This is why all stock photos of iPhones have the clock set to 9:41 a.m.
As you’re perusing the new ads for the newest iPhone (and possibly considering upgrading your own phone), you may have noticed something strange. In all the ads on the Apple website, the iPhones all have the exact same time — 9:41 a.m. Is there a reason behind this? Is this some sort of creepy coincidence? Before you start delving into conspiracy theories, relax: The Atlantic looked into the reason behind this eternal iPhone time warp and came up with a pretty cool answer.
Back in January of 2007, Steve Jobs announced the first iPhone at 9:42 a.m.
In honor of the Apple CEO’s keynote speech (which essentially changed the way we use phones), the company has made it so that all their stock photos on the Apple website now read 9:41 a.m.
Apple executive Scott Forestall confirmed this legacy to The Atlantic, explaining that it also has to do with the timing behind big reveals in Apple presentations.
“We design the product launch keynotes so that the big reveal of the product happens around 40 minutes into the presentation. When the big image of the product appears on screen, we want the time shown to be close to the actual time on the audience’s watches. But we know we won’t hit 40 minutes exactly.”
At that now-famous keynote speech, Jobs said, “Today Apple is going to reinvent the phone” — and he was right. What a cool and unique way to honor such a momentous occasion in the history of iPhones.
