What is meant by the “i” in “iPhone,” “iPad,” and “iMac”?

iPhone, iPad, iPod, and a lot of Apple’s top products begin with an “i”, and this naming pattern is consistent enough to make many fans curious. What is the deal with the inclusion of the “i” at the start of all the top products? What does the “i” stand for?  

Well, if you also had that question, you will be getting an answer in this article, as we will check out why Apple decided to add the “i” prefix to almost all of its product names.  

Where Did the “i” in “iPhone,” “iPad,” and “iMac” Come From?  

In 1998, the company introduced its first “i” product, the iMac. The internet was just exploding in popularity as it was starting to become the number one selling point of computers.  

Apple had capitalized on that trend by making the iMac connected to the internet quicker as well as easier than the competition. That ability to connect to the internet faster was the iMac’s greatest selling point. Along with the sleek as well as the compact look, of course, at least, when compared with the other computers in the market. 

During the introduction of the iMac, Apple’s co-founder as well as the former CEO, Steve Jobs, said that the iMac was designed to help its users take advantage of the countless possibilities the internet had to offer. So, the initial “i” stood for internet, as Mac stood for Macintosh.  

However, as pointed out by Jobs, that was far from the only meaning of the letter “i”. During the presentation, Jobs displayed a slide that had several different meanings for the prefix “i”.  

They were:  

Internet: For the reasons mentioned above.  

Individual: Apple wanted users to express themselves as well as to exude personality with the iMac’s capabilities.  

Instruct: To emphasize the product’s purpose as a learning tool, both in the contexts of a classroom and beyond.  

Inform: It was to highlight how much people could learn by taking advantage of the internet.  

Inspire: Apple intended for the iMac to inspire users to create captivating products as well as content.  

The iBook as well as the iMac were the first to use the letter “i”. Steve Jobs wanted a professional consumer model of a desktop as well as a portable computer, so they were produced. Since the debut of the iMac in 1998, Apple has gone on to create several other consumer products that begin with “i”, including the iPod, iPhone, as well as iPad.  

Why Don’t Some Apple Products have the “i”?  

Many recent Apple products, for example, the Apple TV as well as the Apple Watch, have adopted a new naming pattern, the company has omitted the “i” entirely and instead opted for a generic name, occasionally accompanied by the Apple logo.  

It is possible that these were named as Apple wanted to avoid trademark wars, which result in lawsuits as well as settlements, especially because similar cases have happened before.  

When the iPhone was unveiled in 2007, Apple had a legal scuffle with Cisco Systems. As the company already had a product with the same name, Cisco and Apple managed to come to terms with the iPhone name. Though the price of the settlement is undisclosed.  

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