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Steve Jobs: the Father of Consumer Technology

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Jeremy Toeman

I surprised myself with the emotional reaction to hearing about Steve Jobs’ passing yesterday.  I guess I knew it was coming, but having never met the man, didn’t expect to have “a moment” about it.  After reading words from Eric Schmidt, Richard Branson, Larry Page, Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, and President Obama (not to mention a few other people), it became quite challenging to write anything original that I hadn’t covered when he resigned.  But there is one thing that I don’t think is as bluntly stated as I’d do it, so here’s my brief take.

Steve Jobs is, in my opinion, singlehandedly responsible for the concept of Consumer Technology.  Or, less brief, responsible for the concept of really amazing consumer technology.

I wasn’t always an Apple fan, but I think I (almost) always respected (most of) their products.  Even before I wanted a Mac, I thought it was awesome that they paid such attention to screws and other little details.  Even when I thought a turquoise computer was silly, I was able to “get” why they did it.  Even when I thought switching to Mac would just cause me a pain (fears of incompatibility, etc), I always kinda sorta wanted to go there.  Even when I thought they couldn’t pull off success in the phone market, I had a sneaking hunch they’d do something a little, shall we say, different, than the rest.

The Apple II was arguably the first mass-market personal computer.  The Mac was the first visual computing environment that put ease of use ahead of a command-line interface.  The iPod was the first end-to-end solution for digital music.  The iPhone transformed phones.  The iPad is transforming the entire computing landscape.

Steve certainly didn’t do it alone, and the entire teams he’s had around him for years deserve immense praise.  But it’s safe to say that no other inventor, entrepreneur, technologist, CEO, engineer, marketer, product designer, or anyone else has pushed the “consumer” in “consumer technology” so far as Mr Jobs did over the past four decades.

So thank you, Steve, for not just the gadgets, but realistically the entire concept of building technology for the people.  You made technology, as you’d probably have put it, delightful.

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2 thoughts on “Steve Jobs: the Father of Consumer Technology”

  1. Robert says:
    October 15, 2011 at 2:15 pm

    Remember the song the day the music died. Someone really needs to rewrite it to the day technology died as this great man is the very reason we hold technology whether what we hold is Apple or not. He is the man who gave us consumer technology from the start. He is the Father of all Personal Technology. I really do someone does that song for him because when he passed he took the brilliance and innovation of technology that defined Steve Jobs and always will. I myself am a PC user and Android user but none of that would exist if Steve hadnt thought outside the box first. Thank you Steve.

    Reply
  2. Denise Schoch says:
    November 15, 2011 at 7:12 pm

    Apple products are so quintessentially American – actually they are the most revered product America produces–in accompaniment with Disney. They are cool, sleek, expensive, and totally worth it. Working for Apple was the same way–totally cool and totally worth it. Every detail – in the product, the store, and the people they hired to sell – totally cool, very intelligent, and one of the very best american purchasing experiences. If you are visiting America, visit an Apple store. If you want to start a business, online or actually store front, visit an Apple store several times, and you will know what “buy American” is truly all about.

    Reply

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About

Jeremy Toeman is a seasoned Product leader with over 20 years experience in the convergence of digital media, mobile entertainment, social entertainment, smart TV and consumer technology. Prior ventures and projects include CNET, Viggle/Dijit/Nextguide, Sling Media, VUDU, Clicker, DivX, Rovi, Mediabolic, Boxee, and many other consumer technology companies. This blog represents his personal opinion and outlook on things.

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