It probably existed way before Smartphones (in another context) but I'm curious on who used it on Mobile Devices for the first time. Was it Apple? Was it someone else?
1 Answer
I saw this tweet yesterday.
Where did the now ubiquitous hamburger menu icon ≡ come from? Xerox—already in 1981 http://t.co/1fSOIYDvM4 by @geoffa pic.twitter.com/nWDI8E0ClX
— Antti Latva-Koivisto (@anttilk) 30 maart 2014
Although Xerox seems to be the first to use it on computer, there is no definite data (yet) on who used it on the phone first.
The icon is to be seen on the iPhone 3 back in June 2007 in some of their standard apps. That, to me, seems to be the first appearance on mobile phones, because other companies or apps that are named in the "first hamburger discussion" came later.
Like Google. Google is being named somewhere else on the interweb as potentially being the one who introduced the icon to mobile phones with Chrome. But Chrome's first beta was released in 2008 and the first Nexus phone was released in 2010.
But what for Android? That's Google too since they bought it. Their first phone was released in october 2008 however. Still later than Apple with the iPhone.
answered Mar 31, 2014 at 9:46
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lol on "Axbom's" comment: "Cool =) 30 years later and people still don't get it ;)"– LovisCommented Mar 31, 2014 at 10:04
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I saw this tweet, too. That's what raised my question. Was it really Apple that first introduced us to the hamburger menu on mobile devices?– YannCommented Mar 31, 2014 at 10:56
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@Yann Oh, guess I didn't really read about the mobile part of your question. I'll update my answer. Commented Mar 31, 2014 at 13:15
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I'm troubled by this statement: "iPhone 3 back in June 2007" Is this the 3G? The First Gen? iOS 3? If you are referring to June 2007, that would be the iPhone "1st gen." Can you provide support that the 1st gen had a "hamburger icon?"– mawcscoCommented Mar 31, 2014 at 17:56
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@mawcsco I meant the first gen. I can't find any screens to support it, but it's said the iPod app on the first gen iPhone had the hamburger icon when in "now playing" mode. And the earlier, standard YouTube app had the hamburger icon in front of subscriptions. Commented Apr 1, 2014 at 7:47