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Today in Apple history: iPod Photo brings color display to music machine

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The iPod Photo brought us one step closer to the iPhone.
The iPod Photo brought us one step closer to the iPhone.
Photo: Apple

October 26: Today in Apple history: iPod Photo launch brings color display to music machine October 26, 2004: Apple debuts its iPod Photo, a device capable of putting not just 15,000 songs in your pocket, but also 25,000 photographs.

It is the first iPod to offer a color screen and the ability to display digital images and album cover art. The iPod Photo represents a big step forward in the functionality of Apple’s iconic music player.

Today in Apple history: Apple puts 1,000 songs in your pocket with first-gen iPod

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Today in Apple history: Apple puts 1,000 songs in your pocket with first-gen iPod
Introduced on this day in 2001, the iPod quickly became a cultural phenomenon.
Photo: Newsweek

October 23: Today in Apple history: Apple puts 1,000 songs in your pocket with first-gen iPod launch October 23, 2001: Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduces the first iPod, a device capable of storing an entire music library in a highly portable package.

The first-generation device boasts a 5GB hard drive capable of putting “1,000 songs in your pocket.” That may not sound too dazzling in a world in which people can stream the massive Apple Music library from their iPhones, but it was a game-changer at the time!

Today in Apple history: iPod nano gets colorful aluminum upgrade

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iPod nano
The second-gen iPod nano was totally metal.
Photo: Dongyi Liu/Flickr CC

Sept 25: Today in Apple history: Second-generation iPod nano gets colorful aluminum upgrade September 25, 2006: Apple ships its second-generation iPod nano, offering a fancy redesign of the pocket-size original.

Among the new iPod nano’s improvements are a slimmer, anodized aluminum casing; a brighter screen; longer battery life, and a wide range of colors. And, oh yes, it also includes gapless music playback for the first time!

Today in Apple history: Original iMac arrives to save Apple

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On this day in 1998, the world says
On this day in 1998, the world said "hello" to the computer that would save Apple.
Photo: Apple

August 15: Today in Apple history: iMac G3 arrives to save Apple August 15, 1998: The iMac G3 — Apple’s brightly colored, translucent Macintosh relaunch — goes on sale to a rabid audience.

Steve Jobs’ first major new product since returning to Apple, the internet-ready iMac cements his legacy as a forward-thinking tech visionary. It 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?

Today in Apple history: Original Mac Pro packs serious Intel power

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Mac Pro
The original Mac Pro took productivity to new levels.
Photo: Apple

August 7: Today in Apple history: Original Mac Pro packs serious Intel power 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).

Today in Apple history: iPod gets a new Click Wheel

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The fourth-generation iPod brought key improvements like the Click Wheel, but still left some people disappointed.
The fourth-generation iPod brought key improvements, but still left some people disappointed.
Photo: National Museum of American History Smithsonian Institution/Flickr CC

July 19: Today in Apple history: Fourth-generation iPod gets Click Wheel interface July 19, 2004: The fourth-generation iPod brings neat innovations to the popular audio device, including the Click Wheel interface recently introduced on the iPod mini.

“The best digital music player just got better,” says Steve Jobs in a press release on the day the product launches. And yet some people feel disappointed by the upgraded music player.

Today in Apple history: Fans line up to get their hands on the very first iPhones

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First gen iPhone
The smartphone that changed smartphones!
Photo: Traci Dauphin/Cult of Mac

June 29: Today in Apple history: Fans line up to get their hands on the very first iPhones June 29, 2007: The first iPhone goes on sale, giving excited Apple fans lined up outside stores their first chance at owning the game-changing smartphone.

The queues that greet the iPhone launch around the world prove that Cupertino is onto a good thing with the smartphone, first shown off by Steve Jobs earlier that year.

Today in Apple history: iPhone 4 arrives with glorious Retina display

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iPhone4
The iPhone 4 marked the culmination of Steve Jobs' career at Apple.
Photo: Apple

June 24: Today in Apple history: iPhone 4 arrives with glorious Retina display June 24, 2010: Apple’s fourth-generation smartphone, the iPhone 4, goes on sale.

While the device is perhaps most remembered for the infamous “Antennagate,” it is otherwise a pretty great handset. In its first weekend, it sells 1.7 million units. That’s a major triumph for Apple.

Today in Apple history: iPhone 4 preorders set an impressive record

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Steve obs
The iPhone 4 sold 1.7 million units in its first weekend on sale.
Photo: Matthew Yohe/Wikipedia CC

June 16: Today in Apple history: Apple receives record preorders for iPhone 4 June 16, 2010: Apple reports a massive surge of interest in iPhone 4, with 600,000 sales on the first day of preorders.

The company calls the number “far higher” than expected. At the time, it’s the most iPhone preorders Apple has ever taken in a single day. AT&T suffers server problems thanks to the demand — with 10 times the usual traffic on its website. It’s proof positive that Apple is onto a winner!