Poll: What do you think of Apple's new iPod TV Ad? (http://www.apple.com/ipod/ads/)

[MacRumors]

Vote: Poll: What do you think of Apple's new iPod TV Ad? (http://www.apple.com/ipod/ads/) (http://www.macpolls.com/?poll_id=292)

[MrMacMan]

I like it a lot, along with just the standard pictures.

They were cool, but why was it only ... um african american people?

Apple trying to reach out, seemed weird... eh.

[Doctor Q]

I like it for two reasons:

1. I like it.

2. I think others will like it, thereby selling more iPods (and, by extension, more Macs).

Uh oh, my statement is recursive.

[dfa4]

I downloaded the ad to my comp (to keep for posterity) and noticed the file name, "iPod-ad-hip_hop_480.mov". I suspect by the naming convention that indeed more ads are to come featuring different types of music genres.

[scem0]

I think it is good.

Neat colorful and energetic.

But nothing sets it apart from other commercials so thats why I dont love them.

scem0

[Bunzi2k4]

i think that the ipod adds are pretty cool i mean.... interesting and rememberable.

[chickengrease16]

Originally posted by MrMacman
I like it a lot, along with just the standard pictures.

They were cool, but why was it only ... um african american people?

Apple trying to reach out, seemed weird... eh.

when was the last time you saw a white guy dance? come on... (no, dance dance revolution doesnt count.)

on another note...
dont you just love, statistically, how these polls usually follow normal distribution curve patterns? i mean, its still nominal data usually, but its kinda neat to see...

[theipodgod16]

i still wish they would show it in action and compare it to something like the nomad jukebox. Point out its size and maybe show someone actually scrolling through 10,000 songs on a 40gb. I think that would be nice. Oo what if they had like someone trying to fit 10,000 songs worth of cds in his backpack? that would be funny, then show him a week later with an ipod in hand! See? They should really milk this for all it's worth.

[stoid]

Originally posted by scem0
But nothing sets it apart from other commercials so thats why I dont love them.

I'm not an avid TV viewer, but I have never seen nor heard of any ad that displays the product in such a simple way. That's what Apple is all about. Simplicity. They absolutely made a perfect example of this in the ad, and that's why I LOVE it.

[Doctor Q]

The speculation here (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=41035) about how Apple produced the ad and about how close you could come with Final Cut Pro are interesting. Which makes me think that Apple would benefit from additional publicity if it routinely made "Making Of..." stories for their ads. I'd like to see Apple put up web pages with background info, photo stills, audio or video interviews with designers, artists, producers, etc.

Go ahead, Apple. Grab some more attention. And teach us a little more about your software techniques at the same time. Everybody wins.

[etoiles]

Originally posted by scem0
I think it is good.

Neat colorful and energetic.

But nothing sets it apart from other commercials so thats why I dont love them.

scem0

I have to agree with stoid on that one, I think they totally stand out. They really captured the essence of 'cool' and render it in a very simple but strong graphic language. But then I don't have cable TV either ;)

[true777]

I basically like it, though I think the choice of colors could be a bit cooler/ more contemporary/ funkier (especially the purple/lilac background to the white Apple logo is just outdated), and by the same token the dress/hair style of the long-haired girl (the one we see the least) is not exactly the kind of hip the commercial tries to get across.

And I guess the music is not everyone's flavor... not sure what's up with all this raggamuffin'-inspired stuff Apple has been using in their ads and videos for years now. Some guy in their ad agency must be a big fan, but now that they've used stuff like this like 10 times it's getting a bit old.

That's not to say I don't like it. I actually like the general look and feel of it a whole lot and think it's a good new direction to go for Apple's advertising style, especially for the pod. And I love the part where the guy takes his hat off! All in all, pretty good.

[cb911]

just saw the ad today... and i have to say i love it! :D it's a very nice look they have... i'm going to have to find out how they did that... ;)

i just love Apple's sense of design and style. they are the makers of cool.:cool:

[nagromme]

I predict the style will be copied and become trendy now: video (and photos) processed into stark silhouettes and bright colors.

[MarcL]

Those of us who live in Toronto will note the similarities between the new iPod ad with those for The Flow radio station that have been out for some years now (see top two):

http://www.flow935.com/flowMedia/flowMedia.htm

[aethier]

I love it too, its funny the way they dance, and the songg is good. i think i have been watching it as much as my friend is watching the Kill Bill trailor..


aethier

[Sol]

I think it is a good ad simply because it is so memorable. From now on when you see a black siluette on a colour background you will most likely think of the iPod.

As for the music, you can never go wrong with the Black Eyed Peas. I saw them perform live at the Gold Coast (Australia) a few years ago and I have been a fan ever since.

[redAPPLE]

Originally posted by MrMacman
I like it a lot, along with just the standard pictures.

They were cool, but why was it only ... um african american people?

Apple trying to reach out, seemed weird... eh.

coz they dance a lot better than the yellow people? :D

uh what i want to say is, how do you know they are only african american?

[dfa4]

Originally posted by redAPPLE
coz they dance a lot better than the yellow people? :D

uh what i want to say is, how do you know they are only african american?

I thought the same thing regarding how the original poster assumed the dancers in teh iPod TV ad were "african-american". I mean you may be able to determine that the dancers are Black (though, I thought that it was clear that not all of them were Black), but how did you determine their nationality (American)?

[SlowX]

Originally posted by Doctor Q
...Apple would benefit from additional publicity if it routinely made "Making Of..." stories for their ads

That's a *really* cool idea!

[gwangung]

Originally posted by redAPPLE
coz they dance a lot better than the yellow people? :D


Hey! I resemble that remark!:D

[mactastic]

I think they are pretty cool, but I can't go any higher than that, since it is a commercial after all. Good choice of music though for sure.

And btw, if the distribution followed the normal curve, wouldn't the "good" choice be the most selected one, with the most extreme being the least selected? Looks like most people love it.

[wdlove]

I loved the AD. Would like to see Apple having more Ads. Need to get our product out in the public eye more.

[chickengrease16]

Originally posted by mactastic
I think they are pretty cool, but I can't go any higher than that, since it is a commercial after all. Good choice of music though for sure.

And btw, if the distribution followed the normal curve, wouldn't the "good" choice be the most selected one, with the most extreme being the least selected? Looks like most people love it.

technically, its not a "normal" curve per se. but it follows a normal curve pattern. nominal data anyways.

[rogueimage]

Originally posted by dfa4
I thought the same thing regarding how the original poster assumed the dancers in teh iPod TV ad were "african-american". I mean you may be able to determine that the dancers are Black (though, I thought that it was clear that not all of them were Black), but how did you determine their nationality (American)?

It's impossible to tell what shade of skin the people in the ad have. They're all silhouettes! If one adheres to the stereotype that white folks can't dance, then yes, they're all African-American (or -Canadian, or -Panamanian, or whatever) but that's a false stereotype. When I first saw the ad, I assumed it was a good mix of people, and upon studying it again with this in mind, I still think that's true.

By the way, I think that the guy tipping his hat was a great shot on which to end. And the supposedly non-stylish girl of whom we don't see much is in there for sex-appeal. The chest-down profile shot of her near the end definitely would have caught my attention if I didn't already think the ad was darn cool. Again, good, if slightly exploitative, placement.

[Phil Of Mac]

Originally posted by dfa4
I thought the same thing regarding how the original poster assumed the dancers in teh iPod TV ad were "african-american". I mean you may be able to determine that the dancers are Black (though, I thought that it was clear that not all of them were Black), but how did you determine their nationality (American)?

The first woman has a typically black hairstyle. The girl with long hair may in fact not be black, but the guy with the hat, very well might be. And the second guy is bald. How many bald white guys do you see?

The fact that they are all black silhouettes, and the music and dance style, suggest they're black too.

Between this and Mac OS X "Panther" (with the "black" box, i.e. "black panther"), I think it's obvious that Apple is pandering to the African-American market. (I credit As The Apple Turns for discovering the hidden message in the marketing of Mac OS X Panther).

Not to mention the iPod's blatant product placement in 50 Cent's P.I.M.P. video.

Actually, I'm joking about the entire racial pandering thing.

On a completely different note, I love how the white iPod and cables contrast against the black silhouettes.

Originally posted by rogueimage
By the way, I think that the guy tipping his hat was a great shot on which to end. And the supposedly non-stylish girl of whom we don't see much is in there for sex-appeal. The chest-down profile shot of her near the end definitely would have caught my attention if I didn't already think the ad was darn cool. Again, good, if slightly exploitative, placement.

There's nothing wrong with appreciating the beauty of a sexy girl shaking her body like that :D

[noel4r]

i think it's kinda cool and unique, the black silhouette really makes the ipod stand out.

[dstorey]

I dont think you can 100% tell if people are black etc, but there are hints such as style of clothes, music, hair and well features to a certain extent (ie people of different ethnic backgrounds do have different bone structures etc). The first thing i thought was that most of the people in the print and tv ad were black people because of the hints. Not that it bothers me in the slightest, I've dated black, white and native american girls (pretty rare here I guess as there arnt many native americans in the uk)

As for white people cant dance well fred astaire and john travolta ;) But yeah in general white guys are bad dancers cause they arnt really interested in it....I like watching white girls dance though ;) I'd not refuse getting a dance off britney thats for sure ;) Actually, as a general statement, I prefere to see latin people dance....now thats what I call sexy......Sal;sa is a very fun dance.

[homeshire]

i love it! otherwise i ain't gonna analyze it. ;)

[Lz0]

I like the fact that no advertising company has yet worked out a way of advertising to me.

[sparkleytone]

i love the new ad. it really does stand out as different from any other commercials on TV at the moment. especially since everyone and their mother are doing the plain white background commercials now.

the coolest thing about the commercial is more of a personal thing tho. the song just happens to be what has been my favorite song in the last couple weeks. any time im going down the road, odds are i'm listening to this song. its just wierd that suddenly its in an apple commercial.

[Doctor Q]

;) I spotted a hidden musical connection. Don't you think the image of Kokopelli, the mystical Anasazi flute player, is being represented in this frame of the iPod ad?

Kokopelli:
http://www.creationsbycc.com/Designs/kokopelli.gif

iPod ad frame:

[simX]

Originally posted by Doctor Q
;) I spotted a hidden musical connection. Don't you think the image of Kokopelli, the mystical Anasazi flute player, is being represented in this frame of the iPod ad?

Uhhh.... not really. :p

But I was initially confused at the iPod frame since it looks like the guy has 6 fingers instead of 5... until I realized that one of the fingers is his hat. :P

[cubist]

Originally posted by dstorey
... Actually, as a general statement, I prefere to see latin people dance....now thats what I call sexy......Sal;sa is a very fun dance.

The fact that "hip hop" is in the filename may indicate we may see a few more of these in other genres. I hate rap, but a Latin music version of this commercial would be really, really neat.

And I could imagine a jazz version of it too... imagine a woman in a suit at her desk looking at papers, she puts down her pen, puts on her iPod and suddenly turns into a silhouette, with a psychedelic background and Mindy Abair's "Flirt" playing.

[dho]

Great add, If only I could do stuff like that
(refering to the video animation/editing, I would get shot if I tried to dance like that:()

[tazo]

They are definitely all black.

I like the ad tho, very cool, and I like the soundtrack to it too :)

[Phil Of Mac]

Originally posted by tazo
They are definitely all black.

Even this one?

[Sailfish]

For a first time ad Apple should have been a bit more diverse.

It should have shown real people of all ages and kinds listening to different music and shown more detail of the iPod and it's function. Not some dancing silhouettes.

I was in a bar full of people when the first iPod commercial aired and their reaction was that is was targeted towards the African American community (by the characters and the music).

And another thing was the whole bar full of people (besides myself) didn't have the foggiest idea what the ad was trying to sell.

"Up to 10,000 songs in your pocket" would have been a better sales pitch.

Way to go Apple.

Now give me Britney dancing in a wet bikini with a iPod, listening to Madonna "Like a Virgin" and I'll be a happy camper. ;)

[Phil Of Mac]

It's been since what, 1997, since Apple has had African-Americans in one of their ads? (Martin Luther King in the Think Different commercial). Besides, I think one of the girls is white (see above).

So we should see some white people too. I have no problem with that :)

[Rower_CPU]

Originally posted by Phil Of Mac
It's been since what, 1997, since Apple has had African-Americans in one of their ads? (Martin Luther King in the Think Different commercial). Besides, I think one of the girls is white (see above).

So we should see some white people too. I have no problem with that :)

FP iMac commercial, January 2002

[Phil Of Mac]

That's right. That commercial made such a statement about the class warfare between blacks and whites in society as the (white) iMac mimicked everything the black man did, in much the same style of Eminem and Elvis. What a stunning statement of the racial problems in our society.

Or, in less sarcastic terms: I think we've spent too much time on the whole race issue :)

[wdlove]

Originally posted by Phil Of Mac
That's right. That commercial made such a statement about the class warfare between blacks and whites in society as the (white) iMac mimicked everything the black man did, in much the same style of Eminem and Elvis. What a stunning statement of the racial problems in our society.

Or, in less sarcastic terms: I think we've spent too much time on the whole race issue :)

Race never came to my mind about the iPod ad, untill I saw your post. To me the ad is a silhoutte, representing all of us. Apple wanted a purchaser to say, that could be me. A great way to encourage sales.

[Phil Of Mac]

I don't think it's about race either, but I'm not the one who brought it up. Was I? I don't think I was.