Steve Jobs Once Tossed the Original iPhone Across a Room to Impress Journalists
Tuesday marks 10 years since Apple co-founder Steve Jobs passed away, and those who met him have begun to share stories about his life.
CNET's Roger Cheng today recounted his memory of Jobs visiting The Wall Street Journal's headquarters in New York to offer him and a small group of other reporters an early look at a prototype iPhone, shortly after the device was unveiled in 2007.
Cheng revealed that when one reporter asked about the iPhone's durability, Jobs reacted by tossing the prototype he was holding into the air toward the center of the room, resulting in a small gasp followed by immediate silence as the device hit the carpeted floor. Cheng said the iPhone survived unscathed, adding that the move was the kind of calculated risk that Jobs was known to take as a showman.
"The memory underscores the kind of lengths Jobs went to in order to make an impression," wrote Cheng. "Imagine how disastrous it would've been if that iPhone had broken or shut down in front of so many journalists."
Jobs famously introduced the original iPhone as if it were three separate products: a widescreen iPod with touch controls, a revolutionary mobile phone, and a breakthrough internet communications device. The crowd at Macworld San Francisco erupted with cheerful applause upon realizing that Jobs was referring to a single device.
Jobs passed away October 5, 2011 at the age of 56. Apple maintains a Remembering Steve page on its website with messages from people all over the world.
Related Stories
Apple today commemorated the tenth anniversary of Steve Jobs' passing with a special commemorative homepage on its website, including pictures and a link to a short film that captures some of his most memorable quotes and moments at Apple's helm.
The homepage also includes a statement from the Jobs family, reproduced below:
For a decade now, mourning and healing have gone together.
Our...
To commemorate the 10th anniversary of Steve Jobs passing away on Tuesday, Apple shared a short film called "Celebrating Steve" on its website, and Apple has now made the video available on YouTube for those who may have missed it.
Apple describes the short film as a tribute to Steve Jobs and a celebration of his life and his extraordinary vision. The video includes many photos and short...
Today is January 9, which means it's been 15 years since Apple CEO Steve Jobs stood on stage at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco, California and gave the world its first look at the iPhone, a device that would go on to change everything.
The original iPhone was a tiny little thing with a 3.5-inch LCD display, a plain old Home button, a thick chassis, huge bezels, a Samsung processor, and a ...
The 10 year anniversary of Steve Jobs death took place earlier this week, sparking tech leaders to share their stories of Apple's former CEO.
Dell CEO Michael Dell spoke to CNET, reminiscing about the time that Steve Jobs aimed to get Dell to license Mac OS to run on Intel-based PCs and how that might have changed the PC industry.
As the story goes, Jobs first approached Dell about a...
Bonhams today announced that it will be auctioning several rare prototype Apple devices on November 3, including an unreleased VideoPad.
The VideoPad was intended to be a personal digital assistant (PDA) device similar to Apple's Newton MessagePad series, with Apple testing three versions of the device between 1993 and 1995, including the VideoPad 1, VideoPad 2, and VideoPad 3, according to...
On this day ten years ago, Steve Jobs resigned as CEO of the company he built and officially named Tim Cook as Apple's new head. Two months later, Steve Jobs passed away and the future of Apple lay solely on the shoulders of Tim Cook.
Tim Cook took over Apple at a turbulent time when Jobs was battling pancreatic cancer and the company's future seemed uncertain. Questions were widespread...
The seventh-generation iPod touch is 1,000 days old as of today, with no apparent sign of a new model on the way.
In May 2019, Apple unveiled the seventh-generation iPod touch. With 32 months having now passed since the seventh-generation iPod touch's launch, it is now the oldest device in Apple's lineup. Apple's next-oldest device still on sale is the AirPods Pro, which were released in...
This week marks the 25th anniversary of Apple announcing that it had agreed to acquire NeXT for $400 million. The stunning move brought Steve Jobs back to Apple over a decade after he left the company following an internal power struggle.
"The acquisition of NeXT is the start of a new chapter in Apple's history and represents a milestone in our transformation as a corporation," said former...
Popular Stories
Upon the release of the second-generation AirPods Pro, the AirPods Max became the oldest current-generation AirPods product still in Apple's lineup. Introducing several new features like Adaptive Transparency and the H2 chip, the second-generation AirPods Pro may provide some of the best indications yet of what to expect from the second-generation AirPods Max.
Almost two years later, rumors...
The Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra are now available to purchase, but if you aren't interested in these updates you can save a lot of money on Series 7 models right now on Amazon.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Amazon. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small payment, which helps us keep the site running.
The best deals are on cellular...
Apple today released iOS 16.0.2, addressing a number of bugs that iPhone 14 owners have been experiencing since the new devices launched. iOS 16.0.2 comes two weeks after the launch of iOS 16, and it follows iOS 16.0.1, an update made available to iPhone 14 owners on launch day. The update is available for all iPhones that are capable of running iOS 16.
The iOS 16.0.2 update can be...
Apple plans to release new MacBook Pro models in the fourth quarter of 2022, according to supply chain publication DigiTimes. The report does not mention specific models, but it very likely refers to the next-generation 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pros given that the 13-inch model was already updated earlier this year.
There has been uncertainty surrounding the timing of new 14-inch and...
Sunday September 25, 2022 6:50 am PDT by
Sami FathiApple may decide to release its remaining products for 2022, which include updated iPad Pro, Mac mini, and 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models, through press releases on its website rather than a digital event, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman said that Apple is currently "likely to release its remaining 2022 products via press releases,...
Thursday September 22, 2022 7:57 am PDT by
Sami FathiA copycat version of the iPhone 14 Pro's Dynamic Island has arrived on Android's Google Play Store in the form of an app called "dynamicSpot."
The app, still in beta, offers customers several different experiences at the top of their smartphones. In its current form, dynamicSpot offers playback control for songs, timers, battery status, and more features coming soon, according to the app's...
Friday September 23, 2022 9:40 am PDT by
Sami FathiCustomers who personalize their second-generation AirPods Pro charging case with an engraving will now have that engraving reflected directly on iOS as they pair and connect their AirPods Pro. Apple allows customers to personalize their AirPods Pro charging case with a special engraving that can include select emojis and Memojis. Unlike before, starting with the second-generation AirPods...
With new Apple Watch Ultra and Series 8 models now in the hands of customers, Apple has brought a host of smart new features to many people's wrists. But there's more to come. Apple has a handful of additional features in store for Apple Watch Series 8 and Apple Watch Ultra owners before the year's end, and some of them are watchOS 9 functions, which means they will even work on older Apple ...
Apple today explained why the new silicone ear tips for the second-generation AirPods Pro are not officially compatible with the original AirPods Pro.
In an updated support document, Apple said the original AirPods Pro ear tips have "noticeably denser mesh" than the second-generation ear tips. Apple did not provide any additional details, but the mesh density could result in acoustical...
Top Rated Comments
uses a pic of the iPhone 4
Heres to the crazy ones.
Edit: Someone pointed out in the comments that the fist pump occurs when Steve mentions the "phone" component specifically, which is correct. My memory needs an upgrade ;)
i'd like to see that alternative timeline just out of curiosity. i know there were "smartphones" before iPhone but there just weren't the same. iPhone really kicked it off. that thing blew my mind when it came out. an ipod that could make calls and go on the internet? i remember going into an apple store after school and calling my dad "i'm using an iphone!" lol