fraeon
Films
BrowseTop 250
Series
TV ShowsAnimeTop 250 TVTop 100 Anime
Games
BrowseTop 100
Books
BooksMangaTop 125 BooksTop 100 Manga
For youTrendingTier ListsThe ArchiveLeaderboard
Log inSign up free
fraeon

Everything you watch, play and read — tracked, rated and remembered in one library.

Explore

  • Films
  • TV
  • Anime
  • Games
  • Books
  • Manga

Discover

  • Trending
  • Leaderboard
  • Find people
  • Lists
  • Tier lists

Company

  • Tour
  • About
  • Community guidelines
  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Contact

© 2026 fraeon. All rights reserved. ·

Metadata from TMDB, RAWG, Jikan & Open Library. This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB.

Questions or ideas? mehmet@avortas.com

HomeFeedProfile
The One Device

The One Device

by Brian Merchant

Inc Apple ComputerHistoryiPhone (Smartphone)SmartphonesBUSINESS & ECONOMICS
4.5
Open Library
Open Library

About this book

The secret history of the invention that changed everything - and became the most profitable product in the world. Odds are that as you read this, an iPhone is within reach. But before Steve Jobs introduced us to "the one device," as he called it, a cell phone was merely what you used to make calls on the go. How did the iPhone transform our world and turn Apple into the most valuable company ever? Veteran technology journalist Brian Merchant reveals the inside story you won't hear from Cupertino-based on his exclusive interviews with the engineers, inventors, and developers who guided every stage of the iPhone's creation. This deep dive takes you from inside One Infinite Loop to 19th century France to WWII America, from the driest place on earth to a Kenyan pit of toxic e-waste, and even deep inside Shenzhen's notorious "suicide factories." It's a firsthand look at how the cutting-edge tech that makes the world work - touch screens, motion trackers, and even AI - made their way into our pockets. The One Device is a roadmap for design and engineering genius, an anthropology of the modern age, and an unprecedented view into one of the most secretive companies in history. This is the untold account, ten years in the making, of the device that changed everything

Themes & subjects

Inc Apple ComputerHistoryiPhone (Smartphone)SmartphonesBUSINESS & ECONOMICSIndustries

Characters & people

Setting

United StatesChina21st century

About the author

Brian Merchant
Brian Merchant

American writer and technology journalist

Author

Brian Merchant

Pages

416

Read time

≈ 10h

Editions

7

Language

English

Publisher

Penguin Random House

ISBN

9781478949633

Where to buy

TR
Amazon Bookshop

Around the web

New York Times review

Reviews

No reviews yet — be the first to write one from the Log screen.

Quotes

No quotes yet.

Discussions

Similar books

Steve Jobs

TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / General · History

Steve Jobs

Walter Isaacson

2011

The Four

Internet industry · Inc Apple Computer

The Four

Scott Galloway

2017

Inside Apple

Industrial management · Inc Apple Computer

Inside Apple

Adam Lashinsky

2012

Becoming Steve Jobs

Management · Inc Apple Computer

Becoming Steve Jobs

Brent Schlender

2015

Inside Steve's Brain

Business · Management

Inside Steve's Brain

Leander Kahney

2008

Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and the personal computer

Juvenile literature · Computer engineers

Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and the personal computer

Donald B. Lemke

2006

Dying for an iPhone

Service industries · Work environment

Dying for an iPhone

Jenny Chan

2013

Odyssey

Biography · Businessmen

Odyssey

John Sculley

1987

Steve Jobs

Inc Apple Computer · Businesspeople

Steve Jobs

Matt Doeden

2012

Always on

Inc Apple Computer · Social aspects

Always on

Brian X. Chen

2011

Jony Ive

Inc Apple Computer · BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Corporate & Business History

Jony Ive

Leander Kahney

2013

Dogfight

History · Competition

Dogfight

Fred Vogelstein

2013

VGM business portraits

Soft drink industry · Inc Apple Computer

VGM business portraits

Gould, William

1995

Bible

Bible · Religion

Bible

Bible

1200

Pride and Prejudice

Fiction, Romance, Historical, Regency · British and Irish fiction (fictional works by one author)

Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen

1813

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Alice (fictitious character : carroll), fiction · British and irish fiction (fictional works by one author)

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Lewis Carroll

1865

The Picture of Dorian Gray

British and irish fiction (fictional works by one author) · Conduct of life, fiction

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde

1890

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

adventure and adventurers · Adventure stories

Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Mark Twain

1876

Similar across media

Same mood, other forms — books, series, anime, games and beyond.

Film
Prayers for Bobby

Bobby Griffith was his mother's favorite son, the perfect all-American boy growing up under deeply religious influences in Walnut Creek, California. Bobby was also gay. Struggling with a conflict no one knew of, much less understood, Bobby finally came out to his family.

4.0

Prayers for Bobby

2009

Game
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

Shooter · Platform

4.7

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception

2011

Anime
The Apothecary Diaries Season 2

Using her wit and vast knowledge of medicines and poisons alike, Maomao played a pivotal role in solving a series of mysteries and conspiracies that plagued the imperial court. Having recently come to terms with the secrets of her parents, she returns to fulfill her normal duties on behalf of the emperor's highest-ranking consorts. Maomao also works alongside the eunuch Jinshi to better the consorts' many ladies-in-waiting, including helping them learn to read. However, with the arrival of a merchant caravan comes a new wave of intrigue. A pattern of strange coincidences involving the visitors and their wares unsettles Maomao, driving her to investigate the puzzling circumstances behind the convoy. As dangers from both outside and within threaten the balance between the imperial concubines, Maomao continues to utilize her cunning and medical expertise to keep the women safe from harm. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Drama · Mystery

4.5

The Apothecary Diaries Season 2

2025 · 24 eps

Manga
Heaven Official's Blessing

800 years ago, Xie Lian was a pure-blooded and noble Crown Prince, a well-regarded child of Heaven with unlimited potential. But who knew that, after he ascended and became a god with tens of thousands of worshippers, his fate would take such a sharp downhill turn? He was demoted again and again, and fell to rock bottom. 800 years later, Xie Lian ascended again, but this time, without worshippers and without incense. One day, after returning from collecting scraps, he took a mysterious young man home. And this young man was the Ghost King that made others pale in fear whenever discussed—Hua Cheng. (Source: Bilibili Comics)

Action · Adventure

4.4

Heaven Official's Blessing

Mo Xiang Tong Xiu

2019

Film
The Elephant Man

A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his "owner" as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London.

4.0

The Elephant Man

1980

Game
Return of the Obra Dinn

Puzzle · Adventure

4.7

Return of the Obra Dinn

2018

Anime
Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya

When Gintoki apprehends a movie pirate at a premiere, he checks the camera's footage and finds himself transported to a bleak, post-apocalyptic version of Edo, where a mysterious epidemic called the "White Plague" has ravished the world's population. It turns out that the movie pirate wasn't a pirate after all—it was an android time machine, and Gintoki has been hurtled five years into the future! Shinpachi and Kagura, his Yorozuya cohorts, have had a falling out and are now battle-hardened solo vigilantes and he himself has been missing for years, disappearing without a trace after scribbling a strange message in his journal. Setting out in the disguise given to him by the android time machine, Gintoki haphazardly reunites the Yorozuya team to investigate the White Plague, and soon discovers that the key to saving the future lies in the darkness of his own past. Determined to confront a powerful foe, he makes an important discovery—with a ragtag band of friends and allies at his side, he doesn't have to fight alone. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Action · Comedy

4.4

Gintama: The Movie: The Final Chapter: Be Forever Yorozuya

2013 · 1 eps

Manga
Spice & Wolf

A young traveling merchant, Kraft Lawrence, has become accustomed to days of roaming and trading with few companions. Or so it was until one peculiar day when the trader finds a young, naked, wolf-like girl asleep in his wagon. The beautiful girl, calling herself Holo, claims to be a local wolf deity worshipped by locals as the God of Good Harvest. Year after year, she ensured they would reap a good harvest, but she has since grown tired of fulfilling the wishes of the ungrateful locals. Holo ends up striking a deal with Lawrence: if he helps her escape the villagers, she will gladly help him in his merchant endeavors. Together, they roam from town to town in search of business, and Lawrence realizes both the ups and downs of traveling with a haughty and shrewd wolf goddess. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Adventure · Drama

4.4

Spice & Wolf

Hasekura Isuna

2006

Film
Hidden Figures

The untold story of Katherine G. Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson – brilliant African-American women working at NASA and serving as the brains behind one of the greatest operations in history – the launch of astronaut John Glenn into orbit. The visionary trio crossed all gender and race lines to inspire generations to dream big.

4.0

Hidden Figures

2016

Game
God of War II

Platform · Hack and slash/Beat 'em up

4.6

God of War II

2007

Anime
Gintama. Silver Soul Arc - Second Half War

Following the temporary retreat of the Altana Liberation Army from the Kabuki District, the state of the war has seemingly improved. However, as the Oniwaban, Shinsengumi, and residents of the district combat the army's remnants, Edo's greatest inventor Gengai Hiraga is abducted. Responsible for causing the enemy's withdrawal by rendering their weapons useless, Gengai's nanomachine virus is now at risk of being shut down. Meanwhile, a laser capable of obliterating a planet is activated in Earth's orbit on the Liberation Army's mother ship. Another battle ensues when Shinsuke Takasugi and the rest of the Kiheitai arrive on the vessel to stop the weapon from firing. Forced to fight a war on two fronts, the Yorozuya and their allies must prevail on both sides to save Edo and the rest of the world. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Action · Comedy

4.4

Gintama. Silver Soul Arc - Second Half War

2018 · 14 eps

Manga
Veil

On a cold and silent day, a man and a woman meet. He is Aleksander, a police officer, and she is Emma, a young, blind woman who has fled her home in search of independence. As it happens, Aleksander's station needs someone to take calls. They make an unlikely pair—a small, stylish woman and a tall, intimidating man—but something tentative and intimate blossoms between them, resembling neither friendship nor love, as if a thin, transparent veil is raised between them. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

Romance · Slice of Life

4.4

Veil

Fukuda Ikumi

2019