The
Macintosh ( ; branded as
Mac since 1997) is a series of
personal computers (PCs) designed, developed, and marketed by
Apple Inc. Steve Jobs introduced the
original Macintosh computer on January 24, 1984. This was the first mass-market personal computer featuring an integral
graphical user interface and
mouse. This first model was later renamed to "Macintosh 128k" for uniqueness amongst a populous family of subsequently updated models which are also based on Apple's same proprietary architecture. Since 1998, Apple has largely phased out the Macintosh name in favor of "Mac", though the product family has been nicknamed "Mac" or "the Mac" since the development of the first model.