The day before the launch of the original iPhone, Apple submitted a patent application, to the US Patent and Trademark Office, entitled "High tactility glove system", designed to help users operate their iPhone's touch-screen under low-temperature conditions. The patent #20090000010, credited to Ashwin Sunder and Steven Hotelling who are engineers with Apple, has received confirmation.

A lot of iPhone users do not know that the iPhone's multitouch screen is quite problematic in frigid weather, as condensation causes the multitouch display of the device to either respond inconsistently to finger input or ignore it totally due to the user's gloves.

The application, noting the need of the glove system, says, "When users, in cold weather, wear thick or bulky gloves, the loss of tactile feedback to the user may prevent the user from properly operating the electronic device, and may lead to frustration. Alternatively, if the user has to remove his gloves, the user's hand may become cold and uncomfortable, which may also lead to user frustration."

The special iGlove augments the conductive characteristics of the user's skin, thereby stimulating the capacitive touch screen through gloves similar to the touch with ungloved hands. The glove system comprises two layers - an inner conductive layer with convenient "anti-sticky finish", and an outer insulating shell. The fingertips of the outer layer contains "apertures" to thrust the digits, stroking the multi-touch display protected by the inner layer. There is "a closing mechanism" to keep the aperture closed when the iPhone is not in use.