How the iPhone Evolved From a Simple Touchscreen Phone to a Global Icon

When Apple introduced the first iPhone in 2007, it was difficult to predict just how much the device would change the mobile phone industry.At the time, smartphones were already around, but Apple took a different approach. Instead of relying on a physical keyboard or stylus, the company put a touchscreen at the centre of the experience. That decision would go on to influence almost every smartphone that followed.It Started With the iPhoneThe original iPhone arrived in 2007 with a 3.5-inch touchscreen and Apple’s multi-touch interface. There was no physical keyboard, and users could navigate the phone directly with their fingers.A year later, Apple released the iPhone 3G. As the name suggested, 3G connectivity was one of its major additions. It also came with GPS and, perhaps more importantly, the App Store, giving developers a way to create and distribute applications for iPhone users.Then came the iPhone 3GS in 2009. Apple focused more on speed and performance with this model. It also introduced video recording and improved voice-control features.Apple Changes the DesignThe iPhone 4, released in 2010, brought one of the biggest visual changes yet. Apple moved to a glass-and-stainless-steel design and introduced the Retina Display, which offered a much sharper screen.It also had a front-facing camera, helping make FaceTime possible.In 2011, the iPhone 4S arrived with a better 8-megapixel camera, 1080p video recording and a feature that would later become a familiar part of Apple’s ecosystem — Siri.The iPhone 5 followed in 2012 with a taller 4-inch display, LTE connectivity and Apple’s new Lightning connector, replacing the older 30-pin connection.Touch ID and the 64-bit EraApple continued experimenting with the iPhone in 2013 when it released the iPhone 5s alongside the colourful iPhone 5c.The 5s introduced Touch ID, allowing users to unlock the phone using their fingerprint. It also featured Apple’s A7 chip, which made history as the first 64-bit processor in a smartphone.Meanwhile, the iPhone 5c offered a more colourful plastic design and gave consumers another option within Apple’s growing smartphone lineup.From that first 3.5-inch touchscreen in 2007 to the increasingly powerful devices that followed, Apple’s early iPhone models helped set the direction of the modern smartphone.And the interesting part is that the story was only getting started.