18 years ago today, Apple CEO Steve Jobs took the stage during the keynote of the Macworld Expo 2007 in San Francisco, and introduced the original iPhone and the original Apple TV.
The iPhone proved to be a device that would forever change the way the world looked at mobile devices. Before unveiling it, Jobs touted the iPhone as a product that combined three revolutionary functions: “an iPod with touch controls, a phone, and a breakthrough internet communications device.” He then revealed that these were not three separate devices he was talking about, but one, and said, “Today, Apple is going to reinvent the phone.”
Apple initially offered two iPhone models, a 4 GB model for US $499 and a 8 GB model at US $599. They didn’t go on sale in the United States until just over six months later, on June 29, 2007, at 6:00 pm local time Hundreds of customers lined up outside the stores ready to meet their new passion. Almost 1.4 million iPhones were sold in the first three months of its life.
While the iPhone was the headliner that day, Apple also unveiled its new Apple TV, which had been previewed at a September 20026 event as the “iTV.” The original Apple TV did not offer the app store and its downloadable apps that make today’s Apple TV a versatile streaming and gaming device, but instead the set-top box was designed to bring iTunes content to the television.
The original Apple TV allowed users to wirelessly stream movies, TV shows, music, and photos from their Mac or PC directly to their TV. A 40GB hard drive provided local storage and the device supported 720p HD resolution, via either HDMI or component video output. The device was priced at $299.
A still lesser announcement that day was that Apple had made the decision to change its corporate name from “Apple Computer, Inc.” to simply “Apple Inc.” Jobs said the name change was made as Apple was no longer simply a computer manufacturer, indicating how the company would later dominate several electronic device categories in the coming years.
