People are just realising what the ‘i’ in iPhone stands for – and it’s not what they thought
THE iPhone is possibly the most recognisable gadget in the world – but what does the name actually mean?
Apple has a long tradition of sticking the letter “i” before product names.
We’ve got the iMac, iPod, iPhone, iPad, and iTunes too.
In fact the iMac dates all the way back to 1998, meaning that Apple’s “i” has been with us for about 25 years.
Of course not all of Apple’s products use the “i”: we’ve got Apple Watch, Apple AirPods, and Apple TV.
But the “i” is so globally recognised that it must stand for something important. Right?
What does the i in iPhone stand for?
There are two obvious guesses when it comes to what the “I” in iPhone stands for.
The first is iTunes, which isn’t an awful guess.
After all, Apple had already collaborated with Motorola to build an unsuccessful iTunes phone.
But the “i” predates this phone (courtesy of iMac), so that can’t be the answer.
The second guess is “internet”, which is correct – sort of.
Thankfully Steve Jobs revealed the exact meaning of the “i” all the way back in 1998.
It actually stands for five words, one of which is internet.
The five words are: internet, individual, instruct, inform, and inspire.
There you have it. Now you can impress all your friends with this insider knowledge.
What does the Apple logo mean?
The logo is in fact inspired by Sir Isaac Newton.
And the first version of the logo that was designed by Apple co-founder Ron Wayne depicted Newton sitting under a tree.
However it was replaced very quickly by the Apple logo we know today, albeit covered in a rainbow pattern.
Importantly, the apple has a bite taken out of it.
Rob Janoff, who designed the logo, said that it was designed with a bite so that it wouldn’t be confused with a cherry.
The rainbow colour scheme was chosen to “humanise” the company, at Apple founder Steve Jobs’ request.
There was no link to Alan Turing, and any depictions of Sir Isaac Newton have since been abandoned by Apple.
The rainbow colour scheme was eventually dropped in 1999, followed by aqua and then glass logos.
And the current logo is now generally either plain white or black.
Steve Jobs originally chose the name Apple for the company after visiting an orchard while on a fruitarian diet.
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