Apple Demands Microsoft Pull Laptop Hunter Ads

[slimpunk]

I love how the PCs the "hunters" decide on look like they weigh about 50 pounds.

Yeah, good luck lugging those things around

 

[jgbhardy]

They do.

THAT'S exactly what this is about.

There is one ad where they look at MBPs and say, "The cheapest one is $2,000."

Considering that same model is $1,600 now, I can see why Apple would want that changed, because it is inaccurate.

And doesn't this guy get it? By making these ads in the first place, they are admitting that Apple has gotten to them... Seems a bit hypocritical given his reaction.

Also, Microsoft STILL doesn't make computers.

Thank you! Someone obviously gets this.
If Apple even did call, which they properly didn't as others have said it would have been a legal document, it's for a legitimate reason. Its not about Apple getting pissy over MS bashing Macs its about literal cost representation in the adverts, just as someone mentioned earlier about Apple not being able to air some Adverts in England due to their misrepresentation and misleading information, MS shouldn't be allowed to continue certain adverts when the prices they talk about are incorrect. Simple legal facts about prices, wouldn't you ask someone to change it if they had the prices wrong in an advert that's all it is.

 

[wheelhot]

I don't trust this, well he can just make it up so that the attention will now be on Apple and besides, Apple got nothing to prove to Microsoft. We all know there are reasons why Macs are sold more expensive then PCs.

And heck, ask every person who used XP and they will tell you that Vista sucks when they use it. So yeah, I think this guy is BS about it.

 

[AlexisV]

Its even funnier still to see people still trying to use the car analogy to compare Macs and PCs. People say Macs are like BMWs and PCs are like Fords. Thats not in anyway true. Why? Because BMW actually uses higher quality components than Ford. Your Mac is built from all of the same parts as an HP, Dell, Gateway, etc. and its even built by the same Chinese worker who just put together an HP. And you can't even argue build quality in your favor, despite the use of aluminum. I've seen a modern HP (the HDX 16 line) get hit, by accident, into a wall at full force. Once wiped off, the HP showed no signs of impact. The wall, however, had a nice mark in it from the computer hitting it. At the same time, I've seen the unibody MacBook (and Pro) get malformed from being set down on a table slightly too hard. Neither system mentioned were systems I owned. I don't treat either badly. But yeah.

The car analogy fails entirely because a Mac is built from the exact same parts by the exact same workers as an HP, Acer, Dell, Lenovo, etc., while a BMW is built from higher quality parts by more highly skilled individuals compared to Ford.

You miss the entire point of the car analogy in an epic way.

Fail.

 

[nick9191]

If this is true, Apple are idiots. What decent lawyer calls Microsoft and says "hey you need to take the ads down, we lowered our prices". Even though they only lowered their prices on the better models, it still costs $999 for the cheapest laptop (not saying thats a bad thing).

Were the ads total crap? Yes. They implied you could pick up a laptop with the exact same specs as a 17" MacBook Pro for $700, when they were only comparing on the screen (and even that was 1440 x 900). They were misleading.

 

[BongoBanger]

And heck, ask every person who used XP and they will tell you that Vista sucks when they use it.

No they won't.

And, yes, this call is true.

 

[makingdots]

So funny that there are Microsoft Fanboys here in "MAC"rumors forums.

You guys should carry your ass to engadget site.

 

[rcarranza]

No they won't.

And, yes, this call is true.

Explain why Microsoft had to rename Vista just to get people to try it out?

Vista was and is a hunk of junk. I work in retail and people have actually turned down the laptops we sell because they run Vista, or they've asked if we could install XP on them.

And stating that this call is true without supporting evidence doesn't prove anything. As mentioned by so many of us, and as a student of PR, a company can and will embellish the truth to paint themselves in a more favorable light. They may not lie, as lies are invariably found out, but they may exaggerate.

"Elvis is still alive." Is that a fact now I've said it?

 

[iSneaker]

The people that play in these ads are retards.. Come on! If you buy a windows laptop for 400 bucks you know you will get a crapy machine! And don't forget, you have to buy anti-software for viruses & spam ****.. A why would I care.. People who buy a windows machine are idiots..

 

[djellison]

The person claimin the $1600 MBP is the same as the old $2000 MBP is wrong. It's dumped the discreet graphics and now simply has the same graphics as the old UBMB. It was downgraded - significantly.

 

[thetrystero]

Before y'all go flamin' on Apple, maybe you should consider that fact that Turner could just have been making this all up as a publicity stunt.
Personally, I'm calling a hoax. It's just too way out of Apple's league to stoop to that level.

 

[djellison]

The people that play in these ads are retards.. Come on! If you buy a windows laptop for 400 bucks you know you will get a crapy machine! And don't forget, you have to buy anti-software for viruses & spam ****.. A why would I care.. People who buy a windows machine are idiots..

My Dad got a £450 Dell with a fantastic 17" display, more performance than he knows what to do with, loads of Ram and a huge HDD. Avast AV software is free ( and very effective, and has no noticeable performance impact on the machine). It does everything he needs. It does it quickly. It looks great. The one thing he wanted was a big screen.

Why, exactly, is he an idiot, and why am I one for recommending it rather than the only Mac laptop with a display that large, which is £1850. How can you justify the £1400 difference. I'm on my third Mac laptop - and I couldn't even begin to recommend a Mac for him.

Essentially, I went through the same process the adverts are talking about. What do I need..... now how much can I have it for. £1850 vs £450. No contest. None whatsoever.

 

[TheWarIsNotOver]

There is a difference though, Apple just point outs the differences between Apple computers and "PC's". They don't say which to pick, only what the pro's en con's. Microsoft on the other hand explicitly says that Mac's are too expensive to buy and that Microsoft laptops are a better choice. There is a slight difference, the Mac/PC ads are funny as well...

 

[peepboon]

LOL! Can't believe Apple asked them to stop running the Ads when MS hasn't even asked Apple to stop running the 'I'm a Mac' ads >.>

I'm on MS side with this one. Remember guys, more competition = Lower prices.

 

[Shasterball]

Oh Apple. Grow up. Who was the first to start running ads poking fun at the other?

 

[trekkie604]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPod; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_0 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7A341 Safari/528.16)

All microsoft has to do is watermark their current commercials with "prices as of xx/xx/xx" and then apple can whine all they want.

 

[DELLsFan]

I can see you obviously disagree with me...no need to point out the fact that the company's name is apple. The ads dont give a comparison of what you are actually getting. I would like to see here is mac with processor, hard drive, screen size, etc and here is pc with... However if they did that it wouldn't be as effective for Microsoft. I just want them to actually say more than jeez these macs are expensive.

They don't have to. Just like Apple doesn't have to waste their valuable 30 seconds of commercial time issuing disclaimers about how it really is education and behavior that is the best protection against malware - not the inherent stability and bug-free nature of the OS. You may not want MS to point out the biggest turn off in buying a Mac, but your desires don't make it less true. By the same token, I may prefer Apple said more than just "jeez, these PCs are error-prone and susceptible to viruses", in their ads, but although they are correct, they also aren't telling the entire story.

 

[BongoBanger]

Explain why Microsoft had to rename Vista just to get people to try it out?

Public perception. They made a complete mess of the launch then they fixed it. I use it every day and it's a good, reliable OS. I also use XP every day and it's a slow, unwieldy, antiquated horror.

Vista was and is a hunk of junk. I work in retail and people have actually turned down the laptops we sell because they run Vista, or they've asked if we could install XP on them.

I work as an IT manager in a large financial group and actually use the product. I and most people who use Vista don't actually care what a few people who returned some laptops to a store think.

And stating that this call is true without supporting evidence doesn't prove anything.

Fine. Let's wait for Apple's denial and then, since MS will inevitably have recorded the call, we can see what was actually said?

That is if Apple actually deny it.

 

[freeny]

Im not buying it for a second. The call never happened. Apple is too smart for a dumb move like that. I expect MS will be backing up on their words very soon...

 

[cwedl]

The laptop hunters adverts takes advantage of peoples ignorance when it come to computers, to feed them loosely correct information.

 

[FlagellumDei]

ALL Apple products are overpriced...

 

[StuBeck]

Very bizarre story. Sounds like BS to me. Maybe someone called with a very specific complaint about a particular claim? Even that sounds iffy.

And that's the reason he knows they are effective? Because Apple legal called? They don't have metrics that tell them whether this ad money was well spent? If there is truth to this at all this is something small that was blown out of proportion.

Theres already been reports that people's perceptions about Windows has changed since the ads came out. A lot of this is probably to do with people who don't know how cheap a computer can actually cost, I still get people who think $1k for a desktop isn't possible, and sadly this is from our supplier of AutoCAD machines (and yes, these are better spec'ed machines then they say we should buy for $2k).

I won't believe that Apple didn't make the request unless I hear something else. Their lawsuits against companies who used the word "Pod" in the name of their products, even if the product had that name before the iPod came out, was ridiculous, so this is in the same vein.

Either side complaining about the MS or Apple ad's being dishonest should just look at what their "side" does. None of the ads are completely honest. Apple has gone way overboard on making PC's seem like complete POS's and requiring constant maintenance, and MS doesn't explain what that extra cost gets you hardware wise. Anyways, its an ad, of course they're not going to go into detail about why the other side is better!

 

[Hattig]

Dear Apple,
Good luck with that.
Did MS ask for the I'm a Mac ads to be pulled?

It's a reasonable request, and I'm sure it wasn't made in the way that the story suggests.

Most likely it referred to specific adverts that had specific price points for the laptops featured, which because invalid once Apple had changed the prices. Continuing to use these adverts would be false advertising. I presume that Microsoft aren't so stupid as to keep on using these adverts. I'm also sure that Apple didn't tell them to stop running the general theme of the adverts.

 

[QCassidy352]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 3_0 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/528.18 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0 Mobile/7A341 Safari/528.16)

I'm surprised he's making such comments as the COO. Comments like that are usually reserved for the snotty public relations or marketing department.

Personally, I find Turner's comments a bit bizarre. Why would Apple's legal department contact the COO? In all likelihood, Turner received a phone call from Microsoft's legal department regarding the manner. His entire story seems a bit odd.

By the way, this is also the same guy who made the comment about Microsoft building their stores next to Apple stores.

I seriously doubt even Apple legal called MS legal much less the COO..

Legal things are done legally.

Indeed. Legal depts don't call competitors' COOs to verbally complain if their issue is a misleading ad campaign. This story is full of holes. Not to say apple didn't contact MS in some way about this, but I guarantee you it didn't happen like this guy said.

 

[Goona]

I don't believe an ounce of this. They need to produce the transcript of the phone call if it ever took place.