Typography of Apple Inc.

[sandbox]

QUOTE

Apple's keyboards have been using Univers Condensed Oblique on the keycaps. The front-panel buttons on the Apple IIc were tilted at an angle corresponding to the inclination of the keyboard letters. Apple's partner in industrial design, Frog Design, was responsible for the choice of this typeface. Univers has now been superseded by VAG Rounded on the new Apple Keyboard, launched with the second generation Intel iMac.

Six keys from a pre-2003 PowerBook G4
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5...ers_keycaps.jpg

The keyboard font used on all iBook models, 2003 and later PowerBooks, MacBooks, MacBook Pros and Apple Keyboards since August 2007 is VAG Rounded, a variation on Helvetica Rounded and Futura. VAG stands for Volkswagen Aktien Gesellschaft, and the font was developed by Sedley Place Ltd. for German car manufacturer Volkswagen and was used in much of their marketing materials. Volkswagen's modification of a classical typeface is similar to Apple's modification of Garamond to create a corporate typeface that is both universal and proprietary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typography_of_Apple_Inc.

[Mrious_be]

Amazing, an article about the use of lettertypes on the keyboards from Apple... but interesting.

I knew VAG was the official font for Volkswagen and that it was intended to be their font, but back in those days a lot of companies did this (and I guess they still do now).
When you had to create an add for VW you had to request the fontstyle to them and they would give it to you without to much hassle, after all you are about to create an add (or whatever) for them so you need to use their housestyle.
But once the font was in, people forgot that it was VAG's font and started using it for different things over time. Ending up giving the font out theirself cause things had to be put on an imagesetter or whatever, and fonts were still needed at that point.

I'm really surprised Volkswagen let it all happen, let their fonttype get around the world cause now it's one of the best known fonts but I guess... you can't stop these things.

[sandbox]

I found it while searching data for RHPConsult, it is amazing how much one needs to consider within a given space and how ideas change as new products come to market. I did notice that the type on my iBook keys was different than my G3 keys but the fun was learning the details and looking closer at the rounded ends on the letters, amazing!  

[Parker]

shucks too bad we didn't find this earlier
it would've been a positive contribution to my post dedicated to keyboards