usb c port being adopted. Don’t get me wrong I love Apple products, their simplicity, device integration and the OS robustness
Click to expand...
Usb c is at the bottom of the list.
Marty80 said:
But I think in 2024 it’s time Apple ditched the notches dynamic island’s and go full screen. We need a design overhaul & a new improved display, better audio to justify the high price tag.
Click to expand...
Apple will do what it does and you will buy or not.
Marty80 said:
Apple also needs to opt out the subscription route for every small feature they introduce like car crash detection this is not innovative it’s a cash cow.
Click to expand...
You think car crash detection is subscription based?
Marty80 said:
We need simplicity & change not subscriptions & Apple Card’s.
Click to expand...
Nobody is forcing you to get a subscription or Apple Card.
 
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The original iPhone was definitely as transformative and disruptive product, despite how limited it actually was. Only with the introduction of the App Store and the addition of 3G in the second iteration did it really take off for me.

Anyway, I think the iPhone is a success story but also a cautionary tale of how quickly and completely a market can shift. The one thing it did completely right was making it easier to do things and bring the internet, the phone as a music player and messaging machine to people who previously used their phones for calls. Yes it had cool new hardware features like Multitouch, but more than anything it really transformed how I used my phone.

I feel iOS and the iPhone have gotten a bit stale over the years. Stale at a very high, comfortable and reliable level, but stale nonetheless. They have improved the cameras and the screens and whatnot, but my iPhone 13 still somehow feels very similar to the iPhone 7 it replaced.

Maybe I'm being unfair, but I can't think of a single feature introduced in the last 5 years that really changed the iPhone experience significantly.

That's a stable ecosystem and user experience, which many appreciate. I don't know what the next big thing is going to be, but there's no guarantees that it will come from Apple unless they actually innovate. Their hardware continues to be great and their chips amazing, but I do think Apple really needs to put a bit more effort again into software. In the last couple of years, more often than not Google announcements for Android sound more exciting than Apple announcements for iOS.
 
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One thing I remember from that event is that no one held up their smart phone to take a photo or video! It was very cool how Steve kept repeating an iPod, a Phone and an Internet Communication device. By the second or third time it dawned on everyone that these were one device. He let us realize this on our own.

We’ll probably never see another revolutionary device like the iPhone in our lifetime. Steve himself at that event said that you would be lucky to participate in one such event in your lifetime.

The appearance of the iPhone was the birth of a new platform. Just like the Model T ushered in popular motoring, the iPhone brought us internet connected computers in our pockets. The iPhone 14 is a fantastic new iPhone. Compared to my iPhone 11 it has a much better screen, better radios, better speakers, faster and smoother operation, much better battery life, better cameras and on and on.

The iPhone will likely not be replaced in a long time because the iPhone is not a specific thing like a cabbage patch doll. It is a platform that subsumes new technologies as they come along.
 
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neutrino17 said:
The iPhone will likely not be replaced in a long time because the iPhone is not a specific thing like a cabbage patch doll. It is a platform that subsumes new technologies as they come along.
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This is a correct analysis. In fact, I much more readily see the iPhone subsuming all AR technologies better than a VR headset can.
The iPhone basically prevented Nintendo and all other game developers from ever creating a gaming handheld device. It killed its own brother, the iPod Touch. It is killing the physical credit card, healthcare cards, etc. It destroyed the handheld flashlight market, consumer calculators, even physical notepads.

It won't be replaced. Tech has slowed down now, despite marketing trying to make you think it's still making major leaps. All future iPhones will be iterations on the same theme, which really takes its historical evolution from the iPhone X -> iPhone 6 -> iPhone 3G -> Mac OS X timeline.
 
allenvanhellen said:
I'd pay iPhone 15 Pro Max 1TB prices for something the size of the original iPhone... and hopefully with its non-neon UX color scheme.
Click to expand...

The Mini is the closest you'll get to it. It even fits the old wallet's I had to my 5.
Haven’t been this happy with a phone since…then 😊

915CC8F4-869F-4488-B61A-D56677704D8D.png
 
What a day that was, after the announcement we all went to Tu Lan for lunch and talked about how all our phones felt obsolete. I had a Blackberry pearl at the time which I thought was advance at the time.
 
Steve Jobs changed the world. Jobs as well as his innovative mind will long be remembered
 
d686546s said:
The original iPhone was definitely as transformative and disruptive product, despite how limited it actually was. Only with the introduction of the App Store and the addition of 3G in the second iteration did it really take off for me.

Anyway, I think the iPhone is a success story but also a cautionary tale of how quickly and completely a market can shift. The one thing it did completely right was making it easier to do things and bring the internet, the phone as a music player and messaging machine to people who previously used their phones for calls. Yes it had cool new hardware features like Multitouch, but more than anything it really transformed how I used my phone.

I feel iOS and the iPhone have gotten a bit stale over the years. Stale at a very high, comfortable and reliable level, but stale nonetheless. They have improved the cameras and the screens and whatnot, but my iPhone 13 still somehow feels very similar to the iPhone 7 it replaced.

Maybe I'm being unfair, but I can't think of a single feature introduced in the last 5 years that really changed the iPhone experience significantly.

That's a stable ecosystem and user experience, which many appreciate. I don't know what the next big thing is going to be, but there's no guarantees that it will come from Apple unless they actually innovate. Their hardware continues to be great and their chips amazing, but I do think Apple really needs to put a bit more effort again into software. In the last couple of years, more often than not Google announcements for Android sound more exciting than Apple announcements for iOS.
Click to expand...


I agree with you. It seems like since 2007 Apple have had a _tremendous_ 16 year run of increasing market share and cumulative product innovation , all based around the iPhone. But others have caught up. It now feels like I only stay with iPhone because it's what I'm used to. I'm sure if I had a decent Samsung android for a few months I'd be happy. It's not like my phone NEEDS to integrate with my apple Mac anymore. Most people I know use WhatsApp or Telegram and don't use iMessage. ALL of the apps I use are cross platform. So I'll stay, but if you were choosing between Android and Apple now, and you had no preference, why would you pick an iPhone over a similarly premium Samsung?

It's a different market now, a mature one.

I've no doubt Apple have teams trying all kinds of things out desperately seeking the 'next iPhone' product that will give them that kind of stellar growth. It's hard to think of a device category which commands a good price and which almost everyone wants to own.

There are white-goods and other home appliances, but the competition is massive and the margins are low. Would apple bother making an Oven or a Fridge? They've not bothered (despite almost doing so under Steve) with a full standalone TV, instead bringing out a set-top-box. The 'Apple Car' always seems 5 years away and it certainly won't be self-driving as we know this tech is decades away.

It's a shame apple haven't focussed on doing some of the things they already do _incredibly well_. Apple Music should be the _perfect_ experience. Apple have nigh unlimited resources, millions of users and some of the best engineers on earth. Apple Music should be the absolute best managed service, with all music being beautifully curated, the user experience being outstanding etc. It should never fail. all searching and discover should be as rich as it is on macOS as it is on iPhone. Was using Apple Music the other day and realised that I can't just sort my music library by date released, or 'last date played'. Simply not supported on iPhone. This is mad, and also sloppy.
 
Somehow smartphones still feel like a "new" concept. It has truly changed the world.
 
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