August 15, 1998: The original iMac — Apple’s brightly colored, translucent Macintosh relaunch — goes on sale to a rabid audience. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs‘ first major new product since returning to Cupertino, the internet-ready iMac G3 line will cement his legacy as a forward-thinking tech visionary.
The all-in-one computer also introduces the world to the design talents of Jony Ive — and pretty much saves Apple in the process.
Just another day at the office, eh?
August 14, 1991: As Apple and Microsoft head to court to battle each other, the tide begins to turn against Cupertino and its claims that Windows unlawfully copies the look and feel of Mac OS. A judge’s ruling calls into question the basic tenet of Apple’s copyright lawsuit against Microsoft over Windows 2.03.
The case concerns whether key elements of Apple’s operating system are original enough for copyright protection. The decision turns out to be a major blow against Apple — and the start of the company’s 1990s decline.
August 13, 2002: Apple unveils the final face-lift for its Power Mac G4, the Mirrored Drive Doors model.
The distinctive-looking computer borrows visually from the previous QuickSilver G4, released a year earlier. However, it adds a different front panel, with a mirrorlike finish for the media drive doors. It’s the last visual redesign of Apple’s Power Mac G4.
August 12, 1981: The launch of the IBM Personal Computer ignites a long-running Apple-versus-PC rivalry.
Secure in the Apple II’s technical superiority over the new PC, Apple welcomes International Business Machines to the personal computing party in a full-page ad in The Wall Street Journal. Things won’t stay positive for long, though.
August 10, 2008: The developer of I Am Rich, a pointless iPhone app that sold for a whopping $999.99, defends his notorious creation as “art.”
After Apple removed I Am Rich from the App Store in the wake of controversy over the app’s outrageous price and total lack of usefulness, its creator, German developer Armin Heinrich, says he made it as a sort of joke.
August 9, 2011: Apple overtakes oil giant ExxonMobil to become the world’s most valuable publicly traded company.
The milestone caps an astonishing turnaround for Cupertino. Just 15 years earlier, it looked like it was just about “game over” for Apple.
August 8, 1997: At Macworld Expo, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs introduces the world to the company’s new slogan, “Think different.” The catchy marketing reassures fans that Apple is exiting its mid-1990s dark age and once again making products customers will love.
It’s the beginning of Apple’s most iconic advertising campaign since the original “1984” Macintosh ad.
August 7, 2006: Apple unleashes the first Mac Pro, a high-end desktop computer that completes the company’s transition from PowerPC to Intel processors.
Built for computation-heavy tasks like 3D rendering and professional audio and video editing, the quad-core, 64-bit Mac Pro serves as a replacement for the Power Mac G5 (from which it borrows its aluminum “cheese grater” design).
August 6, 1997: In one of the most famous moments in Apple history, Steve Jobs reveals a $150 million Microsoft investment that saved his company from ruin.
Although often presented as an inexplicable gesture of good faith on the part of Microsoft boss Bill Gates, the cash infusion into Apple actually benefits both companies.
August 5, 1997: Apple gets into a standoff with Power Computing, a maker of Macintosh clones. A very public clash at the Macworld Expo in Boston marks the beginning of the end for Apple’s mid-1990s strategy of licensing the Mac operating system.
“If the [Mac] platform goes closed, it is over,” predicts Power Computing CEO Joel J. Kocher of Apple’s strategy. “[It’s] total destruction. The kiss of death.” Of course, things don’t turn out exactly like that for Apple…
August 4, 2008: In an internal memo, Apple CEO Steve Jobs owns up to mistakes in launching MobileMe, spinning the company’s bungled cloud service rollout as a learning opportunity.
“It was a mistake to launch MobileMe at the same time as iPhone 3G, iPhone 2.0 software and the App Store,” Jobs writes in an email to Apple employees. “We all had more than enough to do, and MobileMe could have been delayed without consequence.”
August 3, 2009: Google CEO Eric Schmidt resigns from Apple’s board of directors amidst increasing competition between the two companies.
The root of the problem? The growing feud over Android’s encroachment on iOS as the two smartphone platforms battle for dominance.
August 2, 1993: Apple launches the Newton MessagePad, the first product in its line of handheld personal digital assistants. While it will become the most unfairly maligned product in Apple history, the Newton is a revolutionary device.
It predates Apple’s push toward app-based mobile devices 14 years later. And, while often dismissed as a failure, the Newton ranks near the top of the list of Apple’s most influential creations.
August 1, 1989: Apple gives the Macintosh SE a storage bump, courtesy of the new SuperDrive in the new Mac SE FDHD. The high-density floppy disks the SuperDrive uses offer an astonishing 1.4MB of storage.
In terms of portable storage, it’s a big step up for most Mac owners. The HD floppy disks compare very favorably to the 400KB single side double density (SSDD) disks and 800KB double side double density (DDSD) disks in use at the time.
July 31, 2012: The Daily, the world’s first iPad-only newspaper, lays off almost a third of its staff, signaling the demise of a bold publishing experiment.
The deep cuts — The Daily fires 50 of its 170 employees — affect mainly sports and editorial page staffers, although some production and design employees get the ax, too. The ominous move comes as News Corp places the iPad app “on watch” due to disappointing readership numbers.
July 30, 1979: Apple engineers begin work on the Lisa computer, the company’s first machine to come with a graphical user interface and mouse.
Incorporating technology Steve Jobs saw at Xerox PARC, the Lisa looks like a surefire hit for Apple. Things don’t turn out exactly like that, however.
July 29, 1993: Apple releases the Macintosh Centris 660av, a computer packed with innovative audiovisual features. These include an AppleVision monitor with microphone and speakers, and a port that can work as a modem with a telecom adapter. It also comes with PlainTalk, the first Apple software to recognize and synthesize speech.
At the relatively low price of $2,489, this was one of the first great affordable multimedia Macs.
July 28, 2012: Apple buys biometrics company AuthenTec, acquiring the technology that will power Touch ID for authentication and secure payments on the iPhone and other devices.
With a price tag of $356 million, the deal gives Apple the right to use AuthenTec hardware, software and patents. In the short term, Apple engineers start working to build Touch ID sensors into the iPhone 5s. Longer-term, AuthenTec’s mobile wallet tech paves the way for Apple Pay.
July 27, 1955: Joanna Hoffman, who will join the original Macintosh and NeXT teams and become Steve Jobs’ first right-hand woman, is born in Poland.
Six months younger than Jobs, the marketing executive is one of the few people willing and able to stand up to the oftentimes-fierce Apple co-founder during the first part of his career.
July 26, 2005: Apple debuts the opaque white iBook G4, the last of its laptops to launch under the iBook name.
The portable computer adds Apple’s scrolling trackpad for the first time. It also incorporates Bluetooth 2.0 as a standard feature, and becomes the last Apple laptop with a PowerPC chip.
July 25, 1989: Apple suffers a major setback in its copyright-infringement lawsuit against Microsoft for allegedly stealing the Mac’s “look and feel” to create Windows.
Apple sued Microsoft on 189 counts of copyright infringement relating to Windows 2.0.3. The judge overseeing the case throws out 179 of them. This paves the way for Microsoft’s dominance over Apple in the coming decade.
July 24, 2006: The world gets its first glimpse of Apple’s new wireless Mighty Mouse, a multibutton Bluetooth device with super-accurate laser tracking.
Photos of the accessory come to light through an Apple filing with the Federal Communications Commission. Apple will launch the device the very next day.
July 22, 1997: Apple launches Mac OS 8, its next-gen operating system for Macintosh computers. The OS introduces a new three-dimensional look and makes surfing the internet easier than ever.
The first major operating system refresh for Macs since System 7’s release in 1991, it gets great reviews and is destined to become a big hit with users. However, it arrives at a very challenging time for Apple.
July 21, 1999: The iBook, Apple’s colorful clamshell laptop that’s a hybrid of the iMac and the PowerBook, arrives and launches a Wi-Fi revolution.
Apple’s new AirPort networking card is the key component that delivers cable-free internet access to the masses for the first time.
July 20, 2007: Just a month after the original iPhone goes on sale, the first third-party app gets compiled and launched for the new platform. The Hello World app serves more as a proof of concept than a serious tool. However, it clearly demonstrates that third-party apps will become a cornerstone of the new iPhone economy.
It’s a shame Apple doesn’t get the memo.