You have one iPhone, but I have two iPhones, right? Wrong, wrong, and wrong again – so says Apple, anyway.
According to Phil Schiller, Apple’s global head of marketing, Apple product names should never be pluralised. That means that if you own two Macs, you should actually say: “I have two Mac computers”.
Schiller schooled us on our Apple grammar in a post on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/statuses/725791354769399808
Related: iPhone SE review
Schiller went on to clarify his statement with a further two tweets:
https://twitter.com/statuses/725937759022514176
https://twitter.com/statuses/725938369826414592
But is he right? Well, Apple actually has its own style guide, page 121 of which advises:
Trademarked product names: Form the plural of trademarked product names by adding the plural generic noun to the singular product name.
Correct: Mac computers, MacBook Pro computers, iMac computers
Incorrect: Macs, MacBook Pros, iMacs
So in Apple’s books, Schiller has got it spot on. But we’re unlikely to say “I have three iPhone phones” or “You bought two iPad Pro devices” any time soon.
Watch our iPhone SE review:
Related: iPhone 8
Do you think Apple products should be exempt from the pluralising ‘-s’? Let us know in the comments below.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.