Show menu
Home
›
News
›
Apple's first touchscreen phone prototype dates back to 1983

Apple's first touchscreen phone prototype dates back to 1983

Posted: 30 Dec 2011, 06:36, by Victor H.

Share Tweet Share

Apple's first touchscreen phone prototype dates back to 1983

Curious how the iPhone would have looked like in 1983? Apple turns out to have indeed been working on a touchscreen device back then as an early prototype dating back to nearly 30 years ago was found. Designer Hartmut Esslinger stood behind the design, but it seems he was ahead of his time.

Esslinger was then hired with a million dollar contract and tasked to craft a unique design strategy to bring Apple from just another Silicon Valley start-up into the global brand that it is today.

He later created the "Snow White design language" the company is famous for even today, but back then it was implemented on the Apple II and the Macintosh computer.

Sure, the prototype you’re seeing on the picture is a landline rather than a mobile phone, but nonetheless it’s revealing that such a technology was imagined back then. Sadly, except for the picture we have no more details about what features would the device have. Interestingly it also comes with a stylus, something Steve Jobs condemned in the iPhone and future iOS devices.

source: TiPB

Android O is coming out today, here's what you need to know

Samsung Galaxy Note 8: All the rumors so far

21 Comments

Options
Close Follow › Following
Show comments:

Display mode:

Always view all comments

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 07:47 2

1. Cwebb (Posts: 501; Member since: 05 Oct 2011)

If only...

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 08:02 26

2. andro. (Posts: 1999; Member since: 16 Sep 2011)

Ladies and gentlemen what you are now looking at it is the Iphone 5...........!!

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 08:27 10

4. tacohunter (Posts: 408; Member since: 06 Nov 2011)

+1 good joke

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 09:17 6

7. GALAXY-S (Posts: 701; Member since: 07 Jun 2011)

lmao! yea no doubt

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 15:10 1

16. Rawrzellers (Posts: 224; Member since: 22 Aug 2010)

It's so retro!

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 08:22 4

3. arcq12 (Posts: 733; Member since: 13 Oct 2011)

@andro. no man, thats the iPhone -24.. lol

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 08:28 3

5. tacohunter (Posts: 408; Member since: 06 Nov 2011)

Obviously they could've further devolepped this prototype. But they'd chose 2007 as a good year people were ready for this kind of devices. And it worked, I guess.

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 09:00 2

6. cober319 (Posts: 11; Member since: 10 Nov 2011)

That would have been WAY ahead of its time and would have failed miserably. Just think if that type of technology had caught on 28 years ago. Where would we be now?

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 09:22

8. droiddomination (Posts: 203; Member since: 01 Dec 2011)

i wonder if it took to long to patent it that is why it never made it to market? does it have siri? or the WOPPR? "do you want to play a game" hahaha apple sux.

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 09:36 5

9. remixfa (Posts: 14605; Member since: 19 Dec 2008)

touch screens have been around a long time. I remember using them on monochrome computer screens as a kid. The I played the original leisure suite larry on an orange monochrome touch screen lol.

just remember, the password is "ken sent me" :)

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 11:23 4

10. gallitoking (Posts: 4721; Member since: 17 May 2011)

those were toys remix.. not gadgets.. lol

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 15:15 3

17. remixfa (Posts: 14605; Member since: 19 Dec 2008)

when it costs about 4 grand for a computer with that tech.. its no toy. You are a tarded chickenhead. Just thought I'd remind u.

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 12:51 1

11. jibraihimi (Posts: 770; Member since: 29 Nov 2011)

Is this ipad 2s......??? The trimmed down, and low cost version of ipad2 to compete with Kindle Fire........ !!!!!

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 13:00

12. chapizzo (Posts: 116; Member since: 13 Sep 2011)

wow, so apple is the inventor of all things cool. Thanks iphonearena! You just had to let us know.

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 13:18 1

13. tacohunter (Posts: 408; Member since: 06 Nov 2011)

if you see it that way good

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 13:28 6

14. godsarmylds (Posts: 36; Member since: 05 Mar 2010)

Cute article. But interested we're you got your info. Looking the picture. Looks like they were testing a device that can send e-checks and any other data via through its phone service like a fax machine. And ths product was an all in one product that can be a phone or data data transfered device that all went through your phone line. Not having anything to do with an iphone concept. You wouldnt say old egypt was working on the US dollar bill cause they built pyramids. But had a different purpose. Yes, ill give you that the iphone and the all in one product have more similarities. But from the picture I see that this product was an all in one concept that never was inproduction because of the lack of it being a good idea. So, just curious, did you find the pictures on google and decided to formulate your own ideasor do you actually have actual info??

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 13:52 1

15. wakingup (Posts: 51; Member since: 13 Aug 2011)

so right

posted on 30 Dec 2011, 22:33 1

18. lukasound (Posts: 152; Member since: 16 Nov 2011)

exactly... this has nothing to do with the iPhone concept...
any implementation of the touchscreen is today connected to the iPhone? that's just crazy... Apple didn't make the first smartphone, neither the first touchscreen, nor the first touchscreen smartphone...