Blog #6 (Key Post)

    The iPhone could be considered one of the greatest technological advances of our time, along with many other technologies like the telegram, telephone, radio, and others made to improve co communication. The iPhone is a great source of communication for almost anywhere and is basically a tiny personal computer in the palm of your hand. You are able to control it with just a touch of your screen, proving it to be a great impact on digital culture, and even our culture as a whole.

    All of this objectively came from the mind of one man, and that man was Steve Jobs. He was a high school dropout who created the first Apple computer with the help of his friends Steve Wozniak and John Wayne. In the late 1970s, they made great sales numbers with their office computers, otherwise known as the Macintosh. These sales further encouraged Jobs and  Wozniak to continue innovating, priding themselves on creating better, faster, and cheaper products for the public. Unfortunately, the power struggle between these executives caused Apple to slow down and for Jobs to depart from it, only to come back after Apple bought his company Next Inc and became the CEO. It was after Jobs introduced the iMac and the iPod that was the start of Apple Inc's soon-to-be-found success: the iPhone.

    The iPhone did very successfully at the time, and with Apple's continuous innovation to the phone and adding/upgrading features over the years, the success of the iPhones continued basically creating the start of the "smartphone era." After the first iPhone, they wanted to focus on finding a way to make their phones faster, cheaper, and be sold in more countries, and all these questions were answered with the introduction of their newer model: the iPhone 3G, allowing 3G support and releasing in 2009, and it just kept going uphill from there. From 2017, over 2 billion iPhones have been sold, proving that Apple didn't just make a successful phone that became a part of mainline communication, but it also became a main part of our culture, and will hopefully continue to be part of our culture for years to come.

    In my opinion, I feel this invention truly changed our world for the better. We can communicate from almost anywhere now. Sure, the same thing could be said for the old flip-phones and keyboard phones, but it feels revolutionary for the internet and communication to be literally right at your fingertips. Also, the touchscreen can make it easily accessible for basically everyone and is objectively easier to use. It's also somewhat cheaper than other competitors. 

    Despite how great the iPhone is, there are admittedly some downsides. One would be how the company might be advancing a little too fast. Model iPhones are being released year after year, and though it seems to have some new specs, it is virtually the same with nothing really "groundbreaking" like in the past. This is definitely seen with current smartphones. Also, the removal of the headphone jack can be frustrating for people with wire headphones, basically forcing you to buy their AirPods or wireless earbuds. Finally, it can be a bit addicting for people. Not just iPhones, but with any smartphone. We spend way too much time on our phones every day, so while it may encourage wireless communication, it can be really damaging for social communication.