The world is not enough? How space became the ultimate battleground for Apple versus Microsoft

As Artemis II splashed down into the Pacific, it left us with a clear picture of modern-day tech. It is Apple versus Microsoft again.

In Short

• NASA cleared the iPhone 17 Pro Max for personal use by the Artemis II crew
• The crew captured stunning photos with it
• Meanwhile, Outlook glitch became the talk of meme-town

In space, they say no one can hear you scream. But as it turns out, everyone can hear you complain about your email.

As the Artemis II mission carried four astronauts toward the Moon, it quickly became clear, it was just another day in the office for the crew in question. Of course, one with a view so breathtaking, you would want to peek out of the window at every off chance.

Through the course of their historic nine-day journey, Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, along with Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the Canadian Space Agency, represented all of humanity as one, the only, against whatever it is that is out there, that which we do not know of, not enough anyway, and that which has fascinated humans since the dawn of humankind itself.

Much in the same way as humans are made of contradictions, the Artemis II mission also presented two sides. On one side of the Orion capsule, stunning high-definition photos taken on an iPhone 17 Pro went viral. On the other, the mission commander was radioing Houston because his Outlook had crashed.

And just like that, the rivalry between Apple and Microsoft, was reignited. Only this time, the battleground wasn’t a boardroom or a student dormitory. It was deep space.

The view from the iPhone

NASA usually relies on tried and tested Nikon gear for scientific imaging. In fact, you will be surprised to know that a 10-year-old Nikon DSLR camera – called the Nikon D5 – was used as the primary camera for Artemis II. In a first, the agency cleared the iPhone 17 Pro Max for personal use by the crew and the astronauts evidently wasted no time to put its camera to the test.

Commander Reid Wiseman and Mission Specialist Christina Koch captured selfies with the curvature of the Earth glowing in the background and the light reflecting off the capsule’s interior with a clarity so pristine, it made space feel close. Closer than ever. Intimate. In ways humans could only imagine thus far. It was a reminder how far we had come. In life and in technological advancements.

While rivals like Samsung deliberately put “space zoom” logos on their phones, the iPhone actually went to space. No one can take that away from Apple now. Apparently, it wasn’t part of some elaborate secret marketing campaign either which makes it even cooler. Since the 1984 launch of the Macintosh, Cupertino has positioned itself as the tool for the misfits and the rebels. Seeing an iPhone 17 Pro perform flawlessly in space is a testament to Apple’s obsession with vertical integration so even a trip to the Moon feels like a walk in the park.

This was unequivocally the ultimate Shot on iPhone campaign ever. Upon its completion, Apple CEO Tim Cook shared on X, “Congratulations to Artemis II on a successful mission! You captured the wonders of space and our planet beautifully, taking iPhone photography to new heights, and we’re grateful you shared it with the world. Your work continues to inspire us all to think different. Welcome home!”

The Outlook from Orion

While the iPhone was busy winning hearts, Microsoft was providing a dose of cold, hard reality. During a live broadcast, Commander Wiseman reported a problem that triggered a collective sigh from millions of office workers back on Earth.

“I also see that I have two Microsoft Outlooks,” Wiseman told Mission Control, “and neither one of those are working.”

The image of an astronaut cruising toward the Moon needing remote technical support for an email client is the sort of things that memes are made of. From the vantage point of reality, it also speaks of how critical Microsoft is in space as it is on Earth. For decades, Microsoft has been the backbone of the world's infrastructure. It is the un-glamorous, essential utility.

But with that ubiquity comes challenges. The two Outlooks issue in a sense is a problem as old as the rivalry itself. While Apple builds a beautiful walled garden, Microsoft builds a relatively more open ecosystem that tries to be everything to everyone. Sometimes, that means you end up with two versions of the same app, and neither one wants to talk to the other.

A fifty-year tug-of-war

This lunar face-off is just the latest chapter in a saga that began in the mid-1970s. In the 80s and 90s, it was the battle of the interfaces. Apple invented the look and feel of modern computing, while Microsoft licensed Windows to every PC maker on the planet.

Apple struck back with the iPod and iPhone, moving the rivalry to our pockets. Since then, the rivalry has moved to the cloud and AI. But the more things change, the more they stay the same.

“The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste. They have absolutely no taste. And I don’t mean that in a small way, I mean that in a big way, in the sense that they don’t think of original ideas, and they don’t bring much culture into their products,” the late great Steve Jobs once said about Microsoft to which Bill Gates responded in kind saying, “Steve's always been about 'this is good and this is bad'... but he doesn't know anything about technology. He just has an instinctive feel for what's good.”

Whatever be the case, Apple and Microsoft, are virtually indispensable today. Some might even say that they are two sides of the same coin.

The viral iPhone photos and the Outlook in orbit glitch highlight why we need both. We want the iPhone to show us how beautiful the universe is, but we accept the frustrations of Outlook because it’s the tool that helps get us there.

As Artemis II splashed down into the Pacific, it left us with a clear picture of modern-day tech. The rivalry isn't about who is better anymore. But it is about the two different ways we interact with the world. One makes us look at the stars. The other makes sure we’ve checked the Read Receipt before we get there.

- Ends