When Was the First iPhone? A Look Back at Apple’s Game-Changing Moment

You know what’s wild? Most people don’t even remember when was the first iPhone came out, and honestly, I didn’t either until recently. I had this random convo with a friend, and we both kinda stared into space like, “Was it 2006? 2008?” Turns out nope. The first iPhone was announced on January 9, 2007, by Steve Jobs. That keynote was something else. He came out and said Apple was launching three revolutionary products: an iPod, a phone, and an internet device. But plot twists were all just one thing. The iPhone.

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People legit didn’t believe it at first. It was such a new idea, nobody had seen a phone without buttons. But that moment set everything in motion. Not just for Apple for the whole tech world.

So… When Did It Actually Launch?

Here’s the thing: it wasn’t available to buy right after the announcement. Apple made people wait for it. The actual release happened on June 29, 2007, only in the U.S. at first. And yeah, people camped outside stores like it was a concert. No joke. That day, the smartphone era officially kicked off, even if most people didn’t know it yet.

The phone cost $499 for the 4GB version and $599 for 8GB and that was with a two-year contract on AT&T. Crazy how expensive that sounds now for what you were getting. But at the time? Everyone wanted one.

What Could the First iPhone Actually Do?

Not much, tbh. If you look back at it now, the original iPhone was super limited. It had a 3.5-inch screen, which was big at the time, and ran on a 2G EDGE network so yeah, the internet was slow. There was no App Store yet, no GPS, no video recording, and no front camera. It had a 2MP rear camera that only took still photos. And don’t even think about copy-paste that didn’t exist either.

But even with all that missing, it felt magical. You could browse real websites in Safari, swipe through photos, and listen to music all in one device. The animations were smooth. It’s just… worked. And that made people fall in love with it.

The Design Was Minimal and Bold

Apple went with a very clean design: one home button, a big glass screen, and no keyboard. Just touch controls. For 2007, that was almost sci-fi. The phone felt solid in your hand, and even though it had only 4, 8, or 16GB of storage, that felt like enough back then. There was no SD card slot, no multitasking, and the battery wasn’t removable, but somehow none of that mattered.

It came with apps like Safari, Mail, Calendar, and a YouTube app that streamed videos (in 2007!). There was no app store yet, so everything you got came from Apple. Weird, right? A phone with no app downloads.

Why It Was Still a Game-Changer

Here’s the honest truth: it wasn’t about specs. It was about the experience. Using the iPhone felt different. Touching the screen actually did what you expected. Scrolling was smooth. Pinching to zoom? Mind-blowing at the time. Compared to BlackBerry or Nokia, the iPhone looked and felt like something from 5 years in the future.

Even with all its limits, the iPhone changed what people expected from phones. And soon, other companies had to play catch-up. Android came in 2008. App stores became a thing. Touchscreens took over. All of it started with this one slightly flawed but totally revolutionary device.

What Happened to It?

The first iPhone didn’t stay around long. Apple moved fast iPhone 3G came in 2008 with actual GPS and the App Store. The original model, also known as the iPhone 2G or model A1203, was eventually discontinued. It only supported iOS updates up to version 3.1.3, and after that, it was done. But it had already done its job. It changed the game forever.

Now it’s kind of a collector’s item. Some people still keep theirs in the box. Others just remember the feeling of holding it for the first time like you were touching the future.

Final Thoughts

So if someone ever stops you and asks, “Hey, when was the first iPhone?” now you know. It was announced on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007. And even though it lacked a ton of features we take for granted now, it completely reshaped the way we think about phones.

It wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t need to be. It was different. And that’s why it mattered.

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