Kuni/AP
- Apple became a $2 trillion company on Wednesday.
- But the iPhone-maker almost didn't make it this far — it struggled in the '90s until Steve Jobs returned as the company's CEO.
- Apple has weathered hits and flops over the years, from the launch of the influential Apple II to the misguided Newton MessagePad.
- But these days, Apple is on top of the consumer electronics market, thanks at first to devices like the iMac and the iPod, and later, to the iPhone.
Apple just reached a $2 trillion market cap, a milestone made even more significant when you consider that Apple almost didn't get the chance to make it this far.
When Steve Jobs took over as CEO of Apple in 1997, the company had been struggling to find its legs in a market increasingly dominated by Microsoft and its partners.
Indeed, Michael Dell himself once quipped that if he were in Jobs' shoes, he'd shut Apple down and return the money to the shareholders.
Here's a look into the history of Apple in photos, from its inception, through its hard times, to the triumphant return of Jobs.