On October 4th, as the 10th anniversary of the death of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs approached, many people in the technology industry began to share their memories. Among them, American technology journalist Roger Cheng (Roger Cheng) recalled that Jobs once picked up his mobile phone and threw it underground to prove to reporters that it was strong and durable.
Speaking of Jobs, most people would think of him wearing the iconic blue jeans and black turtleneck sweater, standing on the stage of the Apple conference, holding an Apple smartphone in his hand. But for Roger, the name reminded him of the unforgettable scene where the original iPhone was taken out of Jobs’s hand, flew through the air, and hit the floor.
At that time, Apple had just released its groundbreaking smartphone iPhone in January 2007, but it was still a few months before it went on sale. Jobs made a special trip to visit the headquarters of the Wall Street Journal in the world financial center of Manhattan at that time, allowing more than 20 editors and reporters to get a glimpse of this device.
There, Jobs answered many questions about this device, some of whom asked about the durability of the phone. Jobs’ reaction to this was: Throwing the pre-release model he carried with him to the center of the room, causing the reporter to exclaim, and then when the phone fell on the floor (carpeted), the whole room fell silent.
This memory highlights the efforts that Jobs made to impress people. This visionary entrepreneur has shaken up multiple industries and changed the way we interact with mobile devices.
As a technology reporter based in New York, Roger rarely has the opportunity to participate in Apple’s press conferences, including the MacWorld event where Jobs first released the iPhone. But he was fortunately invited to participate in the above-mentioned private meeting together with other editors and reporters.
Jobs spent a lot of time answering frequently asked questions about Apple mobile phones, but requested that the content discussed at the meeting be absolutely confidential. He insisted that everyone not only turn off and put down the recorder, but also put away the notebook and pen. Everyone complied, and was eager to see this device.
It was not until Steve Jobs took out the iPhone and was asked about its durability that it aroused people’s doubts. Although the smartphone in Jobs’s hands is more refined than the prototype he showed on MacWorld, early phones were very prone to problems, which made his careless throwing action more impressive. Imagine if the iPhone breaks or shuts down in front of so many reporters, what serious consequences it will cause!
Of course, this phone was unscathed in the end, and the carpeted floor is likely to be its savior. Apple staff distributed several other test models for the reporters to experience. Imagine the scene at that time: more than 20 professional journalists dressed up in several groups, whispered around the new mobile phone like elementary school students, and then began to use swipes, pinches and other gestures to test the revolutionary capacitive touch screen at the time.
The iPhone left a deep impression on people, just like the shock it caused to the public when it went on sale in June a few months later. Of course, this device later brought revolutionary changes to the mobile industry, dragging smartphones into the modern era, and injecting a chic element to make them desirable.
The iPhone has created an annual sales phenomenon, that is, fruit fans will line up outside Apple and operating stores on the day of the release to wait for the new phone to be snapped up. Despite the outbreak of the new crown pneumonia, there is still a long queue to buy iPhone 13 in front of Apple stores this year. For many people, it is still an unforgettable memory for Jobs to show images of iPhone generation after generation in front of thousands of people.
But in Roger’s mind, the eternal imprint is the image of Steve Jobs in that medium-sized conference room: standing in front of a group of reporters sitting around a U-shaped table, he took the risk to amaze people, and this is exactly what The miniature of Apple under his operation.
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