Apple Inc., previously Apple Computer Inc. is a computer and electronics manufacturer headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. As a company, Apple is credited with furthering the advance of mobile technology by making it accessible to the public.
History
Founded in 1976 by partners Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ron Wayne after failed attempts to market a hobby computer to other larger firms, Apple grew out of a small garage in what is today known as the Silicon Valley. Together, they designed the first commercially successful microcomputer board known as the Apple I.
From this starting point, Apple became one of the fastest-growing computer companies in the US, and would go on to develop the Apple II, Lisa, Apple III, and Macintosh lines of personal computers. The Macintosh line holds the distinction of using the world's first commercially successful graphical user interface (GUI). Apple's computers were highly acclaimed during the 1980s and early 1990s, but internal disagreements between its key players and an unbounded desire to expand into less profitable ventures nearly brought the company to bankruptcy in 1997. Steve Jobs, who had been forced out during this period and founded Pixar Animation and NeXT Inc., would ultimately be called back into Apple to turn its fortunes around, becoming its CEO again in 1998.
In Jobs' second tenure, Apple developed consumer-focused (though not always successful) products, ranging from the first iMacs to iPods to the iPhones and iPads of today. Apple's products are recognized worldwide for their minimalist design and ease of use. The company is often mistakenly credited with inventing smartphones as a class of devices; while it did not invent the smartphone, the design of the iPhone helped to grow the smartphone industry into what it is today[1].
The influence of iOS
Apple's mobile operating system, iOS and iPadOS, powers the majority of its smart devices. It is often said of iOS that Apple has set a benchmark for all other smart devices because other devices have "borrowed" elements from it. Still, iOS remains in tight competition with Android for user share among devices. As one of the top two manufacturers of mobile software, Apple's devices are often among the first to receive new application software, such as games.
Square Enix and the App Store
Although Apple is primarily a hardware company, it acts as a distributor of media content through the many branches of its App Store. Apple currently curates more than 50 Square Enix titles through its App Store, more than one quarter of which are games in the Final Fantasy series, their sequels, or direct spin-offs.
Hardware by Apple Inc
- Macintosh personal computers
- iPhone series smartphones
- iPad series tablets
- iPod touch series personal media devices
- Apple TV media hubs
- Apple Watch smartwatches
- HomePod smart speakers
- Vision Pro mixed-reality headset
Software by Apple Inc
- macOS (previously Mac OS, Mac OS X, and OS X)
- iOS and iPadOS
- iPadOS, a spin-off from iOS designed for iPad
- tvOS, a spin-off from iOS designed for Apple TV
- visionOS, a mixed-reality OS for the Vision Pro headset, also derived from iOS
References
- ↑ Remaker, Philip: "Did Apple make the first smartphone?", Quora.com. 23 May 2016.