You’ve heard the term, a rising tide floats all boats, right? And you already knew that the tides on Earth are caused by the rotation of the moon, right?

Well, we think Apple is like the moon. Whatever industry or product segment it sets its mind to, it causes such an impact that it “lifts” everything around it. If you’re still not with me, imagine a trampoline that you plunge a hook into and lift upwards. You stretch the whole thing as you pull it upwards. This is what Apple does. And furthermore, it apparently rarely lets go.

Think about it. Before the Mac, there was no popular computer with a graphic interface, pull down menus, mouse, copy and paste, etc. ALL of that was brought into mainstream computing by the Mac.

And do you remember what MP3 devices were like before the iPod? Barely anyone used them and there was certainly no easy way to buy and install music. And do you know what they even looked like before the iPod? In fact, less than 1 in 10 of you reading this now could even remember an MP3 player before the iPod. For most of us, the thing that preceded the iPod was the Sony “Discman” CD Player; remember those? BTW, I love it when I see someone carrying one of those today. It’s like seeing a milk man making his rounds.

And, now Apple sets it hook into the mobile phone market. Do you remember what most, if not all, cell phones looked like before June 29th, 2007? I assure you they did not look like the Blackberry Storm, the HTC Touch or Fuze, the Palm Pre or Treo Pro.

This is not another blog post about the iPhone. It’s about the gravitational pull inherent in what appears to be most of Apple’s big moves. Have there been misfires? Sure… Newton, Lisa, NeXT… But were those really bombs? Or are they just part and parcel to a big move? The wind up to the 100mph pitch? The step back to thrust oneself forward? The price of entry to the doors to greatness?

Whatever it is, it’s real. And we’re seeing it in action now. Whether you like the iPhone or not, Apple has forever improved the lives of anyone with a mobile phone by revealing to the world a whole new level of design and performance. Never again will you be impressed with a shiny pink “flip phone” or settle for crappy screens, aged interfaces or the lack of now-expected features never expected before June 29, 2007.

Until now, the year most remembered for Apple’s single greatest impact on our lives was 1984, the year of the Mac’s release and one of the most memorable advertising campaigns of our time. But it appears Apple has eclipsed even that significant moment in computing history. Maybe the greatest ocean Apple has ever moved started on June 29, 2007. Let us know what you think.