Fifteen years ago today, the first iPhone went on sale. It was five months after Steve Jobs, in perhaps his most iconic Apple keynote, introduced the original iPhone: “An iPod, a phone and internet communicator. An iPod, a phone, are you getting it?”
Steve Jobs revealed Apple’s phone on Jan. 9, 2007. Night at the Museum was No. 1 in theaters. Nokia was the big name in phones. President Gerald Ford had been buried days earlier. And in a wildcard playoff game, the Indianapolis Colts had just defeated the Kansas City Chiefs before going on to win the Super Bowl.
“iPhone is a revolutionary and magical product that is literally five years ahead of any other mobile phone,” Jobs said during his keynote speech.
The iPhone wasn’t actually magical. There were even behind-the-scenes efforts required to keep the iPhone from crashing while Jobs demonstrated it during the keynote. But 15 years later, it would be hard to argue that the iPhone wasn’t revolutionary. Whether you are a loyal iPhone owner or have never owned one, the impact the iPhone has made in our daily lives is indisputable.
Read: What it was like attending the very first iPhone event
Months after being announced, the iPhone arrived in stores on June 29, 2007.
Sarah Tew/CNETTo celebrate the 15th anniversary of the iPhone, here are 15 facts about the iPhone and Apple.
Apple is now worth $3 trillion dollars
In 2007, Apple’s market capitalization (the total value of all the shares of Apple stock) was $174.03 billion. On Jan. 3, 2022, it hit $3 trillion dollars, the highest market capitalization for any company ever.
The first iPhone had an aluminum body
The original iPhone came with a silver brushed aluminum finish. The current iPhone 13 has an aluminum frame, glass front and back, and comes in five colors. The iPhone 13 Pro is available in three finishes.
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An iPhone for $499
The original iPhone cost $499 and came with 4GB of storage. For $100 more you could get one with 8GB of storage. The iPhone 13 Pro Max costs $1,099 for 256GB of storage and tops out at 1TB of storage for $1,599.
It predates Instagram, Uber, TikTok and more
The following companies didn’t exist in 2007: Instagram, Uber, TikTok, Twitch, Snap, Lyft, DoorDash, Tinder, Slack, Lime, Postmates, Venmo and Pinterest.
It only had a single camera
The original iPhone had a single camera and it was located on the back. The iPhone 13 Pro has four cameras (three on the back and one on the front).
You couldn’t copy and paste
You couldn’t copy and paste text with the original iPhone. In fact, copy and paste wasn’t added until 2009 with the release of iPhone OS 3.
The first iPhone had 15 apps.
Tony Avelar/AFPThere were only 15 apps to start
The original iPhone had 15 apps: Calendar, Camera, Clock, Contacts, iPod, Maps (Google Maps), Messages, Notes, Phone, Photos, Safari, Stocks, Voice Memos, Weather and Settings.
The first of 34 iPhone models
There have been 34 iPhone models, and Apple currently sells eight.
You couldn’t record video
You couldn’t record videos with the original iPhone. Now the iPhone 13 Pro can record 4K 60fps video and can even record in ProRes at 4K 30fps.
A future movie maker
The following movies were filmed with an iPhone: Unsane, Tangerine, Detour, High Flying Bird, Snow Steam Iron and Lady Gaga: Stupid Love (which is technically a music video).
You couldn’t text photos
The original iPhone didn’t support MMS for sending things like photos and videos via text messages. It was added as a part of iPhone OS 3.
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A 3.5-inch screen
The original iPhone had a 3.5-inch screen. The iPhone 13 Mini has a 5.4-inch screen, the iPhone 13 comes with a 6.1-inch screen and the 13 Pro Max has a giant 6.7-inch screen.
Blue bubbles came later
FaceTime was released in 2010 and iMessage in 2011.
The App Store came later
The App Store opened on July 10, 2008 with 500 apps. According to Apple’s website, there are currently 1.8 million apps in the App Store.
A million iPhones sold every day and a half
On Sept. 10, 2007 (74 days after the launch of the original iPhone) Apple sold its millionth iPhone. In 2018, Apple sold 216.7 million iPhones which is roughly a million iPhones sold every 1.5 days. Apple stopped sharing the number of iPhones sold after 2018.
