Skip to main content
Tech Radar TechRadar the technology experts
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
RSS
Asia
flag of Singapore
Singapore
Europe
flag of Danmark
Danmark
flag of Suomi
Suomi
flag of Norge
Norge
flag of Sverige
Sverige
flag of UK
UK
flag of Italia
Italia
flag of Nederland
Nederland
flag of België (Nederlands)
België (Nederlands)
flag of France
France
flag of Deutschland
Deutschland
flag of España
España
North America
flag of US (English)
US (English)
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of México
México
Australasia
flag of Australia
Australia
flag of New Zealand
New Zealand
  • Phones
  • Computing
  • TVs
  • AI
  • Streaming
  • Health
  • Audio
  • VPN
  • More
    • Cameras
    • Home
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Opinion
    • How to
    • Versus
    • Deals
    • Coupons
    • Best
Tech Radar Pro
Tech Radar Gaming
Trending
  • Nintendo Switch 2
  • WWDC
  • Best laptop
  • Best VPN
  • ChatGPT
  • Best web hosting
  • NYT Wordle today

Recommended reading

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max REVIEW
iPhone The iPhone will soon turn 20, but the last thing it needs is an all-glass makeover
Jony Ive
Artificial Intelligence iPhone designer Jony Ive joins OpenAI, but don't expect a new ChatGPT smartphone
Apple Watch foldable display patent
Smartwatches Forget the folding iPhone – Apple has patented a foldable Apple Watch with two screens
Apple Watch Ultra 2 on wrist showing a timer
Health & Fitness Apple patents motion-predicting technology that can count reps and identify exercises during a workout
images of a MacBook Pro 13-inch, MacBook Pro 16-inch, MacBook Air 15-inch, Mac mini and Mac Studio in a photo studio
Macbooks The best MacBook and Macs of 2025
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
iPhone Apple’s foldable iPhone is tipped to beat the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold in two key ways
Jony Ive and Sam Altman
Artificial Intelligence Sam Altman and Jony Ive’s mysterious ‘AI-powered computer’ will be OpenAI’s magnum opus - here are 5 clues that hint at what it will be
  1. Tech

14 Best Inventions of Steve Jobs

News
By MacLife published 25 August 2011

Steve Jobs may just be the greatest inventor of our age.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Steve Jobs may just be the greatest inventor of our age. We dug through Google Patents and found that Steve Jobs is listed as the primary or co-inventor on 241 patents. Granted, some of those inventions were duds, no doubt. But some were pure genius, and did nothing less than completely change the way we use technology in our lives.

So as he prepares to walk away from the company he built, left, and rebuilt into something bigger than anyone thought possible, let's take a walk through some of his inventions that moved the technological world. We found the the original drawing submitted with every patent application submitted by Steve and his teams, along with the eventual Apple device that changed everything.

Apple III (1980)
It's easy to say the Apple III was a commercial failure, because it was. As Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak put it, the primary reason it failed was that the Apple III was designed by the marketing department, instead of engineering. Perhaps. However, there always exists a struggle between form and function, and it takes a true visionary who can bridge both design and capability. Sometimes failures are the best lessons.

iMac G3 (1998)
Of all the great Apple products in the last 35 years, the iMac G3 is truly iconic. It symbolized the return of Steve Jobs to the top spot in the company, and showed how high he immediately set the bar for innovative and disruptive design. Apple quipped "the back of our computer looks better than the front of anyone else's". And Apple has never looked back.

USB Mouse (1998)
OK, we know how you felt about this one, and trust us, we felt the same way. But the Hockey Puck most certainly does speak to the boundaries that Cupertino design was willing to cross once Jobs came back to the helm.

iPod (2001)
This was the game changer, really. The runaway success of the iPod, and with it iTunes, opened the floodgates for not only the portable device market, but for the digital download marketplace as well. The iPhone, App Store, and the iPad all came to be because the world fell in love with this little device.

PowerMac G3 (1999)
Steve Jobs once let slip that Dell computers were "un-innovative beige boxes." Well, when he came back as Apple CEO in 1997, you could describe the Power Macintosh G3 as exactly that. By 1999 it was goodbye beige and hello blue.

iMac G4 (2002)
The New iMac was only on the market for a couple of years, but it took desktop computer design in a completely new direction. Again.

iPod GUI (2003)
It wasn't just the hardware that made us need an iPod, because at the time there were a lot of MP3 players on the market. Steve Jobs took a personal interest in redesigning the software for the iPod and making it into something people wanted to use. And, yes... the people wanted to use it.

Glass Staircase
Today Apple retail stores sell more per square foot than any other retail store. When your CEO is so focused that he patents a better staircase, well, maybe that's what happens.

Power Adapter (2006)
Sometimes, a power adapter is more than just a power adapter. Sometimes, it is something that causes your PC friends -- fumbling with wild black cords with delicate tips and rubber straps -- to look at you with envy. It a simple power adapter with a brilliant design is something that lets you know that the top dog in the company is looking out for every detail.

iPhone OS / iOS (2007)
iOS is the leading mobile device operating system in the world. It is simple, powerful, and beautiful, and the iPad and iPhone would not be the market-changing devices they are without it.

Magic Mouse (2009)
Look Ma, no wheels! When the Magic Mouse was released in 2009, it was the first consumer mouse to have multi-touch capabilities. Ok, Steve, this one makes up for the hockey puck.

iPod Shuffle (2010)
The latest and current version of the iPod Shuffle shows how far the device has come, and how focused Steve Jobs still is on simplifying design to its core element.

iPhone 4 (2010)
The iPhone 4 is the breakthrough model. It is the iPhone that crossed over from AT&T to Verizon, and it is the iPhone that has captured the world -- both in style and design as well as sales. It is the iPhone Steve Jobs will carry in his pocket as he hands the reins over over to Tim Cook... that is unless he managed to grab an iPhone 5 on the way out.

iPad (2010)
A device that critics said no one needed. A device that competitors said is just a fad. A device is truly magical and revolutionary in every way and completely changed the way we use, and define, computers. Thanks, Steve. For everything.

Page 1 of 1
Page 1 of 1
MacLife
Read more
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max REVIEW
The iPhone will soon turn 20, but the last thing it needs is an all-glass makeover
Jony Ive
iPhone designer Jony Ive joins OpenAI, but don't expect a new ChatGPT smartphone
Apple Watch foldable display patent
Forget the folding iPhone – Apple has patented a foldable Apple Watch with two screens
Apple Watch Ultra 2 on wrist showing a timer
Apple patents motion-predicting technology that can count reps and identify exercises during a workout
images of a MacBook Pro 13-inch, MacBook Pro 16-inch, MacBook Air 15-inch, Mac mini and Mac Studio in a photo studio
The best MacBook and Macs of 2025
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
Apple’s foldable iPhone is tipped to beat the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold in two key ways
Latest in Tech
Robot delivery
Your Amazon delivery person might soon be a robot, which isn't as terrible as it sounds
A woman wearing Anker earbuds next to an image of a Samsung phone, next to dinosaurs created using Google's Veo 3
ICYMI: the 8 biggest tech stories of the week, from Google's new AI video magic to WhatsApp on the iPad
A triptych image of the Sennheiser HD 550, Hisense U8QG and Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 360.
5 most gripping tech reviews of the week: a super-bright bargain mini-LED TV and the most gorgeous-sounding gaming headset
Dreame Z1 Pro
Love your pool but hate cleaning it? The Dreame Z1 Pro robotic pool cleaner is here to change your life
Collage of tech from the latest Best Buy sale, including a Samsung OLED TV, LG TV, Dell XPS laptop, Sony PS5, GoPro, Ninja blender, Sonos speaker and Sony headphones
Best Buy doesn't want the Memorial Day sales to end – here are the 28 top deals still available now
Lego Mandalorian Helmet
Memorial Day Lego deals start as low as $6 at Amazon – here are my 19 favorite sets, including Star Wars, Technic, and Botanical
Latest in News
SGF 25
Resident Evil Requiem officially announced and it's launching in February 2026
SGF 25
Street Fighter 6's Season 3 characters have been announced, thanks to wrestler Kenny Omega
SGF 25
Free-to-play PvP shooter Mecha Break officially launches for PC and Xbox Series X in July
SGF 25
Dying Light: The Beast gets an official August release date at Summer Game Fest 2025
SGF 25
Mafia: The Old Country gets a new story trailer and an official release date this August
SGF 25
Atomic Heart 2 officially announced at Summer Game Fest, along with an Atomic Heart multiplayer spin-off, The Cube
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. 1
    Resident Evil Requiem officially announced and it's launching in February 2026
  2. 2
    Street Fighter 6's Season 3 characters have been announced, thanks to wrestler Kenny Omega
  3. 3
    Free-to-play PvP shooter Mecha Break officially launches for PC and Xbox Series X in July
  4. 4
    Lies of P: Overture is so good it makes me want to do countless New Game Plus runs to experience it over and over again
  5. 5
    I can’t believe Deadpool is finally making his gaming return, and it’s as a hilarious Meta Quest 3 exclusive

TechRadar is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Contact Us
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Web notifications
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...