Briana Burton
CDMG 1111
October 31st,2017
The History of the Apple Logo
The technology company named “Apple” known to us as one of the best technology companies was founded by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne in 1976. Jobs and Wozniak decided that they wanted to make computers smaller and easier to use at home. They created the Apple Computer in Jobs’ garage in 1976 and later built keyboards, monitors and casings in 1977. They needed a logo to brand their product for the market which Ronald designed. To date the Apple Company has used many different versions of the logo. Some lasted for just a few months and some lasted for years.
The Newton Crest
The first logo was created by Ronald Wayne. It was hand drawn and had a picture of Isaac Newton under an apple tree. It also had a phrase on the outside border saying “Newton …a mind forever voyaging through strange seas of thought … alone” which was taken from a poem written by William Wordsworth. This logo was called the Newton Crest because it portrayed the story about Newton revolutionizing Science when an apple fell on his head and he discovered and documented what gravity was. Ronald’s version of the apple logo was to create technology with an influence. However, Jobs was not pleased with the design. He thought it was outdated and he wanted a logo that was more modern.
The Rainbow Logo
The second logo was created by Rob Janoff between the end of 1976 and early 1977 showing the rainbow colors on a bitten apple. According to Rob he put a bite in the apple so people would not mistake the apple for a tomato. Rob wanted the logo design to make the new Apple Computer look more user friendly and to highlight the color display on the computer. According to the website “FamousLogos.net”, there is speculation about the rainbow logo being used to pay tribute to Alan Mathison Turing, who they said was the founder of Computer Science. Alan allegedly committed suicide by eating a cyanide-poisoned apple after being persecuted for his homosexuality. Tribune.com said that Rob laughed at that and said it was just a rumor. The rainbow apple logo was used until the end of 1998.
Monochrome Logos: 
Translucent Blue Logo
& Aqua Logo
Chrome Logo
The website 9to5mac.com spoke about apple briefly using the translucent blue logo. The Apple Company changed to the Monochrome version of the apple logo the same year they discontinued the translucent logo. The Monochrome logo was used from 1998 to 2000 according to 9to5.com. It was created so they could use it for all their products. Blogs.tribune.com said that the Monochrome logo was created for the new Mac computers that they were making at the time. They were changing the plastic casing to metal casing and the rainbow logo would not be an appropriate fit for the metal casing. After a few years of changing logos the company was still searching for different logos. The Aqua Logo was designed in 2001 and was used until 2007.
The latest version of the Apple logo is the Chrome Logo. It was created in 2007 and is still used today. The chrome logo is used on most of the latest apple products such as IPhones and the different Mac Books.
The speculation has not stopped however. Some designers have analyzed the actual design itself. Graphic designer Thiago Barcelos believes that they applied the Fibonacci sequence, also known as The Golden Ratio as the underlying structure of the logo. Although we can’t really say if this was in fact the blueprint for Apple’s logo, but Thiago’s work illustrates one of the reasons why Apple’s logo has endured the test of time.
The Apple technology company has come a long way. With each invention, the company tried to improve their products to entice new customers and to encourage their present customers to update their products and continue using them. Today, few companies have the liberty to enjoy the enthusiastic fan base that Apple does. It is evident that their visual marketing plays a major role in their success. Apple seeks to inspire through their marketing and presentations. When creating a logo you must understand that your logo is a visual representation of your company. You use logos to visually express your company’s identity. This is one of the main things that make your business memorable. There was a big, noticeable change from the first logo that was created to the second, but there were very little changes in the others except for the colors. The Apple Logo has become an iconic feature all over the world.
Bibliography
2.https://www.fineprintnyc.com/blog/history-of-the-apple-logo
3.http://www.edibleapple.com/2009/04/20/the-evolution-and-history-of-the-apple-logo/
4.https://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/19792/the-evolution-of-the-apple-logo/
5.https://thinkmarketingmagazine.com/apple-logo-evolution-story/
6.http://www.thelogomix.com/blog/apple-logo-history-10051720.html
7.https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Apple_Inc.
8.https://www.macworld.com/article/2013960/the-unexplored-history-of-translucent-apple-design.html
9.https://www.quora.com/Whats-the-story-behind-Apples-half-eaten-apple-fruit-logo
10.http://www.applegazette.com/apple-inc/a-visual-history-of-the-apple-logo/
