In Wake of iPhone 6 Launch, Top 10 things you didn't know about Apple

Everyone already knows Apple as the creators and developers of the popular Mac, iPhone and iPad devices. With the launch of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus in a few weeks, it is important to take a look at some of the other, lesser-known facts about the hardware and software juggernaut.

Here are 10 things most people don't know about Apple:

1. Samsung is the manufacturer of the Retina Display.

Interesting to note that one of Apple's biggest rivals in the smartphone and tablet category of products actually supplies them with one of their most defining features. Indeed, Samsung actually shipped 5.2 million 9.7-inch Retina Displays to Apple in first quarter of the 2014 calendar year.

2. Smoking near an Apple computer voids the warranty.

Despite not being included anywhere in the Applecare warranty, many smokers who take their malfunctioning computers to Apple stores get rejected. Apparently the company does this because of the risk of second hand smoke to its employees.

3. Apple's co-owner sold his stock at a fraction of its eventual worth.

Ronald Wayne may not be the household name of the tech business the way that Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak are, but he is recognized as Apple co-founder and the designer of their original Apple logo. He is also known for selling his Apple shares for $800 when they would eventually have been worth $35 billion. Tough break.

4. Apple records every single thing that you send to Siri.

It's hard to imagine this, but everything from web searches to asking "What does the fox say?" gets recorded by Apple in a reported effort to improve their software.

5. The iPhone is worth more than anything Microsoft has to offer.

This is one area that Apple has completely trounced what still may be its biggest competitor in the technology race. In terms of sales and revenue generated, there is no beating the iPhone. Sorry Bill Gates.

6. The iPhone is much more expensive in Brazil than the U.S.

There are already some bemoaning that the highest end iPhone 6 Plus is over $500 on contract. But do not complain to any Brazilians about that price. Several insiders report that the iPhone in that country sells for a staggering $1,200 regularly.

7. Apple earns billions more than the other big name companies.

This one may be obvious, but to really put this into perspective: Apple earned a net profit of 10.2 billion in the first quarter of this year. Amazon has earned a total of $5 billion since 2003. In other words, Apple made more in a few months than Amazon made in the first 20 years of its existence.

8. Bill Gates once saved Apple from bankruptcy.

In another case of Apple's competition doing them a huge solid, in 1997, Gates invested $150 million in the company. This was actually a mutually beneficial move; after all, some 8 million Mac users use Microsoft Office, so Gates likely got a return on that investment.

9. Apple once made a video game system.

The company is in the middle of a big push with their new Metal engine and App store games, but this is not the first time Apple has tried to get into gaming world. In the 90's the company produced the Pippin with toy-company Bandai. It only had one game publisher committed to it in Bandai, and when you combine that with a $600 price tag, it is no wonder it failed miserably.

10. Steve Wozniak sold his shares to Apple employees. 

Wozniak has a history of benevolence. In fact, when Woz found out that many employees were going to be cheated out of money, he cheaply sold them 80,000 of his own shares of the company in order to help them. 

Apple has a long and somewhat complicated history, but one thing that is not is the impact their products have had on the industry and on the consumers. The iPhone 6 and 6 plus will be released on Sept.19.