As most of you know, Apple — make that Steve Jobs — first demonstrated the iPhone 15 years ago at a Macworld Expo. While the company had long been rumored to be working on a cellphone, the exact configuration was expected to be something in line with existing gear, except for the integration with iTunes. Apple had tried to have its embedded in a Motorola device, the ROKR, which ended up being a perfectly dreadful product for which ease of use was a dirty word.
In any case, before the iPhone arrived, the common form factor for a smartphone was best typified by the Blackberry, featuring a tiny physical keyboard, with a small display above it. I tried them once or twice, but decided that I’d rather use such a device for making and receiving phone calls, not for text or suffering though a dreadful mobile app. Or just stick with my deep red Motorola RAZR.
Until the iPhone arrived.