It’s been 15 years since Apple co-founder Steve Jobs announced the world’s first iPhone.
It has become Apple’s definitive product and, as many claim, a flagship device. The entire company is located around it.
Few products have reached a similar level of brand awareness after 10 and a half years.
Introduced to an enthusiastic audience in 2007, the iPhone has revolutionized the way we communicate and even our daily lives.
And this year, the 14th iteration of the device will be announced in September.
Big screen revolution
The iPhone was released in the United States in June 2007 and in six more countries in November (not specifically in Australia).
From the launch of Mac computers in the 1970s to the iPod in 2001, Apple already knew how to interact with viewers and encourage an extraordinary level of hype when launching a product.
Early reviews of the iPhone shined almost universally, praising Apple’s attention to detail and style. The only problem that was flagged was the network connection. This was a problem with the slow network of the telco, not the device itself.
It was not surprising that consumers appreciated the style of the iPhone. This showed a new trend towards smartphones with large screens (although it still reflects the shape of the phone). The Nokia N95 is another example that hit the market in the same year.
The original iPhone provided wifi, supported 2G EDGE connections, and had internet download speeds of less than 500Kbps (compared to current multiMbps speeds).
It was also limited to 4GB or 8GB models. This may sound pathetic when compared to the 1TB options currently available, but it’s enough to hold hundreds of songs and videos. It was revolutionary at the time.
Apple assembly line
iPhone 3G was rolled out worldwide in July 2008, significantly improving data speeds and adding the Appple App Store. Only 500 apps were offered at launch, but the app store has shown significant improvements in phone functionality.
And just as users began to get used to 3G, it was replaced by the 3GS about a year later.
This cycle of pushing out new products on a regular basis was critical to Apple’s success. By releasing regular updates (through product-wide iterations or more minor feature improvements), Apple was able to secure an enthusiastic audience for new releases each year.
Also, older products are often inherited within the family, so Apple’s product pipeline helped establish a multi-generational user base. This pipeline is still up and running today.
A new approach to the old way
The iPhone family has achieved improvements in size, speed, and storage over the course of 15 years. Some of its “new” features weren’t necessarily new to the market, but Apple was better at offering them in a highly integrated way that “just worked” (as Steve Jobs says). rice field.
In 2013, iPhone 5S introduced Touch ID. This allows the user to unlock the phone using their fingerprint.This was first introduced In 2003 Fujitsu F505i provided a robust implementation of this feature. Of course, it didn’t take long for an enterprising individual to learn how to circumvent the mechanism.
The iPhone 8 released in 2017 has Face ID function. This still had its weaknesses, but at least I couldn’t unlock it with a photo.
Not only security but also camera technology is improving year by year in the iPhone series. The original model had a camera with only 2 megapixels, while later models have multiple lenses with increased resolution to 12 megapixels, comparable to many digital cameras on the market. To do.
Wireless charging was introduced on the iPhone 8 (although Samsung preceded it in 2011). Also, the iPhone X’s bezel-less design, released in 2017, builds on the features of the Sharp Aquos S2 of the same year.
Disputation
Nevertheless, the iPhone is not without its problems. When the iPhone 7 was announced in 2016, the standard 3.5mm headphone socket was removed. Many were not satisfied.
Initially, an adapter was provided to connect regular headphones, but it was free and could only be used for about two years. Then I had to buy it.
In 2016, there were signs of a surge in wireless headphone sales. Perhaps a little more convenient, Apple launched AirPods (wireless Bluetooth earphones) at the same time.
A similar change happened in 2020 with the release of the iPhone 12. Consumers claimed to have had a large number of spare devices, and Apple removed the charger from the unpacking experience, perhaps in an attempt to get on the green reuse agenda.
The user still received the charging cable, which was a lightning cable from USB-C, but previous iPhone chargers had a USB-A socket (standard USB port).
The reason iPhone users have boxes full of old chargers would have overlooked the fact that none of them are likely to support newer and faster USB-C cables.
Therefore, you can use the old USB-A for the lightning cable and charger to charge a new shiny phone, but the charging speed will be slower.
future
If the last 15 years have passed, the iPhone may continue its annual product release.
These models will probably bring improvements in speed, weight, battery life, camera resolution, and storage capacity. However, many will not see it. Breakthrough Innovation over the next few years.
The latest iPhones are already advanced minicomputers, so there is limited room for fundamental enhancements.
Perhaps the most radical change is the move from Apple’s own Lightning connection to USB-C charging. New European Union Directive. And while the general power connector standard is widely regarded as a positive move, Apple wasn’t convinced.
We believe that regulations that impose harmonization on smartphone chargers will hinder, rather than promote, innovation.
As display technology evolves, Apple may turn to the design of clamshell phones with fully foldable display screens.
Samsung has already put it on the market. However, Apple may wait until technology (especially glass) evolves to truly deliver the experience that iPhone users expect.
It’s unpredictable what the iPhone will look like in the next 15 years (although some have tried it), but demand for Apple products still exists, driven by Apple’s strong brand loyalty. There is a possibility.
By Ismini Vasileiou, Associate Professor of Information Systems at DeMontfort University, and Paul Haskell-Dowland, Professor of Cybersecurity Practices at Edith Cowan University...
This article has been republished from Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Please read the original article.
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