What would you do to be first in line for a new iPhone?
Keystone
In the decade since the unveiling of the iPhone, the way people use the Internet and mobile phones has completely changed. In Switzerland, Apple’s devices flew off the store shelves – and their popularity has never let up.
This content was published on
2 minutes
A British multimedia journalist who moved to Switzerland in 2010, Jo has worked in TV, radio and online. She leads a team of video journalists, picture editors, a graphic designer, data journalist and community developer, and specialises in social media. Initials: jf
Kai works as a designer in the multimedia team at SWI swissinfo.ch. At the junction between journalism and design, he develops infographics, animations, maps and new formats for social media.
Trendsetters who wanted to be among the first Swiss to own an iPhone had to head online or buy the phone from the United States after they were first unveiled in January 2007. However, with the US devices, the SIM cards were locked in those days, so the next problem was to work out how to manually hack the phones, freeing them from use on only one mobile network and enabling use in Switzerland.
“I bought the original iPhone on eBay for about CHF1,300 ($1,277),” Jean-Claude Frick, tech blogger and digital expert at comparis.ch, told swissinfo.ch. He recalled how a community grew up of people who could unlock, or hack, the iPhones.
Once someone had an imported iPhone working on a mobile network in Switzerland, the costs were still prohibitive to use it very much. So, at first, many people used them only with WiFi.
Which make is most popular?
Apple does not provide country-specific data on the number of iPhones sold. Nevertheless, comparis.ch conducts research on which phones people use in Switzerland. Switzerland has one of the biggest market shares in the world of iPhones and their operating system, iOS.
swissinfo.ch
“Switzerland is an Apple land and an iPhone land,” said Frick. “Switzerland gets Apple products early compared to other European countries, like France. When the iPhone started, Apple was already well known here because of Apple Mac computers, and people are wealthy here, so we bought iPhones from the beginning.”
He pointed out that Apple introduced the iTunes music store and entire system of products very soon after the iPhone became available. That was in contrast to the Google Play, where the smartphones were available long before the entire “eco system” of films, music and apps.
Swiss claim to iPhone fame
From a manufacturing standpoint, the iPhone, as is well known, is made in China. However, as a very tiny portion of the product has Swiss origins, Switzerland can still stake a claim to contributing to one of the biggest technological successes of the past ten years.
More
More
Swiss technology in smartphones
This content was published on
It’s a decade since the iPhone was launched and at least four Swiss companies have reason to celebrate its success. (SRF/swissinfo.ch)
Were you one of the first people who bought an iPhone? Or have you stayed away from smartphones completely? Let us know in the comments below! You can contact the author of this story on FacebookExternal link or on TwitterExternal link.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Making an ethical choice on smartphones
This content was published on
The ranking is a first in Switzerland and aims to equip consumers with the knowledge to make informed decisions. “We want to change something, to contribute to people in China and Congo being able to live a decent life without putting themselves in danger in any way,” Daniela Renaud, project leader for the ‘High Tech…
This content was published on
Today’s youth wants everything at once. But this and the increasing use of smartphones and apps are making this generation stressed out.
This content was published on
The scientists used electroencephalography (EEG) to measure activity in the cortex of the brains of 26 touchscreen smartphone users and 11 users of older mobile phones. Through means of 62 electrodes placed on the volunteers’ heads, they recorded this activity based on movements of the thumb, forefinger and middle finger. The researchers concluded that smartphone…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.