Countless innovations have allowed Apple's personal computer Mac to survive the fierce competition in the market, and Mac will also celebrate its 40th birthday on Wednesday, January 24th. Apple executives highly praised the 40 year history of the Mac product line as "incredible" for the company itself.
On January 24th, 40 years ago, Steve Jobs showcased the Macintosh and referred to it as the "future of computers.". In the following 40 years, Mac underwent gradual changes.
On the occasion of Mac's 40th anniversary, Apple executives have expressed their opinions on it.
Greg Joswiak, Senior Vice President of Apple, said, "This is not nostalgia, nor is history passing us by. We have truly been doing it for 40 years, and this fact is unbelievable."
John Ternus, Senior Vice President of Apple Hardware Engineering, said that the latest change for Mac is the chip revolution. "As we transition to Apple Silicon's self-developed chips starting in 2020, the user experience for Mac is starting to become different from before."
Tenus added, "When we first started using Apple chips, we really felt that the laws of physics had changed. Suddenly, we could create a MacBook Air without a fan and with a battery life of 18 hours... because if you could improve efficiency, everything would be better."
At present, the personal computer Mac has become the second largest product in Apple's product catalog after the iPhone. In fact, some features of the iPhone also inspired Mac, such as converting touch screen gestures into gestures that can be operated on the touchpad.
Craig Federighi, Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, jokingly said, "We must create an iPhone in order to create the scale of Mac we want to manufacture. iPhone sales have helped."
Alan Dye, Vice President of Human Computer Interface Design, said, "Our goal is to enable these products to work together well and create consistency."
New iteration
So what are the prospects for Mac in the next forty years? When asked if Apple will continue to keep the Mac in 40 years, Senior Vice President Joswiak pondered, "It's hard to imagine having an Apple but not a Mac."
When asked about the appearance changes and iteration issues of Mac, industrial design director Molly Anderson admitted that there is definitely a possibility of revolution.
Just as the iPhone has influenced the Mac, the newly released head mounted display device Vision Pro is likely to drive changes in the Mac as well.
The interview undoubtedly also mentioned the current artificial intelligence (AI) technology at the forefront of the discussion. Regarding Microsoft's addition of "artificial intelligence buttons" on its personal computer keyboards, Apple's Senior Vice President Joswiak joked, "Oh, this is a huge innovation." Federighi, Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, pointed out that "artificial intelligence is a driver of scenarios and functionality."
Federighi believes that "Mac has been able to absorb and integrate industry innovation, from graphics computing to the internet, and even creating tools for mobile devices. Every major technological wave has enabled Mac products to unleash their potential."
"With the advancement of disruptive waves such as space computing and artificial intelligence, Mac will update itself time and time again," Federighi added.