what does "i" mean?

[podsmack]

i know this is a stupid question but im just wondering what does i mean like in ipod,itunes,itrip,iskin and etc.

[Bob]

The i prefix is believed to mean internet - as the iMac was intended to be a straight out of the box, a couple of plugs and you're surfing, type of computer that is what it meant in iMac - guess it just continued as products and manufacturers latched on...

Of course I am willing to be corrected

[iPod Master]

madpicts reson is the only one i have ever heard, so it is probably correct. and "emac" means educational because it was origianally designed for schools, but people loved it so much the made it for the public. ever wonder why the power button is in such an inconvienient location? so the student dont mess with it (no that i would anyway )

[KoMaN]

Yeah, it sorta relates to iPod because of iTunes and all.

But hasn't everyone noticed that a lot of companies are now putting i's in front of there products? Here in Aus we have an internet company called iPrimus.

[~tl]

Originally posted by KoMaN
Yeah, it sorta relates to iPod because of iTunes and all.

But hasn't everyone noticed that a lot of companies are now putting i's in front of there products? Here in Aus we have an internet company called iPrimus.

yeah ... everyone has seemed to latched on to the "i" revolution!

TOM

[pamela3224]

"i" means INTEL

[anypats]

My favorite was the iBra. Originally released through Victoria's Secret I believe.

[S2_Mac]

"i" means INTEL

Shhh -- don't let the G3 gumdrop iMacs, G4 bump iMacs, or G5 flat-panel iMacs hear you say that! (All four of mine are still working; don't want their little PPC hearts to get upset ;-)

[The Intruder]

Malphite, I've never thought of it that way, but it makes a lot of sense.
Its all about marketing.

[prideseo]

It means internet.

[Trudy]

Originally Posted by prideseo

It means internet.

Thanks, we already had that in post #2...

But Malphite's thought is actually quite interesting if you look at it from this angle. Putting in the 'i' meaning 'me' when you are reading it to yourself actually can create such an invisible bond to Apple's products. Not too far off, at all imo.

[kornchild2002]

Yep, and that post was made almost 7 years ago! It never had a true meaning as defined by Apple especially since the whole "i" part carried over into products that initially could not connect to the internet. In fact, iPods themselves were offline devices until 2007 with the introduction of the iPod touch (6 years after the first iPod was released).

So there isn't an official meaning behind "i" (at least one that Apple has yet to make public) but there are plenty of theories. I am surprised that it has lasted this long though since the iBook was killed (it was an extremely popular notebook line), iPad sounds like some feminine product (and is an all around goofy name just like the Wii), and iPod is only two letters away from being iPooed. It has outlasted products that put the letters Z or X at the end of their titles (Creative Zen X), the whole "2000" moniker (as in Gateway 2000, Windows 2000, etc.), and pretty much every other hot topic marketing scheme that can be thought of. It is funny that, back in the day, the iPod was the only thing in Apple's product lineup that had the letter "i" at the beginning of the title that wasn't a computer. Now the iMac is the only computer in their inventory that continues to use "i."

[Eddie.exe]

I thought it meant Industrial?

"i" is like the "Extreme" or "Plus" of the 2000s =P

[kornchild2002]

Nope, it never had an official meaning as identified by Apple. There were tons of theories but we have never been given a concrete answer. I also think the last thing it would mean is industrial as the first iMacs definitely weren't industrial Macs (same thing with the iBooks), we are talking about plastic all-in-one units that featured bright translucent colors.

[rockmyplimsoul]

I always thought it was "intelligent" (perhaps in reference to smart playlists?) and "pod" meaning a portable "capsule" of your music.