A podcast about the history of Apple. In each episode, hosts Graham Bower and Charlie Sorrel explore the story behind a different Apple product, and consider wh...
Apple Maps launched alongside the original iPhone in 2007. Initially, it relied on map data from Google. But in 2012, when the two companies became smartphone rivals, Apple was forced to find an alternative data source.Opting to build its own map platform in-house, Apple attempted to replicate a product Google had developed over many years in a matter of months. Unsurprisingly, the results were not perfect. Users around the world reported bad directions, missing landmarks, and bizarre visual glitches.The fallout from the Apple Maps launch led to a rare apology from Tim Cook, and the departure of one of Apple’s most indispensable software engineers. But with the benefit of hindsight, the wisdom of Apple’s move into mapping has become clear. It enabled Apple to compete head-on with Android, and kickstarted Cupertino’s move into services.MERCH STORECheck out our merch store on Teepublic for retro-geek design t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, mugs, stickers, and more: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/apple-core-podcastLINKSThe Verge report stating Apple’s deal with Google still had a year to run when Apple scrapped it: https://www.theverge.com/2012/9/25/3407614/apple-over-a-year-left-on-google-maps-contract-google-maps-ios-appTim Cook’s apology letter (via the Internet Archive): https://web.archive.org/web/20121001005112/http://www.apple.com/letter-from-tim-cook-on-maps/New York Times article on the brawl between Apple and Google in 2010: https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/2010/03/14/technology/14brawl.htmlWall Street Journal report on Apple’s acquisition of C3 Technologies from Saab: https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304543904577398502695522974Cult of Mac on firing of Richard Williamson: https://www.cultofmac.com/apple-history/apple-maps-launch-disasterScott Forstall tells the story of his interview with Steve Jobs at NeXT: https://macdailynews.com/2020/05/22/scott-forstall-reveals-how-his-interview-with-steve-jobs-went/Adam Lashinsky’s Inside Apple: https://www.amazon.com/Inside-Apple-Americas-Admired-Secretive-Company/dp/1455512168/
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Mac OS X - how Steve Jobs saved Apple’s crown jewel
In 1996, Apple was in serious trouble. The Mac was almost obsolete. Its multitasking was flaky, it couldn’t handle multiple processors, and it kept crashing. Sales were tanking as users switched to Windows NT in droves.Apple appointed a new CEO, Gil Amelio, to turn things around. He tried to replace the Mac’s System 7 with a new modern operating system he called Rhapsody. Amelio’s strategy wasn’t bad, but he failed to anticipate how difficult it would be to persuade Mac users and developers to switch platforms.Fortunately, Amelio selected NeXTSTEP as the core foundation of Rhapsody, and the acquisition of NeXT led to the fateful return of Steve Jobs. Over the following two years, Jobs ousted Amelio, fixed his flawed Rhapsody strategy, added a shiny UI that looked so good you could lick it, and rename the whole thing Mac OS X.LINKSGil Amelio’s book: On the Firing Line: My 500 Days at Apple https://www.amazon.com/Firing-Line-500-Days-Apple/dp/0887309186/MacWorld Expo San Francisco January 7 1997 - Steve Jobs first keynote after his return to Apple: https://youtu.be/QhhFQ-3w5tE?si=f0IIUmN-s_Ff0n0IWWDC, May 1998 at the San Jose Convention Center - Steve Jobs and Avi Tevanian introduce Mac OS X and Carbon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03kTC0Sm7wcMacworld San Francisco January 2000 - Steve Jobs announces Aqua: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko4V3G4NqIIScreenshot of iMovie running on Mac OS 9 with Aqua controls, before Aqua was announced for Mac OS X: https://x.com/mac_os_9/status/1080826112408662017Interesting article about Steve Jobs and object oriented programming: https://computerhistory.org/blog/the-deep-history-of-your-apps-steve-jobs-nextstep-and-early-object-oriented-programming/
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NeXT - the secret to Apple’s salvation and success
Apple Watch - what Tim Cook’s first product launch tells us about the future of Vision Pro
These days, Cupertino describes Apple Watch as “the ultimate device for a healthy life.” But it didn’t start out that way. When Tim Cook originally launched the product in 2014, he positioned it as an “intimate way to connect and communicate.”Over its ten year history, Apple Watch has pivoted more radically than any previous Apple product. The user interface has transformed to such an extent that even the Digital Crown and side button no longer perform their original functions.The story of how and why this happened reveals a deeper truth about Apple’s evolution. Under Steve Jobs, the company toiled for years in secret to develop perfectly conceived products. Whereas, under Tim Cook, Apple has released products earlier and learned from consumer reaction. This approach could have profound implications for the future of Vision Pro.Featuring special guest D. Griffin Jones from The CultCast and Cult of Mac. Sound engineering by Martin Algesten.LINKSGriffin mentioned this book - The Apple II Age: How the Computer Became Personal by Laine Nooney:https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/A/bo195231688.htmlJony Ive and the battle of the big tent:https://www.macworld.com/article/696590/apple-expose-jony-ive-departure-apple-watch-tent.htmlApple Event September 2014 “Wish we could say more”:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38IqQpwPe7sApple Event March 2015 “Spring forward”:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2dVrpUxUhMGraham wrote an article about the evolution of watchOS:https://www.cultofmac.com/news/radical-evolution-of-watchosGriffin’s YouTube video about how he uses Vision Pro:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im3_yq-LxMQ
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iPhone 4 - Apple’s most painful product launch
When Steve Jobs announced the iPhone 4 at WWDC 2010, it surprised no one. Tech blog Gizmodo had already spilled the tea two months earlier by publishing photographs of a lost prototype. Jobs was furious, but he found a way to turn the situation to his advantage. The design of the iPhone 4 set the standard for all subsequent models. And with innovative new features like FaceTime and the Retina Display, Jobs described it as the biggest leap forward since the original iPhone. iPhone 4 proved wildly popular, but the launch did not go smoothly. One month later, Jobs had to rush back from a family vacation in Hawaii to deal with “Antennagate,” a media frenzy over concerns about dropped calls. The institutional learnings Apple acquired from this PR nightmare continue to inform iPhone launches to this day.LINKSOriginal Gizmodo iPhone 4 leak coverage via the Internet Archive:https://web.archive.org/web/20100421020922/https://gizmodo.com/5520164/this-is-apples-next-iphonehttps://web.archive.org/web/20100423034754/http://gizmodo.com/5520438/how-apple-lost-the-next-iphoneGourmet Haus Staudt:https://gourmethausstaudt.comThe guy who sold the iPhone 4 prototype to Gizmodo did a Reddit AMA:https://www.cultofmac.com/news/the-guy-who-sold-apples-lost-iphone-4-prototype-spills-all-on-redditWWDC 2010 Keynote - iPhone 4 launch:https://youtu.be/EP81hZ_HdXU?si=DT2FHhmYWq-IZh5NGizmodo Antennagate coverage:https://gizmodo.com/video-clearly-shows-antenna-defect-on-iphone-4-web-brow-5575347Jonathan Mann Antennagate song:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKIcaejkpD4Antennagate press conference:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8tXyfjfnB0AnandTech iPhone 4 review:https://www.anandtech.com/show/3794/the-iphone-4-review/2Kara Swisher’s Burn Book includes her account of asking Steve Jobs what he planned to do in the next ten years:https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Burn-Book/Kara-Swisher/9781982163891
A podcast about the history of Apple. In each episode, hosts Graham Bower and Charlie Sorrel explore the story behind a different Apple product, and consider what it tells us about the company’s game plan and where it might be heading next.
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