What Android Handsets Looked Like Before and After the iPhone

The ongoing Apple versus Google war can be traced back to Google’s entry into the smartphone market. Apple launched its iPhone in the Summer of 2007, and within two years Google answered back by releasing its mobile OS, Android.

This led to a series of events, and eventually an onslaught of litigation between the two companies over “copycatting.” The jury is still out on who copied who, but Daring Fireball points to some evidence that seemingly falls in Apple’s favor…

The site links to a post on random.andrewwarner.com that shows a photo of an early 2007 Android handset compared to an after-iPhone Android handset, and the difference is enormous. We’ve posted similar pictures to show the radical change.

Before iPhone (An early 2007 Android prototype handset):

After (late 2008 T-Mobile G1):

As you can see, the original Android OS looked more fit for a BlackBerry. But the version that actually shipped in 2008 looked a lot more like the iPhone. I’m not saying Google copied Apple, but you can’t deny that it got some “inspiration” from Apple.