Each week, the Weekly Wrap highlights some of our biggest and best stories from the week gone by. Generally, we aim to inject some lightheartedness into the proceedings. This week, we’re not quite feeling up to that.
Still, it was a week of two Apple milestones. The sadder and more significant one, of course, was the passing of Apple co-founder and former CEO, Steve Jobs. But, of course, Apple goes on, and the company’s planned launch of the iPhone 4S hasn’t slowed down. Here, a roundup of our stories on those two topics. We’ll start with the easier subject matter.
The iPhone 4S
At Tim Cook’s first Apple event as CEO, the iPhone 4S took the spotlight. (The company also slightly updated some iPod models, and announced that iCloud and iOS 5 will launch on October 12.)
We’ve compiled a list of everything you need to know about the iPhone 4S. We can also help you compare plans between the carriers—including iPhone newcomer Sprint. Unsure about how to upgrade to the iPhone 4S? We covered that, too. And here’s what to do with your old iPhone. And if you hate carrier contracts, you can hold out for the unlocked iPhone 4S coming this November.
Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs died at age 56, leaving behind his wife, four children, and a world made better by his having lived in it. We remembered Jobs’s many achievements, which form his legacy. We also shared a slideshow showing Jobs throughout the years.
New CEO Tim Cook sent a poignant letter to Apple employees. Meanwhile, mourners flocked to Apple Stores for makeshift memorials.
Editorial director Jason Snell titled his Steve Jobs tribute using a phrase often associated with Jobs himself: Making a dent in the universe. Developers, CEOs, politicians, and celebrities alike all paid tribute as well.
Senior associate editor Dan Moren expressed that though he never formally met Steve Jobs, he felt indelibly marked by the man’s life. The Macalope shared brief words of his own .
I tried to express why people feel so sad about Jobs’s death—why the loss feels like a personal one, even to those of us who never stood in the same room with him. Executive editor Jon Seff wrote that Steve’s influence impacted him both professionally and personally. Senior editor Dan Frakes added that Jobs humanized technology and made the magical common. Staff editor Serenity Caldwell concluded that the spirit of Steve Jobs lives on. And Christopher Breen joined Mr. Snell for a Jobs-focused edition of the Macworld Podcast.
We’ll miss you, Steve. And we thank you.