Poll: Do you like Apple's new PowerMac G5 TV Ad?

[MacRumors]

Vote: Poll: Do you like Apple's new PowerMac G5 TV Ad? (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=228&ref=forums.macrumors.com)

[Royal Pineapple]

its ok, i think they could have done better, i liked the incluson of the dogcow tho :D

[job]

Originally posted by Royal Pineapple
its ok, i think they could have done better, i liked the incluson of the dogcow tho :D

Wha? Dogcow? You mean that dog which barked and leaped past the camera?

[Kwyjibo]

I LIKED IT! I thought it was great and a nice change from the white background ads that ppl might avoid....it seems like they spent too much time approaching the computer

[FredAkbar]

Originally posted by job
Wha? Dogcow? You mean that dog which barked and leaped past the camera?

Yeah I had to watch it again to see what Royal was talking about, and I'm still not sure that they put the dog in on purpose to relate to the classic Dogcow. That would be neat if they did though.

[P-Worm]

Yeah I liked it. It was more mainstream than some of those other ads that just confused people. Like remember the tank ad where they never really told you that it was a personal computer?

P-Worm

[scem0]

It's okay....

It just lacks anything that is memorable, or catchy.

It doesn't really go with apple's style either.

In fact, it's a little less than just OK. It isn't bad though. Just not good or okay.

scem0

[rainman::|:|]

i think it's good that they're going back to more normal, less sterile commercials-- white space is an advertiser's best friend, but they used it way too much. But this commercial wasn't that great IMHO, i hope it's a sign of a strong ad campaign to come--

pnw

[Doctor Q]

I don't think it's Clarus. I like that the lady doesn't say anything. The extra crash sound at the end is a good touch. Is that a phone busy signal you hear momentarily right before the dog jumps? And why isn't the hanging lamp over the G5 swinging?

Overall, I give it a B. It's OK, if they don't run the ad for too long a time.

A better "blown away" ad was a print ad that I remember. It had a guy sitting in his living room chair listening to music that seemed to be blowing 100-mph winds at him. Anybody else remember it? What was that an ad for, anyway?

[StrongGlad]

Originally posted by Doctor Q
What was that an ad for, anyway?

IIRC, the ad was for Maxell (manufacturer of blank audio tapes).

Remember? "Is it live, or is it Maxell?"

[u68]

Originally posted by Doctor Q
A better "blown away" ad was a print ad that I remember. It had a guy sitting in his living room chair listening to music that seemed to be blowing 100-mph winds at him. Anybody else remember it? What was that an ad for, anyway?

That was an ad for Maxell audio cassettes. And here's a nice trivia item - the guy in the chair was Peter Murphy, lead singer of the 80s goth band Bauhaus.

Jeez, do I feel old right now...

[weev]

The ads OK but that guys voice is all wrong -- he is just not serious or mean enough.

His voice is apologetic, lacking conviction, a little embarrassed.

Using him for the mini-me commercial was acceptable because it was FUN. but this G5 is a frickin' weapon. However, it seems to be more of a funny bomb.

Doesn't make me go 'wow, gotta get that'. In fact, I'm over it now....

:p

[Pancake]

I think the G5 commercial should be this:

You see the G5 in a bed with a naked woman on each side. The G5 is smoking a cigarette and wearing a tuxedo jacket.
The voiceover says:
"Introducing the Power Mac G5. It get's more sex* than James Bond."


*edit: oops, didn't know I couldn't say ***** ;)

[Vanquish]

Originally posted by weev
The ads OK but that guys voice is all wrong -- he is just not serious or mean enough.

His voice is apologetic, lacking conviction, a little embarrassed.

Using him for the mini-me commercial was acceptable because it was FUN. but this G5 is a frickin' weapon. However, it seems to be more of a funny bomb.

Doesn't make me go 'wow, gotta get that'. In fact, I'm over it now....

:p


The voice is that of Geff Goldblum - he's Apple's signature voice over! I think his voice is suitably understated, not pompous or arrogant, just sublime.

As for the ad itself, I think this, along with every other ad Apple have produced is just to assuming. For once, they should just spell out the facts and state just how cool this new machine is.

The same thing applies to the PowerBook ad. Okay, there's a small one, and there's a big one. Wow...big deal. However, the first PB Titanium ad was pretty cool!

Apple's advertising dept. need to 'switch' to more conventional methods - then they might start getting some sales.

[stefman]

It's O.K.

I wasn't blow away by it:D

[jbomber]

Originally posted by Pancake
I think the G5 commercial should be this:

You see the G5 in a bed with a naked woman on each side. The G5 is smoking a cigarette and wearing a tuxedo jacket.
The voiceover says:
"Introducing the Power Mac G5. It get's more sex* than James Bond."


*edit: oops, didn't know I couldn't say ***** ;)


AHAHAHAHAHA. I love your version. If the little AOL dude can sleep with Sharon Stone, the G5 should be able to get a little sumpthin-sumpthin too....

Anyway, the actual commercial is a little generic. nothing terribly strong in terms of branding. nothing that readily identifies it as an apple ad til the very very end. and it's still kinda unfortunate that the machine is not-so-attractive.

[tazo]

Originally posted by Pancake
I think the G5 commercial should be this:

You see the G5 in a bed with a naked woman on each side. The G5 is smoking a cigarette and wearing a tuxedo jacket.
The voiceover says:
"Introducing the Power Mac G5. It get's more sex* than James Bond."


*edit: oops, didn't know I couldn't say ***** ;)

omg I laughed so hard at that scenario. me likes :D ;) :p :)

[xelterran]

it was kickass! Kinda reminds me of The Hulk where some guy gets shot out the side of a house..

[Fender2112]

Originally posted by StrongGlad
IIRC, the ad was for Maxell (manufacturer of blank audio tapes).

Remember? "Is it live, or is it Maxell?"

This is the same add that came to my mind. I thought it was for Memorex not Maxell.

The "Blow You Away" concept has been around for along time. I like that Apple is trying something different. But I don't think the new ad is original enough for an Apple product. I think my favorite Apple ad is the one where the iMac sticks out it's "tongue". :)

[Centris 650]

The last 3 Apple commercials have been fairly humorous.

In reverse chronological order*....
3. The G5
I thought is was funny and fairly high budget. I agree though it has a mediocre "memoriable" factor.

2. The 12" & 17" Powerbooks.
Once again, fairly funny. I know a lot of people who are PCers who liked that commercial. Though it was funny the 1st time the commercial ran too long and too often. Even I got tired of it.

1. The FP iMac.
This is my favorite. Humorous AND catchy. It even got imitated and that's a good thing.

*I know I didn't include the iPod commercial. I'm looking at the computer commercials though the iPod commercials are pretty funny too.

Overall I think Apple has gotten better with their commercials. And I agree it's better than the all white/sterile backgrounds of a few years ago.

[celaurie]

Heh, damned kewl add - nice to see a moofy friend on there too.

[MattG]

I agree with some other comments I've read on the subject. The commercial doesn't tell you WHY you should buy this as opposed to say, a Dell. "Fastest desktop computer in the world," who cares? Every company says they have the fastest computers. People need to know why the Mac is better, how easy it is, etc. etc.

[ebow]

Originally posted by Vanquish
The voice is that of Geff Goldblum - he's Apple's signature voice over! I think his voice is suitably understated, not pompous or arrogant, just sublime.

Over the years I've found his voice too soothing and almost amused to be taken seriously. It's like he's casually amused when he realizes what he's doing: "Hmm? Oh, another computer. And they're paying me to say 15 words about it again. Okay." :rolleyes:

[j33pd0g]

I think they should be showing off what the new G5 can do compared to the pc. Sure, mac users may be in the loop, but Johny-Need-A-New-Computer should be encouraged to learn more... maybe some Geff Goldblum VO... giving some information. Or better yet, scrap the whole thing and make a commercial that shows PC users what a quality computer can do. Unfortunatly, people are attracted to fancy specs and technical jargon - so throw that in there too! JM2C.

[QuiteSure]

Originally posted by j33pd0g
I think they should be showing off what the new G5 can do compared to the pc. Sure, mac users may be in the loop, but Johny-Need-A-New-Computer should be encouraged to learn more... maybe some Geff Goldblum VO... giving some information. Or better yet, scrap the whole thing and make a commercial that shows PC users what a quality computer can do. Unfortunatly, people are attracted to fancy specs and technical jargon - so throw that in there too! JM2C.

Right! Why not a great iPhoto or iTunes demo on TV? I just don't understand why Apple doesn't sell its #1 attraction, which is ease of use as part of hardware/software/OS integration.

The fact that the computer is more powerful is of little interest to someone who will have to invest a considerable sum on new software and a new learning curve.

I hate the ad. We've all stood by Apple through very hard times in the 90's and again during the "processor gap" of the 00's. Why?:confused:

Because the hardware/software/OS integration is superb. THAT's what Apple should be selling.

[Jerry Spoon]

Originally posted by xelterran
it was kickass! Kinda reminds me of The Hulk where some guy gets shot out the side of a house..
Beat me to the punch. That's exactly what I thought of too.
Don't get the G5 angry...You wouldn't like it when it's angry.:D

[zarathustra]

Originally posted by StrongGlad
IIRC, the ad was for Maxell (manufacturer of blank audio tapes).

Remember? "Is it live, or is it Maxell?"

Did Maxell become Memorex? Because the tagline "Is it live or is it Memorex" is the only one I can find. ;)

[RHutch]

I liked the commercial, even though it was simple and didn't give any information. I think that maybe it's just something to get people curious. I'm hoping that more informative commercials will follow that do make it clear why people should buy one (other than the fact that Mr. Goldblum says that they're the fastest and most powerful).

[yzedf]

Still bad.

Better then the switch style ads at least.

[DeusOmnis]

It looked like it cost alot of money and it didnt really do very much for me.

I do have one thing to point out, however. If you didnt know it was the G5 commercial, you would be wondering the entire time what was going on. The commercial is more effective if you dont know what it's for.

On the other hand that means the consumer can only see it once.

[Waluigi]

Originally posted by QuiteSure
Right! Why not a great iPhoto or iTunes demo on TV? I just don't understand why Apple doesn't sell its #1 attraction, which is ease of use as part of hardware/software/OS integration.

The fact that the computer is more powerful is of little interest to someone who will have to invest a considerable sum on new software and a new learning curve.

I hate the ad. We've all stood by Apple through very hard times in the 90's and again during the "processor gap" of the 00's. Why?:confused:

Because the hardware/software/OS integration is superb. THAT's what Apple should be selling.

Yes! Yes! Yes! Great idea QuiteSure!

[wdlove]

I'm anxiously waiting the see the ad on commrcial TV. Giving the ad a strong thumbs up, way to go Apple!

[-hh]

Originally posted by Doctor Q
... I like that the lady doesn't say anything....

IMO, I give it a C-.

FWIW, what I think would improve the Apple G5 commercial would be for some dead air after the voice-over and then you hear "Mom's voice (off camera)" say: "So how do you like your new computer, dear?"

Oh, and next week, run a TV ad with Dad patching up the walls, and then getting caught late at night playing with Son's G5, and re-punching his own holes back thru the walls. :-)

If you want to get wild, do some cross-promotional pitches by throwing in the AFLAK duck wandering by, looking at Dad, as well as some Lowes or Home Depot repair trucks :-)




A better "blown away" ad was a print ad that I remember. It had a guy sitting in his living room chair listening to music that seemed to be blowing 100-mph winds at him. Anybody else remember it? What was that an ad for, anyway?

Several other posts have discussed this, but here's the answers:

There were two big competitors for audio tape back in the '70s, namely Memorex and Maxell.

The catchphrase "Is it live, or is it (brand)?" was Memorex's ad.

Their pitch was a wine glass that shattered on a high note. A photo of one of their ads is shown below.

The "blown away" ad that you're thinking of was from Maxell.

This is the guy in his living room chair that gets stronger and stronger wind in his face...he ends up holding on for dear life. Finer points of the ad included close-ups of the creeping wine glass that he reaches over for, and IIRC, the long version variant included a tight face shot where you see waves/ripples in his cheeks (IMO, the windspeed probably had to be 75+mph to do this).

I've Googled to find an image of this ad, with marginal success. The image below (which I had to lift out of Google's cache, since the original is no longer online) is very small...my apologies.


-hh

Maxell ad:
http://www.huntzinger.com/photo/old/maxell_ad.jpg

Memorex ad:
http://www.vintagetechnology.com/ad_scans/media_memorex_cass_1974.jpg

[pduck]

There was a famous advertising man named David Ogilvie who said that the product's name should always be mentioned in the first 10 seconds of an ad. Apple's ads need to be harder hitting. "Soft" ads don't work when you are trying to catch up. Think about political ads. I'm not saying that Apple's ads should be negative, but they should point out more clearly what the Macintosh advantage is.

[QCassidy352]

Originally posted by MattG
I agree with some other comments I've read on the subject. The commercial doesn't tell you WHY you should buy this as opposed to say, a Dell. "Fastest desktop computer in the world," who cares? Every company says they have the fastest computers. People need to know why the Mac is better, how easy it is, etc. etc.

you can't convey those things in a 30 second commercial, and if you try, you're going to either bore or confuse people. You have to "wow" people with a commercial, make it memorable. It really doesn't matter if it describes the product, and often it's a good idea not to.

The idea of the g5 in bed with two women is actually a great one. It's got humor and sex appeal - those things are what make commercials memorable. Apple does NOT want to attempt to show why X is better than XP in a 30 second spot. BAD idea.

edit:
"Right! Why not a great iPhoto or iTunes demo on TV? I just don't understand why Apple doesn't sell its #1 attraction, which is ease of use as part of hardware/software/OS integration."

no no no. That will never work. You can't explain software, not even iapps, in a 30 second tv spot. People will see it and be either bored or confused.

A commercial (unless it's for a small item like a candy bar) should get people in to the store where the salespeople can then do their jobs, not try to complete a sale on tv. Technical demonstrations don't attract attention - sex, humor, and impressive visuals attract attention. Once you impress people enough that they go to an apple store, *then* you can show them up close and in person why mac software is so good. But you have to get them in to the store.

[Doctor Q]

Here's a bigger version of the Maxell ad I was thinking about:

http://www.kbpi.com/timages/page/maxell.jpg

[MacFan25]

I like the new G5 commercial. Like others have said, it is a little bit different than what we are used to seeing from Apple, but I think that this commercial really gets the point out of how fast and powerful this computer is.

[danielgrenell]

i liked it, i thought it was amusing (but my none to smart father didn't get it), but it doesn't sell me on the G5. the G5 itself sells me!