The History of Apple Aint No Slice of Pie

By now I have hopefully established that this blog will be dedicated to all things Apple.  Although it has been drilled into our heads dozens and dozens of times that Wikipedia is not a scholarly source, I have decided to give them the benefit of the doubt on their accuracy.

"Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and manufactures consumer electronics and computer software products. The company's best-known hardware products include Macintosh computers, the iPod and the iPhone" (Wikipedia)

So by the most basic standards, Apple is an electronic and computer company known worldwide with infamous products such as the iPod, iPhone, and Mac. 

I would go into the history of Apple, but honestly, I'm 95% positive you don't really want to hear it and 99.9% positive that I can't make it very interesting.  Therefore, for your viewing pleasure I present "The History of Apple....a Youtube Video"

After reading all about Apple...the good, the bad, and the ugly, I have decided that the companies history can be successfully split up into six era's:

1. The Beginning 1976-1980

2. Lisa and Mac 1981-1985

3. The Demise and Rise 1986-1993

4. Wake up Call  1994-1997

5. "That's almost as good a comeback as Britney Spears" 1998-2004

6. Underdog no more, new leader of the pack 2005-Present

More so in the past 4-5 years Apple has been able to shake the reputation that haunted them since the late 1980's.  Mis-targeted products, bulky and confusing programs and machinery, and uncompetitive concepts all managed to hover over the Apple name like a rainy storm cloud.  That is, until Apple introduced the iMac, the iPod, and more recently the iPhone.  

The progress of Apple through the six stages of their history can easily be tracked and matched even by looking at stock prices.  For example:

Lisa Introduced

September 1984: $2.87

Mac Introduced

September 1990: $6.83

Powerbook Introduced

September 1996: $5.55

iMac Introduced

September 2002: $7.25

Apple iPod Introduced 

September 2008: $113.66

Apple iPhone Introduced

September 21, 2009: $184.02

Opinions on Apple Inc.'s Reputation:

"The customer base is now more diverse, including students and mainstream consumers, and it's harder to satisfy as a whole," says Lopo L. Rego, a marketing professor at the University of Iowa who studies the impact of customer satisfaction on financial performance." BusinessWeek

"Apple(AAPL Quote) has only 3% of the phone market, but it's nearing 40% of the smartphone market." -Jim Cramer The Street

"Yes, Apple Inc. is a great company that makes terrific products ... Steve Jobs can lay a plausible claim to the title of the world's most successful chief executive." -MacDailyNews

"The numbers, however, tell a greater story: In its first three days on the market, according to an Apple Inc. announcement, the iPhone 3GS sold 1 million units." -MacDailyNews