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Apple Introduces Three New Mac Ads During Olympics Opening Ceremonies

Are advertisements suppose to make current users feel warm and fuzzy or attract new customers? These ads did a good job at showing what comes with an Apple computer that doesn't come with the knockoff: USEFUL software and constant, convenient support/services. These ads build off of each other nicely to highlight the actual advantages of owning a Mac

1) Apple only software
2) ease of real world use
3) even more services

all with the underlying message that these geniuses actually exist to help those new to Macs. It's great that we can all enter terminal code, but I also think it's great that my mother is experiencing her first MacBook and the difference in her abilities on a computer in just over a year is kinda amazing considering she didn't know how to turn off the xbox when I was in high school... and I would NEVER call her stupid, or undeserving of using a Mac for asking questions like the ones posed in the new spots.
 
They aren't bad, and I appreciate them focusing on the Mac, but I think that they lean toward the ordinary. As in, a company other than Apple/Apple's ad agency could have produced the same spot for their product.
 
Zerotolerance said:
They're not very believable. For one thing, the little boy "genius" doesn't look old enough to have his own apartment or fly without a guardian. Does Apple really want to convey the impression that the geniuses it hires are teenagers working their after-school jobs?
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Your own advanced age is showing. The actor is clearly in his 20s

pito189 said:
Watching the opening ceremony with my roommate that uses a pc and isn't a Mac guy at all. See's commercial commences to talk about how he wants "A Mac soooooo bad!"

Commercial successful.
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He does realize that the cute actor doesn't come with the purchase, right?

Alex Hobbs said:
Only in America would you show adverts during the Olympics.. seriously, the rest of the world enjoyed it with no cut sections and no money making crap.
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Really? Because the Olympics are on Channel 9 in Australia - a commercial channel. They're on CTV in Canada - a commercial channel. They're on commercial channels in lots of other countries as well.

Speak of what you know instead of pontificating about the rest of the world when you only know about your own tiny corner of it.


bobafett said:
Is he trying to be like Michael J Fox? Anyhow, my least favourite ad. Makes Apple users look pretty dumb.
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Most Apple users ARE pretty dumb. So are most Windows users. And they know it. Most people are intimidated as hell by computers and aren't ashamed to admit it. And if this ad were to encourage my father and sister to visit the Genius bar instead of expecting me to diagnose their problems based on five-word emails, I'd be quite grateful for that alone!
 
These ads aren’t for tech-savvy forum-goers, but they sound perfect for reaching the less-technical kinds of people I’ve seen switching to Mac in droves. The ones that can least tolerate Windows, yet have always done so. We tech-heads are a tiny % of the population, and TV ads aren’t the best way to communicate with us anyway. So the TV ads are aimed where the market growth is: making people a bit more comfortable with the idea of finally trying a Mac.

Remember that one of the biggest reasons people stick with Windows is that it gives them so much trouble! Here’s how it works:

1. Windows gives them trouble. They can’t find their files, they get malware, things slow down... the whole thing feels scary!

2. If computers are scary, then the scariest of all would be some OTHER kind of computer! Better the devil you know.

Windows has taught people that computers are a pain. Why choose an unfamiliar pain? Sounds even worse! The Genius program speaks to that fear.

Plus I’m happy to see Macs promoted this way: the iPad will one day be the main computer for most people, but we’re not there yet. The Mac is not a pro-only “truck” yet!

chumpy34 said:
@nagromme this has to be the comment of the year and gets the "WTF" for its sheer "are you kidding me?" content. Wake up on the wrong side of the bed today?
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I think there may be multiple levels of confusion at work :p

(I'll slam Apple when they deserve it, but these ads don’t bug me. I’ve truly hated most Apple ads, and these ones I’m at least neutral on. But they’re not for me anyway.)
 
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boss.king said:
Not really liking these ads. There's no element of truth in them, it's just show-boating. I also found the 3rd one (fake Mac) a bit snobby.
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I thought the same thing, kind of arrogant given that the apple desktop is almost 3 years behind the competition in terms of hardware.

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nagromme said:
These ads aren’t for tech-savvy forum-goers, but they sound perfect for reaching the less-technical kinds of people I’ve seen switching to Mac in droves. The ones that can least tolerate Windows, yet have always done so. We tech-heads are a tiny % of the population, and TV ads aren’t the best way to communicate with us anyway. So the TV ads are aimed where the market growth is: making people a bit more comfortable with the idea of finally trying a Mac.

Remember that one of the biggest reasons people stick with Windows is that it gives them so much trouble! Here’s how it works:

1. Windows gives them trouble. They can’t find their files, they get malware, things slow down... the whole thing feels scary!

2. If computers are scary, then the scariest of all would be some OTHER kind of computer! Better the devil you know.

Windows has taught people that computers are a pain. Why choose an unfamiliar pain? Sounds even worse! The Genius program speaks to that fear.

Plus I’m happy to see Macs promoted this way: the iPad will one day be the main computer for most people, but we’re not there yet. The Mac is not a pro-only “truck” yet!



I think there may be multiple levels of confusion at work :p

(I'll slam Apple when they deserve it, but these ads don’t bug me. I’ve truly hated most Apple ads, and these ones I’m at least neutral on. But they’re not for me anyway.)
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wow! Your post sums it up exactly!
 
Those ads are, quite simply, awful. The (over) acting aside, the message itself is terrible. Microsoft's response will be easy to predict...

"Windows 8...so easy you don't need a genius"
 
Those are just weird. They don't seem at all like Apple commercials.

Perhaps since Apple has become such a household name these day they are just toying around with new ideas.
 
robgreene said:
Came here to write the exact same thing. Definitely felt like the first deviation away from Jobs vision for the company. Disappointing.
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I think not, Apple is not a computer company any more, so Steve would be the first to approve. Your still back in Apple Computers which is so far from where Apple is now.

Great ad but they should have put some turbulence for affect. :)
 
I thought the fake Mac ad was the best one and the other two was stupid.

The fake one showed that a computer might look like a Mac but it just isn't without the complete software suite.
 
ugahairydawgs said:
Those ads are, quite simply, awful. The (over) acting aside, the message itself is terrible. Microsoft's response will be easy to predict...

"Windows 8...so easy you don't need a genius"
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I'm afraid you're right. What I don't like about these ads is that it kind of tells us that Apple customers are a bit stupid and can't do stuff on their own. Message used to be that it's very easy to get stuff done with Apple gear, even children can do that on their own. Now suddenly we're all stupid and need a genius to tell us how to use our computers?
 
There's definitely something off with those commercials...

Apple has spent over a decade defining itself as a brand synonymous with luxury, elegance, and class.

These ads cheapen the brand with poor humor and are teetering on corny.

I'm going to have to echo somebody else who said that these ads also make Mac users look like idiots...

That can't be the message Apple wants to be sending about their users.

They missed the mark this time so lets hope these ads disappear and Apple's next set of ads are in the same quality and caliber we've come to expect from them.
 
Apple losing it's touch?:apple:

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Middiebear said:
There's definitely something off with those commercials...

Apple has spent over a decade defining itself as a brand synonymous with luxury, elegance, and class.
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Rich Corinthian leather...

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winston1236 said:
I thought the same thing, kind of arrogant given that the apple desktop is almost 3 years behind the competition in terms of hardware.
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Yet nobody can make a quiet PC like Apple does.
 
Actually pretty cleaver ad on Apples part.

This ad highlights the part of owning an Apple product that is a benefit that most Non-Mac people may not be aware of..... regardless of when you bought it or how old it is. I have been to the Genius bar for various things that run the gambit of how to do something or to have them reload the OS on an older machine or whatever,very rarely has it been hardware related, yet it is a great to know that I can just walk in and get this service for free. When you own a PC (like I used to many years ago) you are are on your own expense and left to your own devices to figure it out.

Sure Macs are more expensive, but it you ever have an issue it is nice piece of mind knowing that you can go somewhere for free and get it worked out. I also need to give a should out to the One-to-One and the personal projects that they offer to help folks out, they are great as well.

Just my personal experience and prospective for what it's worth.

**Edit: Sure alot of us that are pretty Mac savy may not need the use of the Genius bar, yet I have found that I waste alot less time if I can't figure something out or if something is not working right and just go use the service that is built into the price of the Apple product and go to the Genius bar... plus I end up learning something new each time...
 
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Actually I just watched the 3 "genius" ads, it's clear Apple is making a play for the normal PC users. Highlighting iPhoto, iMovie & Garageband. It's not the typical elitist Apple ad.
 
buddybd said:
I thought the fake Mac ad was the best one and the other two was stupid.

The fake one showed that a computer might look like a Mac but it just isn't without the complete software suite.
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..basically bad , except for that one

How about a reality commercial like somebody visiting a cramped Apple store, not being able to find a genius.

Then goes plays with all the Macs , ipads etc. and then a genius comes over to help and the customers says:

No thanks, all was very easy and had everything I need ! I'll take it !
 
The only problem with these ads are they just have no taste, they have absolutely no taste, and what that means is - I don't mean that in a small way I mean that in a big way. In the sense that these are not original ideas and they didn't bring much culture into the ads. I have a problem with the fact that these are really just third rate advertisements.
 
ProVideo said:
The only problem with these ads are they just have no taste, they have absolutely no taste, and what that means is - I don't mean that in a small way I mean that in a big way. In the sense that these are not original ideas and they didn't bring much culture into the ads. I have a problem with the fact that these are really just third rate advertisements.
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You realize these ads are to appeal to the Windows masses rather then elitist Apple snobs?

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Thunderhawks said:
..basically bad , except for that one

How about a reality commercial like somebody visiting a cramped Apple store, not being able to find a genius.

Then goes plays with all the Macs , ipads etc. and then a genius comes over to help and the customers says:

No thanks, all was very easy and had everything I need ! I'll take it !
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What is so difficult about using Windows 7? The whole Mac vs PC thing ended in 2009.
 
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