Imagine you‘re at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in early 1993. Apple CEO John Sculley reaches into his suit pocket and pulls out a device unlike anything you‘ve ever seen. It‘s a slate that fits in one hand with a stylus you can write directly on the screen with. He demonstrates writing a note to himself and sending a fax – no keyboard or cables required. This revolutionary product is the Apple Newton MessagePad, unveiled over a year earlier than Sculley shows it off publicly at CES. When it finally goes on sale later in 1993, the technology world believes mobile computing will be changed forever by Apple‘s new personal digital assistant (PDA).
Sadly, this world-changing vision never comes to fruition. Barely five years later in 1998, a returning Steve Jobs axes the entire Newton line immediately upon retaking the reigns as Apple‘s CEO. A product once expected to lead a revolution in handheld computing dies an abrupt death instead. What explains the dramatic rise and fall of Apple‘s first, bold foray into PDA devices? Read on to learn the complete history of the Apple Newton…
1986-1993: John Sculley’s Grand Mobile Vision Takes Shape and Stumbles
The origins of Newton date back to 1986, just after Steve Jobs departs Apple and passes the CEO torch to former Pepsi executive John Sculley. Sculley envisions smarter, friendlier, more portable computers that anticipate user needs in his “Knowledge Navigator” concept. With Jobs gone, Sculley takes a direct role in shaping Apple’s research and development.
Engineer Jean Louis Gassee heads up the team working on what becomes known internally as the “Figaro” project starting around 1987. They make progress on a tablet-like computer device but face immense technical obstacles. Early Newton prototypes feature expensive components totalling over $6,000 per unit if mass produced. Major hurdles include packing sufficient computing power in a battery-powered mobile device and developing accurate handwriting recognition allowing text input by stylus. Legend credits breakthrough Soviet handwriting software for clearing the way past some of these handwriting challenges.
By January 1992, Sculley grows impatient from years of development and makes a surprise announcement at CES. He hypes the coming year’s launch of an entirely new product category called “personal digital assistants” (PDAs) powered by a revolutionary operating system code-named Newton. However, Newton engineering still faces bugs while Sculley sets sky-high expectations with the media. This forces engineers on an even tighter deadline to work out kinks and cost reduce Figaro. Newton impresses during demos later in 1992 but remains unfinished. Meanwhile, scrambling competitors like Go Corp take advantage of the early notice to work on rival products.
Sculley demands the Newton project produce working devices for less than $1,000 retail to make it affordable for consumers. That February, with just months to launch, Apple leadership shocks the Newton team by renaming their years-long passion project to “MessagePad” – oozing enterprise rather than personal charm. Combined with slumping Mac sales hurting Apple’s finances, Sculley finds himself out of the CEO chair in 1993 before the Newton’s scheduled launch. Development marches on towards the August 1993 release of the first Newton MessagePad. After 7 long years of fits and starts, Sculley’s mobile computer finally exits Apple’s labs. But will it live up to years of hype and internal hopes?
August 1993: The Newton MessagePad Debuts to Fanfare But Flaws Emerge
On August 2nd, 1993, the first ever Newton MessagePad hits store shelves with an MSRP of $699. Resembling a clipboard or small notebinder, the slab-like Newton weighs just 0.88 pounds but lacks compactness relative to its peers. Its 20 MHz ARM 610 RISC processor, 336 x 240 resolution black & white LCD display, and integrated stylus re-imagine mobile computing. By combining Address Book, To Do List, Note Taker, Clock/Calendar and other functions with global connectivity, Newton creates an entirely new category as marketed: the personal digital assistant (PDA).
Early demos focus heavily on handwriting recognition with mixed results that occasionally embarrass Apple. But Newton proves impressive enough to attract positive press for its visionary design and novel features like beaming information between two units via infrared. The basic handwriting translation and personal information manager capabilities work well enough for tech-savvy early adopters seeking the latest gadget. However, the first Newton only supports unit-to-unit communication. Actual sales prove difficult to trace but third party estimates suggest Apple sells between 50,000 and 100,000 units in 1993 – far below expectations.
Reviews praise the pioneering mobile concept but cite a high price tag given the limitations, middling battery life of 20 hours, and significant size/weight impeding portability. But the biggest complaint centers around the Newton‘s handwriting interpretation which, while advanced, suffers occasional comical errors that mar the device‘s reputation. Word spreads of its flaws and sales momentum stalls through 1994. Apple slashes prices in respon
Table 1: Apple Newton Models Over the Years
| Year | Model | Processor | Screen | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | MessagePad | 20Mhz ARM 610 RISC | 336×240 B&W | $699 |
| 1994 | MessagePad 100 | 20Mhz ARM 710 RISC | 336×240 B&W | $499 |
| 1996 | MessagePad 120 | 20Mhz ARM 710 RISC | 480×320 B&W | $599 |
| 1997 | MessagePad 2000 | 162Mhz StrongARM | 480×320 B&W | $949 |
| 1997 | eMate 300 | 25Mhz ARM 710 RISC | 480×320 B&W | $799 |
But by 1997, even a faster MessagePad 2000 with enhanced features makes little headway against stiff competition…
1993-1998: Competition, Confusion &finally Internal Strife Spell Demise
A key part of Apple’s early Newton strategy centered around licensing Newton OS to other hardware makers to accelerate adoption like Microsoft did with Windows on PCs. Motorola, Siemens, and Sharp among others release PDAs based around Newton software. But external licensees fail to drive large volumes over the years. At the same time, Palm Computing succeeds with a simpler, more affordable PDA the Palm Pilot 1000 in 1996. It offers the core functions Newton pioneered like contacts, calendar, and note taking but no costly handwriting recognition.
After releasing six different MessagePads through 1997, Apple sells an estimated 300,000 units yearly and secures over 80% U.S. PDA market share. Improvements made the later models smaller, sleeker, more powerful and longer lasting. However, Palm manages nearly 1 million units by 1998 through lower pricing starting at $299. Palm Pilot garners praise as the first practically sized pen computer with its wallet-friendliness and syncing capabilities. The already waning interest in Newton devices vanishes entirely after Palm shows a lightweight, inexpensive PDA can sell.
Making matters worse, old Apple nemesis Microsoft decides to enter the nascent PDA category with Palm-like devices running Windows CE, a streamlined version of Windows for mobile devices first released in 1996. CE-powered Palm-sized PCs don’t sell well initially but signal Microsoft will leverage software dominance into mobile. These competitive threats pressure Apple’s new leadership to radically change course.
In mid-1997, Apple buys Steve Job’s NeXT company bringing the co-founder back as an advisor and future CEO. The acquisition nets Apple both Jobs’ guidance and NeXT’s modern OS to replace the aging classic Mac OS. Jobs assesses the chaotic product line-up across computers, printers, cameras. His verdict: too many middling products without ecosystem ties. First on the chopping block sits Newton. Two month into resuming CEO duties, Jobs summarily cancels all Newton hardware and software projects ending Apple’s first PDA experiment. The move shocks developers but streamlines Apple’s product line for recovery. The Newton’s failure finally cements its status as one of technology’s most famous flops.
So what felled Apple’s once-promising iPad precursor? Newton simply inhabited too awkward a middle ground between phones, laptops, and Palms simple organizers. Reviewing its history shows early flaws like poor handwriting and high prices stunted adoption early on. Rivals then outpaced its advances selling simpler, cheaper solutions. Finally, the internecine executive struggles hampered consistency in Apple’s strategy. The constant infighting prevented Newton from iterating its way to smoother performance, tighter focus, and widespread success.
The Lasting Legacy of Apple’s Lost PDA
While Newton devices came and went in the blink of an eye, the innovative mobile computing ideas first embodied live on. Concepts pioneered with the Newton like device synchronization, infrared networking, handwriting recognition, styli, and touchscreen interfaces became standard on smartphones and modern tablets. Later Android and iOS mobile operating systems refined rather than originating these ideas first explored by Newton OS over a decade prior.
Hardware hallmarks of Apple’s approach likewise re-appeared in iconic devices like the iPhone, iPad and Microsoft Surface Pro demonstrating lasting impact. More broadly, Newton proved many features characteristic of today’s sensor-laden, app-enabled, always-connected mobile landscape take root in these early PDAs. So while the MessagePads themselves lie forgotten in the tech graveyards, the core mobile experience enabled by Apple’s first tablet contain seeds later harvested effectively by others.
Hopefully, this complete history provided insight into the unfinished revolution sparked by the Apple Newton. Its failure to transition from promising technology concept to commercial success leaves many what-ifs. But the broad vision transcended the actual products enough to irrevocably influence personal computing’s evolution over the past quarter century. Though we’ll never know how Apple might have dominated mobility had Jobs kept and fixed Newton, we feel its presence today nonetheless. The pioneering portable ultimately contributed more than it achieved alone before being consigned too soon to the ashes of tech history.