Fruit Computers

The Fruit Computers logo in GTA IV, circa 2008.

Fruit Computers is a computer, phone and software manufacturing company in Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, Grand Theft Auto IV and Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars. Fruit Computers is mentioned in GTA IV to be established in 1975, one year before its parody, Apple, actually became an independent company. Their logo bears a resemblance to male genitals, and the logo's color scheme also parodies the Microsoft Windows logo color scheme (with the exception of red being changed to orange).

History

GTA Liberty City Stories

The use of "Fruit" to represent Apple is first heard in GTA Liberty City Stories during LCFR show The Electron Radio, where a FruitOS user group called "Fruits" (slang for homosexuals) is mentioned to be involved a bitter rivalry with the TOS user group called "Tossers" (slang for someone who masturbates excessively).

The FruitOS/TOS rivalry is a reference to the real-life Windows/OSX user rivalry, although in real-life it was least apparent circa 1998, when Apple had only begun emerg ing from a decade-long slump and was not considered a considerable competitor to Microsoft at the time (having just released the iMac G3 in 1998).

GTA Vice City Stories

In GTA Vice City Stories, a Fruit LC computer is advertised on both the radio as well as billboards in Vice City and the game's manuals. The casette-loading, BBS-equipped computer is mentioned, among others, to feature an excessively small 8-inch two-tone display and "near infinite" 18k of memory, and cost an exorbitant $5,000.

Although the Fruit LC is clearly a parody of the Macintosh, the name is also similar to that of the Macintosh LC, "LC" being "low cost" in short. Its radio commercial also parodies Apple's famous "1984" commercial for the Macintosh, while the "BYE" displayed on the Fruit LC's screen on billboard advertising is a stab at Apple Macintosh's famous "hello" image on advertisements.

According to in-game dialog on Wave 103, Adam First mentions he has finally managed to program a flying triangle that explodes into pixels on the screen; the Fruit LC is mentioned to operate with BASIC programming.

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  Fruit Computers logo in GTA Vice City Stories, circa 1984.

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  Fruit LC advertisement from the GTA Vice City Stories manual.

GTA IV

In Grand Theft Auto IV, Fruit's company structure is revealed in detail; the CEO of the company circa GTA IV is Doug Hatchet, who has outsourced all of his employees overseas, except himself, resulting in the Fruit Computers headquarters being solely occupied by Hatchet as well as a photocopier that does not work and a stapler without staples.

Fruit is depicted in game to be advertising the Fruit Cocoon (a parody of the Mac Mini), and also mentions an iFruit Phone (a parody of the iPhone) on their website, where it still trumps up its rivalry with TOS (stylizing "Tosser" as "To$$er"). Fruit also has a physical presence in a warehouse in Port Tudor, Alderney, where its signage reveals the company to have been established in 1975. Fruit computers can also be seen advertised in various computer shops throughout the game, and is one of the sponsors for the WTF musical.

Among the updated Star Junction billboards in Episodes from Liberty City for GTA IV, there is an advertisement for a Fruit product known as the uHelmet. The advertisement depicts a man sitting on a toilet, wearing a helmet rigged up to a car battery, and is stylised as a parody of iPod advertisements.

Although not explicitly mentioned to be a Fruit software, the GUI of Internet browsers used in all the computers in-game bears some resemblance to the Safari web browser.

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  Fruit building in Port Tudor, GTA IV.

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  An advertisement of Fruit found at Star Junction, GTA IV.

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  The IFruit Phone in GTA IV.

GTA Chinatown Wars

In GTA Chinatown Wars, the player gets a Fruit Laptop in every safehouse (pink in the DS version, black in the PSP version). The player is not able to go on the internet, but it features e-mail and Rockstar Games Social Club comparability. Also, many characters, including Wu Lee, have fruitcomputers.com email accounts.

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  The FruitOS desktop in the DS rendition of GTA Chinatown Wars. The top taskbar is similar to that found in the Mac OS X operating system.

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  The FruitOS desktop in the PSP rendition of GTA Chinatown Wars.

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  The FruitOS desktop in the iPhone rendition of GTA Chinatown Wars.

Trivia

• The Fruit Cocoon shares the shape of College Humor's "i": a parody of Apple products and resembles the bottom of an iMac G4.