| Cult of Mac

Today in Apple history: iPhone 6 sells record 10 million units at launch

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Buy one, get one free on the Apple iPhone 6s/6s Plus for AT&T.
Apple finally cracked the 10 million sales opening weekend benchmark.
Photo: Apple

September 22: Today in Apple history: iPhone 6 sells record 10 million units at launch September 22, 2014: Apple notches a new sales record with iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, selling an astonishing 10 million units in the first weekend the handsets go on sale.

The eagerly anticipated smartphones bring a redesigned form factor that will persist for years. The most obvious change? Larger 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch displays built to lure phablet fans. The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus also boast an A8 chip, improved iSight and FaceTime cameras, and — significantly — Apple Pay.

“Sales for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus exceeded our expectations for the launch weekend, and we couldn’t be happier,” Apple CEO Tim Cook says in a press release. “We would like to thank all of our customers for making this our best launch ever, shattering all previous sell-through records by a large margin.”

Today in Apple history: iPhone 6 is bigger and better than ever

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iPhone
The iPhone 6 and 6 Plus were massive upgrades for Apple.
Photo: Jim Merithew

September 19: Today in Apple history: iPhone 6 is bigger and better than ever September 19, 2014: The iPhone undergoes its biggest upgrade — both figuratively and literally — since the original, with the launch of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus handsets.

The iPhone 6 brings a new 4.7-inch form factor, while the iPhone 6 Plus boasts a massive 5.5-inch design. The previous-generation iPhone 5 measured only slightly taller than its 3.5-inch predecessors. But with the iPhone 6, Apple abandons that strategy for the first time to take on big-screen Android “phablets.”

Today in Apple history: iOS 7’s major redesign divides fans

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Ios 7 SCREEN
Here's how iOS 7 (right) compared to iOS 6.
Images: Apple

September 18: Today in Apple history: iOS 7 major redesign divides fans September 18, 2013: iOS 7 launches with a radical redesign that divides the tech world.

The biggest overhaul Apple’s mobile operating system has seen in years, iOS 7 ditches the skeuomorphic objects, dials and textures of previous iterations. Instead, it boasts stark patches of white space, simpler icons and more abstract controls for settings. The Jony Ive era of software design is truly underway.

Today in Apple history: Apple stock smashes through $700 barrier

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bull Wall Street
Like a bull in an ... Apple store?
Photo: Sam Valadi/Flickr CC

September 17: Today in Apple history: Apple stock smashes through $700 a share September 17, 2012: On the back of record iPhone 5 preorders of 2 million in 24 hours, Apple’s stock price hits a new all-time high. For the first time in history, AAPL breaks the $700 mark in after-hours trading. Passing the milestone cements Cupertino’s place as the world’s most valuable publicly traded company.

Amazingly, the new record is $270 a share higher than at the start of the year. Apple stock rose 65% in just nine months.

Today in Apple history: Apple gives users a way to delete U2’s spam album

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U2
It all seemed so innocent at the time.
Photo: Apple

September 15: Today in Apple history: Apple gives users the ability to wipe U2 spam album from their iPhones September 15, 2014: Responding to its disastrous U2 album giveaway, Apple provides iPhone owners with a tool for wiping all signs of Songs of Innocence from their phones.

It comes after one of the strangest PR debacles in Apple history. After putting a free copy of U2’s latest release on every iPhone owner’s handset as a special promotion, millions find themselves with an album they didn’t order in their iTunes library. Many weren’t happy about it.

Today in Apple history: Apple denies Steve Jobs’ love of ninja stars

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Today in Apple history: Apple denies Steve Jobs' love of ninja stars
Jobs apparently tried to take one of these on his private jet.
Photo: SecretNinjaNews

September 14: Today in Apple history: Apple denies Steve Jobs' love of ninja stars September 14, 2010: Security workers reportedly stop Steve Jobs at Japan’s Kansai International Airport. The reason? The Apple CEO supposedly tried to bring ninja throwing stars onto his private plane while heading home from vacation.

It’s one of the most bizarre Jobs stories ever. Apple, however, quickly spoils the internet’s fun. Cupertino issues a statement describing the reports as “pure fiction” (although Apple acknowledges that Jobs visited Japan over the summer).

Today in Apple history: Lightning replaces 30-pin dock connector

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Anker PowerLine II USB-C Cable
The Lightning connector was ahead of its time.
Photo: Anker

September 12: Today in Apple history: iPhone 5 brings big changes, new EarPods September 12, 2012: The Lightning connector replaces Apple’s aging 30-pin interface, a proprietary data and power connector that debuted on the iPod Classic in 2003. The slender and capable new Lightning port debuts in the iPhone 5, bringing big improvements — and no small amount of controversy.

Apple soon will build the Lightning connector into many other products, including iPad, iPod and accessories. It’s used to charge the mobile devices as well as transfer data to a Mac or PC.

Today in Apple history: Ping social network fails to strike a chord

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Ping iTunes
Apple's music social network starts strong but fails fast.
Photo: Apple

September 1: Today in Apple history: Apple's Ping social network fails to strike a chord September 1, 2010: Apple’s new music-focused social network, Ping, ships as part of iTunes 10. Apple says the service will let users discover new music and more easily follow their favorite artists.

Ping racks up 1 million signups in the first 48 hours. Nevertheless, Apple’s social network is doomed from the start.

Today in Apple history: Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO

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Why Salesforce chief gave up AppStore.com for Apple
Steve Jobs' health wouldn't allow him to continue as CEO.
Photo: Ben Stanfield/Flickr CC

August 24: Today in Apple history: Steve Jobs resigns as Apple CEO August 24, 2011: With his health worsening, a cancer-stricken Steve Jobs steps down from his role leading Apple. Tim Cook assumes the role of Apple’s seventh CEO.

“I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know,” Jobs writes in his retirement letter to the Apple board. “Unfortunately that day has come.”

Today in Apple history: iPad takes to the skies with United Airlines

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United Airlines iPad
If only they had known about the iPad Air...
Photo: United Airlines

23 Today in Apple history: United Airlines will issue iPads to pilots August 23, 2011: United Airlines says it will hand out 11,000 iPads to its pilots. It’s the largest rollout yet of Apple tablets as a replacement for the weighty flight bags previously carried by aircrews.

Going paperless saves around 16 million sheets of paper each year, the equivalent of 1,900 trees not cut down. Even better, the weight difference between the 1.5-pound iPad and the 40-pound flight bag saves 326,000 gallons of jet fuel per year!