Smartphones: Planet of the phones
Planet of the phones
The smartphone is ubiquitous, addictive and transformativeTHE dawn of the planet of the smartphones came in January 2007, when Steve Jobs, Apple’s chief executive, in front of a rapt audience of Apple acolytes, brandished a slab of plastic, metal and silicon not much bigger than a Kit Kat. “This will change everything,” he promised. For once there was no hyperbole. Just eight years later Apple’s iPhone exemplifies the early 21st century’s defining technology.This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “Planet of the phones”From the February 28th 2015 editionDiscover stories from this section and more in the list of contentsExplore the edition