Upgrade VS New iMac

Nokia Joins the Throw Down

So apparently, Nokia has decided to join the Apple bashing world when promoting its latest phone, the Lumia 920. Although, I have to say that the folks at Nokia weren't as clever as the folks over at Samsung at pointing out the shortcoming of the phone from Cupertino. I've discussed the Samsung ad in the Samsung-Apple Throw Down. Nokia points out the lack of color options available to iPhone users. But even that isn't completely true because the iPhone is so popular that you can pretty much have the casing customized with whatever you want.

I have yet to find the agency behind this creative but for now, I am assuming it was done in-house. Because the spot is yet to air on TV.

Best,

-A.B.

Samsung-Apple Throw Down

Here we go again, Samsung pokes fun at Apple's new flagship product the iPhone 5 with this feisty commercial above. Just in case you don't already know, the commercial makes fun at Apple's marketing language with respect to the new iPhones's features. My favorite example is the comment about how the headphone jack is now on the bottom of the device and how that fact is viewed as a technological miracle.

The message is, clearly, that the iPhone 5 just doesn’t measure up to Samsung’s flagship phone, the Galaxy S III. Of course I could sit here and argue the pros and cons of each phone until I am blue in the face but I'd rather leave that to those who care. But the spot is funny because it pokes fun at those early adopters who make an event each of being first in line to get the new phone.

What do you guys think the big idea that Samsung's agency 72andsunny was for this spot? Please let me know in the comments below.

Best,
-A.B.

MAARWAN YOUHNIS ADVERTISING PARODY SERIES

The Maarwan Youhnis advertising parody series takes a clever jab at popular companies by remixing their logos with that of other easily recognizable ones.

Using Apple, Louis Vuitton, Red Bull, Blackberry and McDonald’s, the artist compiled several fake campaigns using each company’s claim to fame against them in a satirical manner.

Red Bull, for example, is chastised for not actually giving its customers wings that allow them to fly. Youhnis’s rendition of an advertisement for the company shows a woman falling onto a car after unsuccessfully attempting to fly when drinking the energy drink.

Louis Vuitton is mocked for its extremely high price point through the artist’s creation of faux toilet paper baring the brand’s logo and eluding that the fact that the brand’s customers can wipe their behinds with luxury.

You can read more at: http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/maarwan-youhnis-advertising-parody-series#!/photos/156988/1

I tried to find more information on Maarwan Youhnis but couldn't get anything else besides circling back around to the article already referenced, can anybody else add anything?

Vintage iPhone Creation

To celebrate WWDC 2012 that took place on Monday I wanted to share this vintage video of an iPhone mod-ing to vintage Apple rainbow colors. As most of you know, the WWDC is Apple’s developer conference where they sometimes introduce new products but mostly update current ones.

The iPhone mod, in the video above – really an aluminium back plate – will bring those memories rushing back to those of you who consider yourselves true “Cult of Mac” members.

I realize that that this post doesn’t discuss an ad, but it does discuss the logo and the brand itself – it is advertising.

Enjoy!

-A.B.

Kevin Costner's Apple Ad

Did you guys know that the famous Kevin Costner was in a Apple commercial? Not only was he in an Apple commercial, he was in commercial promoting the Apple Lisa II. Yes, the machine that was originally named for Steve Jobs’s daughter Lisa

As you all know, TBWA Chiat/Day designs most of Apples’ commercials.

Best,

-A.B.

Vintage Computer ads

This post brings together two of my passions together: computers and advertising. The ads below are vintage ads from some of the world’s largest technology companies. Do you guys remember the first computer systems you ever got? I know I do. It was called the Sakhr computer, made by AlAlamiah, a Kuwaiti computer company.


Einstein-Apple ad


This ad was created as part of Chiat/Day's "Crazy Ones" campaign for the Apple computer company. The late Steve Jobs wanted a marketing effort that reflected the company's philosophy of "thinking different" I think the campaign is better known by its "Think Different" tagline.

Hitchcock-Apple Ad

Here is another print ad from Apple's "Think Different Campaign.

Verbatim Disks 

I am not completely sure of the identity of the marketing firm behind the ad above. Although, through my research I have discovered that Marken Communications, an agency that helped them put together a PDF to celebrate 40 Years of Data Storage Innovation. Do you guys remember when PCs came with 3.5" disk drives?

 IBM Computers

An ad from one of the largest computer companies in the world but for the life of me, I cannot behind the agency behind the ad above.

Microsoft Software

I couldn't find the ad agency for Microsoft either for the 1990s but these ads are a great read if you are feeling nostalgic. Well, I hope you enjoyed these five ads. You can find more of these ads thanks to Andy Sowards.

 Best,
-A.B.

Goodbye 1984: Making Fun of Apple

The ad above for Motorola makes is an attempt, in my opinion to make fun of Apple. It does so by letting its agency create a spot that makes several references to Apple’s 1984 commercial. The references are made in order to make a statement about Apple’s closed garden view. The main message they want to promote seems to be that people need options.

The ad agency behind the spot is Anomaly. See if you can spot the similarities. Please let me know what you think by commenting below.



Best,
-A.B.

Microsoft Tries to One Up Apple

Since Apple is through thrashing Microsoft with their famous “Get A Mac” campaign created by TBWA Chiat/Day. Microsoft tries to one up its rival with its new campaign. The new campaign points out the lack of Blu-ray in even the latest Mac currently available in the market.

I am almost 100 percent positive that in subsequent they will point out features available in Windows 7 that the Mac doesn’t currently have. Oh, and the ad agency for Microsoft is CP+B.

Best,
-A.B.

Officially My Most Hated Type of Ad

The ad you see above has officially become my number one most hated type of ad. Here are just a few of my reasons:

1. It pops up unexpectedly when opening up an app on your iPhone.
2. It covers the whole screen making you uncertain if you are looking at the app or the app has crashed unexpectedly.
3. The close this ad button is usually within the smallest area of the screen.
4. On the iPhone in particularly the close button is hard to push because of the lack of physical buttons.
5. Trying to close the ads sometime cause you to accidentally launch the ad. This is known as a miss-click and you probably just added to the advertisers revenues even though your click was inadvertent 

The ad above that I clicked on displayed when I launched my Huffington Post iPhone App. The ad was promoting another app for the Microsoft’s Bing Search engine. As a matter of fact, clicking on the ad opened the App Store page to download and install the application.

I think it is part of the iAd network. What do you guys think? Oh, and the ad you see above is directly from my iPhone.

Best

-A.B.

Mac Hits Back

Apple has shot back at PC's bargain Hunter ads with new ones like the one shown above. I'd have to say that it is probably funnier then most. Again, Apple's ad agency is TBWA Chiat/Day.

Best,
A.B.

Mac VS PC Ad Wars Continue

<a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-US&amp;playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:0bb6a07c-c829-4562-8375-49e6693810c7&amp;showPlaylist=true&amp;from=shared" target="_new" title="Laptop Hunters $1000 &#8211; Lauren Gets an HP Pavilion">Video: Laptop Hunters $1000 &#8211; Lauren Gets an HP Pavilion</a>

So Microsoft has come up with a new advertising tactic in an attempt to combat the beating Apple has given the Microsoft brand with its Mac vs. PC ads. The Redmond company’s new advertising tactic is to point out the significant price increase between Macs and a traditional Windows PC. The price is about the only point that Microsoft can honestly combat the folks down in Cupertino with.

In the ad above the actress proclaims after visiting the Apple Store and not finding a laptop within her price range, she was not cool enough to be a Mac person. She promptly got in her car and headed to a store loaded with many “Windows” options. At the store of course, the young actress found the PC for her. To conclude the commercial the actress declares, “I’m a PC and I got just what I wanted.”

Crispin Porter & Bogusky, the hot Miami ad shop created the spot lovingly dubbed “Laptop Hunters” The Microsoft account is worth approximately 300 million to the agency. Hopefully these ads are more acceptable unlike the Bill Gates and Jerry Seinfeld spots the agency did previously. Those ads were a flop in my opinion. Also, with the current state of the economy I think people will appreciate the PC’s lower prices.

But I have to say I am a Mac guy myself. By the way I’ve written before on Mac vs. PC ads but from a creative execution point of view as oppose to the message being promoted here with “I’m a PC.”

Best,
A.B.

PC vs MAC: Transformer Style

I found this video, initially on creativebits.org an Apple oriented design community but it is a YouTube video. This piece of creative was created by Nick Greenlee, a digital media designer. The piece is an absolute mastery of digital computer-generated imagery.

The reason I feel the need to talk about it here is because it combines the Mac vs PC ads with the 2007 Transformers movie very well. I actually thought it was a brand new commercial created by TBWA Chiat/Day. This short movie not only combines the Mac commercials with the Transformers movie— it also has a little Terminator thrown in there. It gives you a literal demonstration of how Macs kick PCs' asses.

What do you all think?

Nick, you are an absolute master and I salute you.

Best,
A.B.