The iPhone 7 really puts the first iPhones in perspective
When I got into work this morning, there was a surprise sitting on my desk: The iPhone 3G, Apple’s second-ever iPhone, and the first to support both 3G and GPS.
Dave Smith/Business Insider
Holding it in my hand, and comparing it to my current iPhone 7, really illustrates how much the iPhone has changed over the years — even though there’s a great deal of consistency, too.
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Just look at this thing. It is tiny! The original iPhone’s display measured just three inches.
I forgot how much I liked the glossy black back on the iPhone 3G. The very first iPhone had a mostly aluminum back, with black on the bottom third of the phone.
Here’s the iPhone 3G compared to an iPhone 6s owned by my coworker Tony Villas-Boas.
The entirety of the iPhone 3G can comfortably sit within the perimeter of the iPhone 6s display — which is crazy. Keep in mind, Apple made these 3-inch iPhones for the first five generations of iPhone; the iPhone 5 in 2012 was the first with a 4-inch screen.
Here’s the iPhone 3G compared to my iPhone 7. Though the design is remarkably similar, you can really see how certain aspects have evolved: The physical home button is now a force-sensitive static “button” for Touch ID; the display has jumped from 3 inches to 5.5 inches; the speaker at the top is slightly larger on the iPhone 7; and the newer model features a front-facing camera.
Here’s the view from the bottom: The iPhone 3G had a single audio speaker at the bottom, whereas the iPhone 7 features a pair of very loud stereo speakers. Also note the port change: The original iPhones featured the 30-pin connector, which was replaced with the smaller and reversible Lightning connector for the iPhone 5 launch in 2012.
And… what is that on the iPhone 3G? A headphone jack? Weird!
And here’s a view of the backs. The iPhone 3G’s camera was a 2-megapixel shooter; it didn’t have zoom, flash, autofocus, or even video support. The iPhone 7’s 12-megapixel shooter supports 4K and a bevy of photo and video formats, and comes with a second telephoto lens for enhanced zooming. The older iPhone also has a rounded back and a more pronounced logo.
This year is the 10th anniversary of the iPhone, and Apple is expected to launch an iPhone with a radical redesign, featuring a gorgeous OLED display that takes up most of the front of the phone and wireless charging, among other features.
Looking at one of the first iPhones and comparing it to the current iPhones makes you realize that Apple’s design sensibilities really haven’t changed much over the last decade. Apple is still going for a slim, modern, rounded-rectangle design that looks like a flat slab of metal and glass. And based on the concepts and leaks we’ve seen thus far, we can expect the iPhone 8, or whatever Apple calls that phone, to look similar to these phones above: It will probably look similar to the iPhone 7 from the front, and perhaps the glass back will resemble the glossy back of the iPhone 3G. We’ll expect to learn more soon, as Apple typically hosts its iPhone unveilings in September.
The post The iPhone 7 really puts the first iPhones in perspective appeared first on Business Insider.
