The Original iPhone in 2007: Introduction and Early History

The announcement and launch were separate events

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Apple already had a portable-music business

Apple had introduced the iPod on October 23, 2001. The original player stored music on a hard drive and worked with iTunes on a Mac. That earlier product helps explain why music playback was central to the iPhone presentation more than five years later. Apple’s 2001 iPod announcement records the starting point.

The company also changed its formal name from Apple Computer, Inc. to Apple Inc. on January 9, 2007, the day of the iPhone announcement. Apple’s SEC filing establishes that date.

January 9: one device for calls, music and the web

At Macworld 2007, Jobs presented iPhone as a combination of a phone, a touch-controlled iPod and an Internet communications device. Apple’s tenth-anniversary account identifies the presenter, setting and three-part framing.

The demonstration centered on interacting with software through the screen. Users could tap a contact to call, scroll through music and enlarge a part of a webpage. An onscreen keyboard appeared when text entry was needed. Apple’s January announcement described these finger-operated controls and the Multi-Touch interface.

The announcement was a preview of a product due in June. It established the concept and initial pricing, while details such as service plans and the exact retail schedule followed closer to launch.

The original hardware

The first iPhone combined a 3.5-inch touchscreen with a camera, cellular connectivity and local media storage. These physical specifications come from Apple’s archived original-iPhone specifications.

That archived page reflects later updates to the original model, including different storage choices. The June 2007 launch capacities were 4GB and 8GB, established by the dated launch notice below.

On June 18, Apple announced that the shipping phone would have a glass top surface and revised its battery estimates. The company claimed up to eight hours of talk time or 24 hours of audio playback. These were Apple’s test-based estimates, with results dependent on use and conditions. See its prelaunch glass and battery announcement.

The first software was built around included apps and Safari

Apple’s January announcement described SMS messaging, email, Safari browsing, Google Maps, calendar synchronization, photos and iPod functions. Visual Voicemail displayed messages in a list so the user could choose one directly. Maps used Google’s service; this was the software offered in 2007.

Third-party development initially followed a web route. On June 11, Apple announced that developers could create applications using web standards that ran through Safari. Its web-application release described connections to phone, email and mapping functions. This preceded the native-app SDK and App Store.

The shipping software also differed from the January preview. On June 20, Apple announced an Apple-designed YouTube app for iPhone, with streaming over Wi-Fi or EDGE. Its YouTube announcement described an initial selection of H.264 videos; it did not promise that the entire YouTube catalog would be available at launch.

June 29: U.S. sales, prices and activation

U.S. retail sales began at 6 p.m. local time on June 29, 2007, at Apple stores and selected AT&T stores. Online orders opened at 6 p.m. Pacific. The hardware prices were $499 for 4GB and $599 for 8GB. Apple’s June 28 launch notice specifies those dates, channels and prices.

Apple announced its exclusive U.S. carrier partnership under the Cingular name in January; the June launch materials used AT&T. The January carrier announcement provides the earlier branding.

The entry individual plan cost $59.99 per month for 450 voice minutes, unlimited data, Visual Voicemail and 200 SMS messages. A new two-year service agreement and a $36 activation fee were required. These historical terms are recorded in the June 26 plan announcement; the monthly price was separate from the handset price.

Customers activated the phone through iTunes on a connected Mac or PC with Internet access. The same connection synchronized content such as contacts, calendars and media. Apple’s activation announcement documents that setup process.

The first months brought a price change and more markets

On September 5, Apple reduced the U.S. 8GB price from $599 to $399, effective immediately. It said the 4GB model would remain available while supplies lasted. The price-change release explains why $399 appears in some accounts of the first iPhone: it was a later price, rather than the June launch price.

On September 10, Apple reported that it had sold its millionth iPhone. That is a company-reported milestone from its sales announcement.

Apple also announced European launch dates during 2007. It scheduled November 9 availability in the United Kingdom and Germany, and November 29 in France. Those announcements named O2, T-Mobile and Orange respectively as carrier partners.

The native-app platform followed in 2008

The App Store was not part of the January 2007 introduction or the June retail launch. Apple released its beta iPhone software development kit on March 6, 2008, alongside the iPhone 2.0 software beta. The SDK announcement marks that later stage.

Apple’s July 10, 2008 release said the App Store was available that day through iTunes 7.7, with the free iPhone 2.0 update for original-iPhone customers arriving July 11. Its App Store retrospective dates the store’s introduction to July 10 and records an opening selection of 500 apps.