Steve Jobs worked on Apple's 'next product' the day before he died

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Providing more evidence that Steve Jobs stayed involved at Apple until the very end, the CEO of Japanese carrier Softbank revealed that Jobs was making phone calls about Apple's unnamed "next product" the day before he passed away.



Softbank Chief Executive Masayoshi Son revealed in a recent interview that he was at Apple's Cupertino, Calif., headquarters earlier this month for the unveiling of the iPhone 4S, according to PC Magazine. While there, he had a meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook.



Cook had to abruptly leave the meeting with Son, which prompted the Softbank chief to ask where he was going. It was then that Cook reportedly revealed that he had received a call from Jobs.



"That was the day of the announcement of the iPhone 4S," Son said. "He said that Steve is calling me because he wants to talk about their next product. And the next day, he died."



Son didn't detail what product Jobs and Cook allegedly discussed, but his story has come to light after a financial analyst claimed Jobs was "intimately involved" in creating Apple's 2012 iPhone. Ashok Kumar with Rodman & Renshaw said that Jobs had input on everything from the device's concept to final design, and claimed that the next-generation iPhone will have a slimmer profile and larger screen.



Photo credit: Matt Yohe, via Wikipedia.



Jobs's apparent involvement in Apple products up until the day before he died came even though he was weak and in pain from pancreatic cancer. Author Walter Isaacson, who is writing Jobs's official biography, met with the Apple co-founder at his home weeks before his death, and found him curled up in pain in a downstairs bedroom, too weak to climb stairs. But Isaacson said his mind was "still sharp and his humor vibrant."



Jobs's devotion to Apple, the company he founded, has been well documented. In August, when he stepped down as CEO, Jobs was said to have worked a full day at Apple's headquarters on his final day as chief executive.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 82
    irelandireland Posts: 17,798member
    He loved it, clearly.
  • Reply 2 of 82
    You don't see it much.
  • Reply 3 of 82
    feynmanfeynman Posts: 1,087member
    This is one reason why it irritates me when people knock Steve Jobs. If anything (which was a many of), his tenacity for better products was in his blood and soul, not just ego.
  • Reply 4 of 82
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post


    That was the day of the announcement of the iPhone 4S," Son said. "He said that Steve is calling me because he wants to talk about their next product. And the next day, he died."



    Is it me or is saying Steve (or someone calling on Steve's behalf) needed to speak to Cook about an important work related simply a more common response than saying Steve is on his very ill, in the hospital, or on his deathbed. Maybe I'm cynical but I think Cook just gave Son the easy answer to get off the phone to deal with a personal matter.
  • Reply 5 of 82
    Whether it's actually true or dramatically fabricated. I don't doubt it for a millisecond. Apple was his baby and it's obvious he was the doting father.



    Sad, yet inspiring at the same time.
  • Reply 6 of 82
    Could have spent the time with his family...
  • Reply 7 of 82
    xamaxxamax Posts: 135member
    That's the Love we all feel in Apple's products and has garnered Steve all the prestige, devotion and evoked such sadness after his departure. Some experienced more sadness from his transition than from relative's.



    He put all of his vital force into it.



    He pursued the philosophy "do what you love, love what you do". Doing so you don't work a day in your life, all you do is have fun. And he did it with tremendous power, learning from the University of Life's lessons.



    Long live Steve Jobs, a beacon for all of us, still shining in our hearts.
  • Reply 8 of 82
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Taylormade View Post


    Could have spent the time with his family...



    I agree with this.
  • Reply 9 of 82
    solipsismsolipsism Posts: 25,726member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dickprinter View Post


    Whether it's actually true or dramatically fabricated. I don't doubt it for a millisecond. Apple was his baby and it's obvious he was the doting father.



    Sad, yet inspiring at the same time.



    True. I can imagine my own last words being "My only regret is not being able to play with Apple's next product."



    Or maybe that next product is putting Steve's mind in iCloud. The first in the Technological Singularity. Steve is iCloud. Steve's Intellect Resides Inside. Seriously though, I'm gonna miss Steve's effort at Apple but at least I know his direct efforts will live on with Apple for a very long time to come. When you create something wonderful can you ever truly be gone?
  • Reply 10 of 82
    maestro64maestro64 Posts: 5,043member
    What people have to remember, Steve was obviously very sick for a long time and when you are that sick you can not think straight, not sure if he was on any sort of drugs, since they make you loopy. I suspect he was not on any drugs so you could thing straight. the fact he was still working whether into the last days or hours says more about him than most people can even say about themselves.
  • Reply 11 of 82
    shompashompa Posts: 343member
    The media has missed this imported point.

    Apple is portrait as a greedy company that overcharges for its product.

    =

    Uneducated people believe that Steve did it for the money.



    Steve had 1 dollar salary. He knew he was dying from cancer. In pain. Still he continued working at Apple. Not for money, but making the world better. Siri for example will help blind people technology.



    What would have happened if Steve was not sick? He was maybe at 70%. What more wonderful inventions would he bring if he lived 25 more years?



    *sad*
  • Reply 12 of 82
    hobbithobbit Posts: 532member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    Maybe I'm cynical but I think Cook just gave Son the easy answer to get off the phone to deal with a personal matter.



    With you on this one.



    Not saying Cook lied and never went to see Jobs that day, also not suggesting that even if he went that they did not discuss business at all, but is it not more likely that Cook would paint the situation in a neutral light as to not alarm anyone?

    Maybe it was even at Jobs' own request to keep the circumstances secret until after his death.





    So even if all this happened, I cannot see Cook telling the CEO of Softbank 'Sorry, Steve just called and said he might likely die tonight. Need to leave to say good-bye.'
  • Reply 13 of 82
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Dickprinter View Post


    Whether it's actually true or dramatically fabricated. I don't doubt it for a millisecond. Apple was his baby and it's obvious he was the doting father.



    Sad, yet inspiring at the same time.



    More than father. It was an expression of what mattered to him the most: it was his life's work. How many of us can say that? I'm only sorry he had to endure terminal cancer.
  • Reply 14 of 82
    It makes me feel incredibly sad that he was THAT committed to his work that he'd still be giving it his all, even the day before he died.



    Sad, but also incredibly honoured as well that I should be a recipient of such commitment in the same products and technology that I use on a daily basis to earn my living. I doubt I would be so consumed with passion that I'd still be working on it on my deathbed. I'm simply not that strong.
  • Reply 15 of 82
    tjwaltjwal Posts: 404member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by hobBIT View Post


    With you on this one.



    Not saying Cook lied and never went to see Jobs that day, also not suggesting that even if he went that they did not discuss business at all, but is it not more likely that Cook would paint the situation in a neutral light as to not alarm anyone?

    Maybe it was even at Jobs' own request to keep the circumstances secret until after his death.





    So even if all this happened, I cannot see Cook telling the CEO of Softbank 'Sorry, Steve just called and said he might likely die tonight. Need to leave to say good-bye.'



    Likewise, anyone who has had a loved one die of cancer knows that it is extremely unlikely the patient will be placing calls during the last couple of days.
  • Reply 16 of 82
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    Is it me or is saying Steve (or someone calling on Steve's behalf) needed to speak to Cook about an important work related simply a more common response than saying Steve is on his very ill, in the hospital, or on his deathbed. Maybe I'm cynical but I think Cook just gave Son the easy answer to get off the phone to deal with a personal matter.



    I agree with you, and to be honest, I hope that was the case.



    Much as I admire Steve Jobs for his incredible achievements, and part of me wouldn't be that shocked if he was working right up until the end, I sincerely hope that the day before he died he was able to spend it talking with his family about good times they have shared.



    I hope that's what I'm doing in my last days.....
  • Reply 17 of 82
    So the speculation about the next iPhone has already started. That should keep us busy for the next few months - will it be launched in July or October 2012?.



    I believe that the teardrop shaped iPhone with the bigger screen that the rumour mill was talking about was the same phone that Steve Jobs was working on.
  • Reply 18 of 82
    ajitmdajitmd Posts: 365member
    Depending on the disease process, a person may stay alert and sharp till the very end. The end could have been anything like a pulmonary embolus, etc which is quick. Something like pleural effusion, edema, etc can be prolonged.



    Anyway, passion is important to success in an occupation... just talent,vision, opportunity. etc are not enough. Then it takes practice and dedication. According to the book "Outliers", it takes 10,000 hours on the average to be good at something - like flying airplanes, playing musical instruments, being physician, surgeon, etc, where precision and attention to details is important. SJ had all those and then some.
  • Reply 19 of 82
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by solipsism View Post


    When you create something wonderful can you ever truly be gone?



    Beautifully said!
  • Reply 20 of 82
    conradjoeconradjoe Posts: 1,887member
    No way. Steve spent his last days in the bosom of is family. That has always been the most important thing in the world to him.
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