There are people, likely in the millions, who have a hard time recalling life in the absence of scrolling through their phones first thing in the morning, but it hasn’t really been that long since Apple iPhones hit the market.

The world changed, 14 years ago this week, when those first devices were shipped. 

It was a big day, June 29, 2007, as Apple Stores shut down in preparations for hosting “iPhone World Premiere,” an event worthy of the fanfare.

9to5mac.com detailed the undeniably revolutionary moment.

The big unveiling began at 6 p.m. in most cities as Apple stores welcomed long lines of customers eagerly awaiting what 9to5mac called an almost “mythical device.”

At the launch, Apple spared no promotional expense, presenting a well-received series of displays to boost the special feeling for consumers – and that has continued with each subsequent rollout.

Steve Jobs visited the Palo Alto, Calif., story with his wife, Laurene, and talked with some customers and friends including, according to a photo referenced by 9to5mac.com, original Macintosh team members Andy Hertzfeld and Bill Atkinson. 

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak was No. 1 in line at his hometown store in San Jose.

9to5mac reports Wozniak is seen in a photo by Anuj Biyani entering the store wearing a shirt that says, “The line starts here.” 

The iPhone World Premiere was an unqualified success – for sales, promotion and just the way to launch an elite product.

As 9to5mac.com wrote: 

“You weren’t just waiting to buy a product, you were waiting to buy the future.”

The numbers backed up the hype. Apple sold 1 million iPhones by mid-September. Jobs, who died in 2011, said it took nearly two years for that many iPods to be sold.

Today, Apple has more than 1 billion iPhones in active use.

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