Apple's MacBook Air continues to bear the brunt of Microsoft's Surface ad budget

Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited November 2014
As Microsoft begins ramping up the holiday ad blitz for its Surface tablets, the software giant has kept Apple's MacBook Air squarely in the crosshairs, continuing its string of television spots that pit the two devices against each other.




The latest spot is somewhat less contentious than its predecessors, eschewing the animated device gymnastics present in previous iterations in favor of a more simplistic comparison. The spot begins with a happy MacBook Air owner saying that his mac is "great" and "so delightful," before a chorus of Surface supporters take over to tell the watching audience that the Surface is "just as powerful."

The chorus continues to espouse the Surface's virtues --?including its kickstand and detachable keyboard -- with the Mac owner occasionally chiming in in an impressed manner. "You can write with a pen?" he asks at one point.



"I like your Surface Pro 3. No, seriously, where can I get one?" the now-dejected Mac owner says to end the ad. The voiceover is accompanied by an on-screen tagline calling the Surface the "tablet that can replace your laptop."

The Surface-versus-MacBook Air campaign has been running for months, though it is unclear how well it works. Microsoft's entire Surface strategy has appeared ineffective at times, with NFL announcers continuing to call the Surface an "iPad" --?despite a sponsorship deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars --?while news anchors on CNN continued to use their Apple tablets even as Surface devices sat on the table in front of them.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 71

    I dunno. Why would you buy a tablet with an identity crisis?

  • Reply 2 of 71
    Let me guess they did this in house.
  • Reply 3 of 71
    williamhwilliamh Posts: 1,032member
    How has this campaign been working out for Microsoft so far?
  • Reply 4 of 71
    apple ][apple ][ Posts: 9,233member

    Pathetic!

     

    If I want a great laptop, I'll pick up a Macbook Air or a Macbook Pro. If I want a great tablet, I'll pick up an iPad Air. And MacBooks can run both OS X and Windows! Try to run OS X on a Surface!

     

    As said many times before, the Surface is worse than a good laptop and it's worse than a good tablet.

     

    It is a compromise device, and I don't like compromises! It's also ugly looking and not attractive to look at.

     

    When I eat meals, I usually use either a fork, a spoon, a knife or all of them.

     

    I imagine that Surface owners probably eat with a damn plastic spork! What a damn joke! Get the hell out of here!

  • Reply 5 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    "Hey, what's that ? Is it a kickstand ? ..."

    Lmao. So hokey
    jeez
  • Reply 6 of 71
    In the ad they're comparing the surface to a MacBook laptop.. Which has both a kickstand and usb. I think they need to think up better comparisons. I don't even presume they know why the surface is better than any other products. Oh well, keep spending money on ads.
  • Reply 7 of 71
    robm wrote: »
    "Hey, what's that ? Is it a kickstand ? ..."

    Yes, they needed all the support they could get. They also threw in a fan, as this was the only way to gain one.



    No wonder Bill Gates returned to MS, trying to gain 'momentum' again. Supposedly he's putting in 40% of his time. And while he's a very smart person, I don't think he's able to turn the ship around.
  • Reply 8 of 71
    feynmanfeynman Posts: 1,087member

    Yeah seriously where can you get one? I haven't seen these for sale anywhere. Or maybe I haven't been paying attention because the crowds always seem to be in the Apple section.

  • Reply 9 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    philboogie wrote: »
    Yes, they needed all the support they could get. They also threw in a fan, as this was the only way to gain one.



    No wonder Bill Gates returned to MS, trying to gain 'momentum' again. Supposedly he's putting in 40% of his time. And while he's a very smart person, I don't think he's able to turn the ship around.

    heh, some serious big budget creative went into that ad. /s

    God, if ever there was a product in need of a solution, it's the Surface.
    MS is groping in the dark.
  • Reply 10 of 71

    I like the comparison to the utensils. Good analogy. I don't need or want one tool does the job things. I want tools that make doing work simple and correctly, not a compromise. All I've ever done with Microsoft products is swear at them. There isn't a single thing Microsoft makes that I want.

     

    I have a desktop to do serious work. I have a laptop is use for mobile work. I have (several) iPads to consume digital information for fun, and to occasionally do light work. I have an iPhone in my pocket to keep me connected. I have an AppleTV to watch movies and some TV. And you know what? They all work together. I don't need or want to unify any of these tasks - the tools fit my life, not the other way around.

     

    Pretty soon I'll have something on my wrist that makes even that easier. But you know what I see when I look at my wrist right now? My wrist! Comon' Chairman Honeycrisp! On with it!

  • Reply 11 of 71
    eightzero wrote: »
    All I've ever done with Microsoft products is swear at them.

    "Windows users often swear at their PC's, whereas Mac users always swear by their Macs."
  • Reply 12 of 71

    Keep trying, MS. 

     

    Looks like not a whole lot's changed in Redmond.

  • Reply 13 of 71
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by PhilBoogie View Post





    "Windows users often swear at their PC's, whereas Mac users always swear by their Macs."

    Haha. True enough.

     

    I've weaned myself off MS Office at home too. I'm forced to use it at work, so I swear at it there. I use iWork at home, and it does everything I need or want. Fairly, it does it differently, so there is an undeniable learning curve.

  • Reply 14 of 71
    robmrobm Posts: 1,068member
    And now I've got that jingle stuck in my head !

    I curse you for a new reason this time MS :D
  • Reply 15 of 71

    I worked in advertising. I've never really liked the practice of showing someone else's product in an ad. It's like free advertising for them (in this case, Apple).

     

    Look at a couple really successful ad campaigns for Apple:

     

    1. 1984. Didn't show a PC, but showed PC users as miserable drones.

     

    2. "I'm a Mac, I'm a PC". Didn't show a PC, but represented a PC user as being an uncool business type.

     

    In this ad for a Microsoft product, we are seeing a MacBook Air on screen. The design is eye-catching so some people will be fixated on the Mac rather than the Windows PC-tablet hybrid thing.

  • Reply 16 of 71

    "creative "  writing,  when does sales of macbook air have anything to do with ms surface?  

  • Reply 17 of 71
    What a lame commercial. It actually thinks it's worthwhile point out that a Surface's screen angle can be adjusted just like every laptop on the market including the MacBook Air.

    Lame, very lame. And I guess we're supposed to like that off-key singing.
  • Reply 18 of 71
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,796member

    Does the new Surface even come with the keyboard they keep using in their ads? I always though it was extra?

     

    I really can't see why people would get a Surface Tablet over a MacBook Air. Do people really want to touch their screen all day long, or at all?  Why would you want to use a stylus? Other than the ability to draw on the screen, there's really no advantage of purchasing a Surface Tablet over a MacBook Air. As we all know, the MBA can run Windows too if ever necessary, even in parallel with OS X with little to no slow downs. 

     

    I think Microsoft is comparing apple's and oranges because they know the Surface Tablet cannot compete against the iPad. The iPad will kick its arse all day long, every day of the year. 

     

    I see nothing has really changed at Microsoft with their advertising...

  • Reply 19 of 71
    fallenjtfallenjt Posts: 4,053member

    What about Apple to give them back this: with the same amount of money, users will get a car (Macbook Air) and a scooter (iPad Mini 2) instead of a three-wheel trike (Surface)?

  • Reply 20 of 71
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,796member
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Feynman View Post

     

    Yeah seriously where can you get one? I haven't seen these for sale anywhere. Or maybe I haven't been paying attention because the crowds always seem to be in the Apple section.


     

    BestBuy has them...other than that I'm not sure where to get them in retail. I don't think the Microsoft Store actually sells anything, but I could be wrong. Someone will chime in and confirm. 

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