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Wales Online
Wales Online
National
Danielle Kate Wroe & Matt Jackson

The story behind the 'i' in Apple's iPhone

It feels as though Apple's iPhone series have been around forever now. But many people may be left scratching their heads wondering where the 'i' came from.

In fact, the name has become a bit of a thing across Apple's devices. There's also the iPad, iPod, iMac, iTunes and more that had made up the range.

But what does the 'i' actually mean? It's a question that is often asked, and people have some good guesses like 'intelligent', and 'indispensable', with some people even thinking it meant 'i' as in 'my phone', reports the Mirror.

Well, as it turns out, in a 1998 interview, Steve Jobs revealed the truth behind the name. And it turns out it stands for not just one word but five.

The Readers Digest reported that Steve Jobs said that the 'i' stands for 'internet, individual, instruct, inform and inspire'. He also mysteriously said, however, that it 'didn't have an official meaning', alluding to it potentially meaning a 'personal pronoun' and 'instruction' for education purposes.

So, it seems as though the 'i' could well be open to interpretation. Earlier this month, iPhone users were also baffled to learn that they can customise the Lock Screen for the very first time.

According to Apple: "Live Activities is a new feature that helps users stay on top of things that are happening in real-time, such as a sports game, workout, ride-share, or food delivery order, right from the Lock Screen. Notifications have been redesigned to roll up from the bottom, ensuring that users have a clear view of their personalised Lock Screen."

Available on any iPhone capable of upgrading to iOS 16.1, Live Activity widgets can be found at the bottom of your Lock Screen. Apple's iOS 16.1 update is now available to try for yourself, and you can install it by simply going to Settings > General > Software Update.

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