15 Years of iPad: Reflecting on Apple’s Revolutionary Tablet
Image credit: Kimberly White/Getty ImagesYesterday marked 15 years since Steve Jobs took the stage at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco to unveil the original iPad. Announced on January 27, 2010, Apple’s groundbreaking tablet has since become a cornerstone of the company’s product lineup, defining a category that continues to evolve.
The first-generation iPad was designed to bridge the gap between smartphones and laptops, offering a 9.7-inch LED-backlit multitouch display, Apple’s first custom-designed chip, a 30-pin dock connector, and up to 64GB of storage. Priced at $499, the iPad introduced users to new ways of browsing the web, reading eBooks, watching videos, and interacting with Apple’s growing app ecosystem.
Jobs famously described the iPad as “a magical and revolutionary device” that redefined how people connect with their content and apps in an intimate and intuitive way.
Running a version of iOS optimized for its larger screen, the iPad brought a big-screen experience to familiar apps like Safari, Mail, and Photos. It also launched with the iBooks app and iBookstore, marking Apple’s entry into the e-reading space, dominated at the time by Amazon’s Kindle. The design featured thick black bezels, a physical home button, and a curved aluminum back. Weighing 1.5 pounds and boasting 10 hours of battery life, the iPad was a portable yet powerful device for media consumption in 2010.
At launch, the iPad received mixed reactions. While many praised its lightweight computing capabilities and seamless media experience, others questioned its necessity and potential to replace laptops. Despite the skepticism, the iPad sold over 300,000 units on its first day in April 2010 and hit the one-million-unit milestone within a month. By year’s end, Apple had sold over 15 million iPads cementing the device as a pillar in Apple's hardware lineup.
The success of the iPad inspired competitors such as Samsung, Microsoft, and Amazon to enter the tablet market, but Apple’s early lead and ecosystem advantage has given it an everlasting edge.
For a trip down memory lane, you can check out Apple’s original iPad press release from 2010.
What are your favorite memories of the original iPad? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
The first-generation iPad was designed to bridge the gap between smartphones and laptops, offering a 9.7-inch LED-backlit multitouch display, Apple’s first custom-designed chip, a 30-pin dock connector, and up to 64GB of storage. Priced at $499, the iPad introduced users to new ways of browsing the web, reading eBooks, watching videos, and interacting with Apple’s growing app ecosystem.
Jobs famously described the iPad as “a magical and revolutionary device” that redefined how people connect with their content and apps in an intimate and intuitive way.
Running a version of iOS optimized for its larger screen, the iPad brought a big-screen experience to familiar apps like Safari, Mail, and Photos. It also launched with the iBooks app and iBookstore, marking Apple’s entry into the e-reading space, dominated at the time by Amazon’s Kindle. The design featured thick black bezels, a physical home button, and a curved aluminum back. Weighing 1.5 pounds and boasting 10 hours of battery life, the iPad was a portable yet powerful device for media consumption in 2010.
At launch, the iPad received mixed reactions. While many praised its lightweight computing capabilities and seamless media experience, others questioned its necessity and potential to replace laptops. Despite the skepticism, the iPad sold over 300,000 units on its first day in April 2010 and hit the one-million-unit milestone within a month. By year’s end, Apple had sold over 15 million iPads cementing the device as a pillar in Apple's hardware lineup.
The success of the iPad inspired competitors such as Samsung, Microsoft, and Amazon to enter the tablet market, but Apple’s early lead and ecosystem advantage has given it an everlasting edge.
For a trip down memory lane, you can check out Apple’s original iPad press release from 2010.
What are your favorite memories of the original iPad? Share your thoughts in the comments below!