# Apple
Apple isn't a single meme so much as a recurring source of them, with each product launch spawning jokes that flood Twitter and Reddit for days. The pattern locked in on June 10, 2013, when the cylindrical Mac Pro drew endless comparisons to trashcans, deodorant cans and Darth Vader's helmet.
## Overview
Apple Inc. is the American electronics company behind the Mac, iPod, iPhone and iPad, and a reliable engine of internet jokes whenever it holds a keynote[1]. Product reveals draw millions of live viewers, and any oddity in an event, whether a strangely shaped device or a developer's fashion choice, gets clipped, screenshotted and remixed within minutes[2].
The output tends to follow a pattern. A slick promotional image drops, Twitter compares it to something absurd, Redditors photoshop it into cartoons and film stills, and by dinnertime a tech blog has aggregated the best jokes into a listicle[1]. This cycle has repeated at Apple keynotes for over a decade, turning the Cupertino company into one of the internet's most dependable joke generators alongside its actual products[3].
Apple's status as a target is helped by the enormous fan following the BBC once described as being "whipped up into an evangelical frenzy" during filming for its Secrets of the Superbrands documentary[4]. The passion of the fanbase makes any misstep, from ugly icons to weird packaging, feel like a betrayal worth roasting.
## How It Spread
Every subsequent keynote produced its own viral moment. On September 9, 2014, Apple announced the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, both physically larger than the 4-inch iPhone 5S they replaced[5]. Despite the hardware news, most of the online chatter zeroed in on an unnamed developer wearing a purple infinity scarf during the livestream[6]. A parody account called @KeynoteScarf appeared within an hour and pulled over 200 followers before the day ended[6]. BuzzFeed and Mashable both wrote it up the same afternoon, and the #scarfguy hashtag caught on, with tweets comparing the developer to Lenny Kravitz and Kim Kardashian[7].
The same event introduced the first Apple Watch, which Twitter promptly mocked under the #iWatch hashtag more than 54,000 times in 24 hours[3]. Apple's own missteps added fuel. In September 2012 the iPhone 5 shipped with an in-house Maps app riddled with misplaced towns and missing landmarks, forcing spokeswoman Trudy Muller to publicly promise the tool would "improve"[8]. Two years later the company auto-delivered U2's album Songs of Innocence to every iTunes account, an unrequested download Wired called a "monumental blunder" that read more like spam than a gift[9].
The pattern held into 2017. At WWDC on June 5, Apple debuted the HomePod, a squat mesh-covered speaker meant to compete with the Amazon Echo and Google's assistant[3]. Twitter immediately compared it to a spool of yarn and, once again, a roll of toilet paper, and The Daily Dot rounded up the jokes the same day[3]. By this point the joke-first response was baked into how people watched Apple events.
## How to Use
The template is loose. Watch an Apple keynote live, screenshot any product or presenter that looks slightly off, and tweet a comparison to a household object, sci-fi villain, or bathroom item. The best takes get boosted by tech aggregators within hours, and photoshop artists commonly remix the official press photos into cartoon scenes or Star Wars crossovers. A parody Twitter account devoted to a single joke, like @KeynoteScarf, is often part of the ritual.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Apple?
Apple Inc. is the American electronics company behind the Mac, iPhone, iPad and iPod, and a recurring subject of internet jokes tied to its product launches[1].
### Where did Apple come from?
The company was founded in 1976, but its modern meme status locked in on June 10, 2013, when the cylindrical Mac Pro reveal drew a wave of trashcan and Darth Vader comparisons on Twitter[1].
### What does Apple mean as a meme?
It refers less to a single joke and more to the ritual of roasting each new Apple product or keynote moment, from the Mac Pro cylinder to Scarf Guy at the iPhone 6 event[6].
### How do you use Apple as a meme?
The common approach is to grab a screenshot from a live keynote and tweet a visual comparison, then let aggregators like Mashable or The Daily Dot round up the best takes[1].
### Is Apple still popular as meme fuel?
Yes, the keynote-to-jokes pipeline has run at every major event since 2013, including the 2017 HomePod reveal that spawned toilet paper and yarn comparisons[3].
### Why is the Mac Pro compared to a trashcan?
Its 2013 redesign put the guts inside a 6.6 by 9.9 inch black aluminum cylinder, which Twitter users likened to a trashcan, deodorant can, Diaper Genie and Darth Vader's helmet within hours of the reveal[1].
### Who is Scarf Guy?
An unnamed developer who wore a purple infinity scarf on stage during Apple's September 9, 2014 iPhone 6 keynote, spawning the parody @KeynoteScarf account and the #scarfguy hashtag[6].
### What was the Apple Maps controversy?
When iOS 6 launched with Apple's in-house Maps app in September 2012, users found misplaced cities and missing landmarks, and spokeswoman Trudy Muller publicly said the app would "improve"[8].
### What happened with the U2 album on iTunes?
In September 2014 Apple pushed U2's Songs of Innocence to every iTunes account for free, then had to publish removal instructions after backlash Wired called a "monumental blunder"[9].
### What did people say about the HomePod?
After Apple unveiled the mesh-covered speaker at WWDC on June 5, 2017, Twitter compared it to a roll of toilet paper and a spool of yarn, and The Daily Dot aggregated the jokes[3].
### How big was the #iWatch reaction?
The mocking #iWatch hashtag was tweeted more than 54,000 times in the 24 hours after Apple's first smartwatch was unveiled on September 9, 2014[3].
## References
1. [https://mashable.com/2013/06/10/mac-pro-looks-like/]()
2. [https://www.apple.com]()
3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/sites/apple]()
4. [https://www.bbc.com/news/business-13416598]()
5. [https://www.theverge.com/2014/9/9/6122731/iphone-6-apple-4-7-inch-display-announced]()
6. [https://mashable.com/2014/09/09/apple-scarf-guy/]()
7. [https://www.buzzfeed.com/jessicamisener/scarf-guy-quickly-becomes-the-apple-events-biggest-fashion-s]()
8. [https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-19672981]()
9. [https://www.wired.com/2014/09/apples-devious-u2-album-giveaway-even-worse-spam/]()
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Source: https://meme.com/memes/apple
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