Hard to believe that in just five years, Apple’s mobile phone became a household name, launched a whole cottage industry of related and interoperable devices, and singlehandedly brought conspicuous consumption to a realm as staid as mobile telephony. But in truth, the first iPhone hardly launched into a vacuum: it was a phenomenon, eagerly awaited, speculated over, dissected and discussed for three years before it ever came to store shelves.

On this day, June 29, in 2007, at 6pm, culminating three years of rumors and hype, the legendary iPhone went on sale in the United States.

The official reviews from major publications and blogs were slightly more sanguine, but were still fairly unanimous in laying out the phone’s revolutionary potential, noting in particular its mobile web browser. The pros heavily outweighed the cons, and as the Ars Technica blog summed it up “We love the concept of the iPhone.” Around the same time, Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs said during an internal company meeting that he believed all phones will eventually imitate the iPhone. He added, presciently, that those who worked at Apple during the iPhone launch will be able to tell their grandchildren they were at ground zero of the revolution.