This funny ad aired in the UK - I don't recall a US version... I think one of the best...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sol2zeR_h60
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New "Get A Mac" commercial just aired "Clothing Giveup"
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This funny ad aired in the UK - I don't recall a US version... I think one of the best...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sol2zeR_h60
The goal of an advertising campaign isn't to be likable. It's to get the message across in a memorable fashion.
These ads communicate clearly and effectively to the target audience: people who may or may not have vague preconceptions about macs, but don't really know much.
Yes the ads seem pompous and smug to Windows diehards. But Windows blowhards are a lost cause anyway: no 30-second ad will convince them.
I personally don't like the ad campaign, but I am 100% positive that they drive traffic to Apple stores and that they sell macs. Mission accomplished.
I think that any OS that has 5-6% of the worldwide installed base cannot pull any punches when trying to fight its' way into the public consciousness. Once 50% of people actually know what a mac is, apple will be able to relax and use normal advertising. (i.e. features and stuff.)
But in a world drowning in advertising and drowning in Windows, Apple has chosen to stand out at the risk of seeming smug. I don't think that they had any other choice.
These ads communicate clearly and effectively to the target audience: people who may or may not have vague preconceptions about macs, but don't really know much.
Yes the ads seem pompous and smug to Windows diehards. But Windows blowhards are a lost cause anyway: no 30-second ad will convince them.
I personally don't like the ad campaign, but I am 100% positive that they drive traffic to Apple stores and that they sell macs. Mission accomplished.
I think that any OS that has 5-6% of the worldwide installed base cannot pull any punches when trying to fight its' way into the public consciousness. Once 50% of people actually know what a mac is, apple will be able to relax and use normal advertising. (i.e. features and stuff.)
But in a world drowning in advertising and drowning in Windows, Apple has chosen to stand out at the risk of seeming smug. I don't think that they had any other choice.
Oh come on. Advertising sucks, period. Apple's just playing the game.
Besides, Apple's marketing people spotted the perfect storm here and they would be insane not to jump on it. Someone else (PC World) makes a spectacular claim about the Macs running Vista which by all reports (from other sources again) runs terribly on standard PC equipment. Apple is trying to turn that into an advertising meme. It's a simple point to make, backed up by other sources, and puts the Mac ahead of the PCs out there. No company is going to pass up the opportunity to repeat that in an ad.
They're entertaining, not informative. And that's the whole point. If they were informative people's brains would shut down.
They're selling Apple just like Pepsi. They are gaining mindset. They are trying to portray themselves as an "equal" alternative to Windows.
*Please, please forgive that slight... but I'm sure Apple would be happy with 50% share!
They're selling Apple just like Pepsi. They are gaining mindset. They are trying to portray themselves as an "equal" alternative to Windows.
*Please, please forgive that slight... but I'm sure Apple would be happy with 50% share!
apple shouldn't make ads that bash windows they need to focus more on there overall operation system that would sell more macs.
That ad did not bash Windows. It just stated that Apple's hardware runs Vista better than other PC companies.
People need to remember that the Apple ads are not Apple against Windows, but Apple against PCs.
And this latest ad is saying if you want to buy an off the shelf computer to run Vista, your best bet is buying a Mac.
But the hook being, once you go into an Apple Store to buy a Mac you learn that you really don't need boot into Vista, because Apple has this thing called Mac OS, blah, blah, blah....
"And it was, like, a really good master's thesis."
Funny, that's the first thing I thought of, too.
I like the campaign mostly due to John Hodgeman, one of the best comedians going right now.
I'm not sure where the "smugness" charges come from, except for the pre-conceived notions that certain people take with them into viewing the ads. Mac is the straight guy in the campaign, low-key and plays up his advantages in a fairly modest way, making PC's over-the-top reactions and self-justifications all the more funny.
My fiancée absolutely hates watching ads of any kind. So when we watch Heroes and I make her rewind the Tivo to watch the Apple ads, she gets kind of annoyed.
Just like your avatar
I totally agree though. They could do so much with their adverts but they choose to the easy route and frankly the immature route.
I disagree with both of you. People actually talk about these ads almost as if they're TV shows. I don't remember the last time I had a conversation about my favorite Dell or HP ad, do you.
But just the other night I was out at a bar and I took a call on my iPhone and out of nowhere the whole conversation about this ad campaign came up. A woman who is basically computer illiterate was telling us about her favorite Mac/PC ad and then she went on to tell us how she's get an MacBook for Christmas because of them!
Do you remember the AT&T "fewest dropped calls" advertisements? You know the ones that they got sued over? AT&T was just "running" with what some researching firm "said". I never have had much respect for PC World's method of testing, usually a single benchmark which you'll have a hard time finding anyone else use to compare it too.
The fact is, the MacBook Pro ISN'T the fastest Vista laptop, because there are machines that are clearly faster, Apple knows this, but runs the ad anyways. In the PC World review, they aren't even reviewing the top of the line model, their sample has a 2.4GHz processor.
I think apple was just trying to find a way to remind people that they are a hardware compay, not just software. Also, isn't this comparable to when Automobile Makers pronounce "most power" and "Best in-class towing" for their products? Could also be that there is a "class" of Mac bootable laptops, thus,
is best in class Significant difference: Apple's ad discloses that this is what PC World said. PC says, on the phone, "Hello? PC World? . . . I'd like to report a misprint. . . . Well, you said, and I quote, . . ." Instead of stating it as fact (and relying on an unmentioned opinion as support in the background), it states it as opinion (and relies on the opinion to support itself). You can disagree with the campaign, but a suit against this would be borderline frivolous.
And this surprises you?
When I was a kid I was always waiting for my parents to trip up and say something that maybe they didn't completely mean, and then I'd hold them to it. "But you SAID, daddy, you SAID!" You parents know what I mean. This Apple doing the same thing.
It's funny... in real life, I have never ever met anyone who thinks the Mac ads are 'smug' or are bashing Windows. Quite the contrary, most ppl seem to like 'em. My girlfriend, a total NON-tech head, thinks they're cute and quite funny, actually.
My guess is, most of the ppl complaining online are either closet Windows fanboys, or a certain subset of Mac users who take themselves a wee bit too seriously. Honestly, the most the ads do is poke fun at the PC side in a gentle, humorous manner. They could've been way harsher, if you think about it.
And they do seem to be working... Apple has made dozens of them so far, and shows no sign of stopping. So, to those who don't like it, all I can say is, "Get over it". The ads likely aren't going away anytime soon.
...
My guess is, most of the ppl complaining online are either closet Windows fanboys, or a certain subset of Mac users who take themselves a wee bit too seriously. Honestly, the most the ads do is poke fun at the PC side in a gentle, humorous manner. They could've been way harsher, if you think about it.
And they do seem to be working... Apple has made dozens of them so far, and shows no sign of stopping. So, to those who don't like it, all I can say is, "Get over it". The ads likely aren't going away anytime soon.
...
Poor wording... As Apple is now osxtel (mactel?)... Really should have said windows pc. Although I more or less agree with what you wrote.
You have said it best of all! Apple is going for the new recruits, and with tv commercials that are in and out in 30 secs.
Evidently some on here are a little sensitive, maybe ex pc-ers but it's not like we mac users haven't had our share of encounters with smug pc users
I love these ads, they are fun and make people think about the mac, without being smug!
You have said it best of all! Apple is going for the new recruits, and with tv commercials that are in and out in 30 secs.
Evidently some on here are a little sensitive, maybe ex pc-ers but it's not like we mac users haven't had our share of encounters with smug pc users
I love these ads, they are fun and make people think about the mac, without being smug!
Just speaking for myself, no TV commercial will let me part with almost $2500 of my hard earned cash. (In my case, Euro to $). Funny or otherwise. And I pitty those who do. PC users in my neck of the woods just wonder why I care to spend so much money on a computer.
So pc world is being unfair to pcs?
That's a switch!
Maybe they were trying to even the field, fastest with that speed processor?
In any event, as has been said before, your problem then is with Pc world.
I assume that they have the resources to test any windows machine that they want against the Mac.
This is very rare event to have any pc mag say that a Mac can run windows faster, would have been stupid for apple not to point it out.
Fact is the mac has been faster than any pc for me, since 1996, yeah
they just work!
Fact is you don't have to, do what I did. I bought a used G4 imac on ebay for $310 with os 10.4 brought it over to my friends with a new $950 dell tower and they were ready to get rid of their virusfest pc at the end of the night!
$2500 is a lot of money, but if you are using your mac to make a lot of money, it is a pittance. It's all about the OS
Fact is you don't have to, do what I did. I bought a used G4 imac on ebay for $310 with os 10.4 brought it over to my friends with a new $950 dell tower and they were ready to get rid of their virusfest pc at the end of the night!
$2500 is a lot of money, but if you are using your mac to make a lot of money, it is a pittance. It's all about the OS
I'm just a fool
I use my Mac for MacRumors Auriculas asini quis non habet? 
Man I am so tired of clueless people like you.
How about putting together a mock up clip of this concept using iMovie?
Then we could all bask in your creative marketing genius. More likely tho, you will find your idea is boring in reality and won't post your clip.
I can see it now:
An Apple ad, that opens with a discussion of the fact that OS X is "real" Unix, an actual Open Brand Unix 03 Registered Product. Then a riff on how it confirms to SUSv3 and the POSIX specs.
A graphic showing how the memory map model of OS X is superior? Hints at how Vista still has some legacy code that goes back to DOS. A discussion of why X11 support could be crucial to some users.
Sixty seconds later, a few geeks are cheering and most BUYING customers have lumped Apple into the "expensive strange computers for nerds" category.
Not a good spend of ad money!
An Apple ad, that opens with a discussion of the fact that OS X is "real" Unix, an actual Open Brand Unix 03 Registered Product. Then a riff on how it confirms to SUSv3 and the POSIX specs.
A graphic showing how the memory map model of OS X is superior? Hints at how Vista still has some legacy code that goes back to DOS. A discussion of why X11 support could be crucial to some users.
Sixty seconds later, a few geeks are cheering and most BUYING customers have lumped Apple into the "expensive strange computers for nerds" category.
Not a good spend of ad money!
I also saw it on "The Closer" last night. The ad was interesting... but I was more focused on The Closer
PS - To the original poster of this thread: Good ep, no?