The only people who like this ad are those who are part of the spiritual ilk of the "Transhumanists." Cold, heartless people who can't wait to become machines themselves. You can feel Apple jumped the shark with this ad. It turned me off from buying the new iPad (which I was prepared to do). I think I'll use the money instead to buy one of those analog items the machine so heartlessly crushed.
Throughout human history, every labor-saving device is a machine that "replaces" a human. For creative people, those devices merely become yet another tool to use as a means for a new level of creativity. The Beatles didn't use the Abbey Road Mellotron to replace an orchestra, but they did use it to really trippy effect when recording Strawberry Fields Forever. Digital synthesizers were going to put entire orchestras out of work since the late 1980s, and yet, musicians playing acoustic instruments in orchestras are filling concert halls and recording studios right to this day. A creative tool that has all those digital resources will do far more to enhance the possibilities for creative people otherwise limited by available resources than it will to "replace" creative people with cold, heartless machines. So, by all means, go buy some musical instruments and learn how to play. And when you start thinking of some DIY songs you want to write and record with you playing all those instruments, you'll probably want to get that iPad, too.
As I fully expected, this ad has already been permanently shelved. It will never be shown on television. This was a massive marketing blunder for the reasons I previously outlined. But here's what I didn't expect: a RARE public apology from Apple:
“Our goal is to always celebrate the myriad of ways users express themselves and bring their ideas to life through iPad,” Apple marketing VP Tor Myhren told Ad Age, an advertising trade publication. “We missed the mark with this video, and we’re sorry.”
Also, I challenge the entire premise of "Apple's 'Crush' iPad Pro ad sparks intense backlash from creatives."
We all know that social media platforms use algorithms to juice "controversy," and that a few people with large follower lists can easily activate those algorithms.
So much for the challenge. The ad is gone and Apple issued a public apology. And let's be clear: Apple very rarely backs down about anything. How many years of withering criticism did it endure about its butterfly keyboard mechanism before it finally went back to scissor switches? And there was never an apology. So the heat on Cupertino today must have been brutal to force an about face this quickly... and I have no doubt there was no shortage of heat from within.
For those of you saying that the "creatives" are overeacting: as a musician I can't explain how repulsed i was by that ad - musical instruments are more than just tools, they are in many cases true works of art - good stringed instruments for instance tend to be hundreds of years old, unique, irreplaceable. When you play them they become an extension of you, something that you don't just hear, but feel with your whole body. I understand the message of course, but it's (figuratively) tone-deaf. It's as if Elmer's glue decided to advertise how great their glue was by showing us a whole lot of horses willingly walking into an abattoir.
Am I exaggerating? Well, let me share with you an anecdote.
In the 1980s and 90s in the UK there was only ONE musical instrument insurance company: Allianz. They were superb - reliable, good value, and with an excellent reputation. Then they ran a series of adverts in concert programmes, showing destroyed instruments, purporting to show why you should make sure you had proper insurance. Professional musicians, despite the fact that Allianz were the best insurer, left them in droves, because their adverts were so distasteful. Arguably even today they have the best insurance policies for instruments in the UK, but even 30 years later, their market share hasn't recovered. Even the UK Musicians Union does not recommend them, but partners with a competitor, of which there are now many in the UK, where there used to be none. Whether you consider that rational or reasonable, it's how it is: musicians care about their instruments more than almost anything. A professional classical musician will easily spend close to a 6-figure sum for their instrument (and some will spend well more than that), but unlike a computer they will reckon it will last them their lifetime and well more. Beyond the actual monetary value, this is something you are holding and producing music with for 8 or more hours a day, every day. It's part of who you are. Destroying one in an ad for an ephemeral and comparatively ridiculously cheap iPad, whether CGI or not, is a major faux-pas.
Also, I challenge the entire premise of "Apple's 'Crush' iPad Pro ad sparks intense backlash from creatives."
We all know that social media platforms use algorithms to juice "controversy," and that a few people with large follower lists can easily activate those algorithms.
So much for the challenge. The ad is gone and Apple issued a public apology. And let's be clear: Apple very rarely backs down about anything. How many years of withering criticism did it endure about its butterfly keyboard mechanism before it finally went back to scissor switches? And there was never an apology. So the heat on Cupertino today must have been brutal to force an about face this quickly... and I have no doubt there was no shortage of heat from within.
I stand by what I wrote. The ‘controversy’ was jacked up by social media algorithms. That Apple shelved the ad and said ‘sorry’ is nothing like their stance on a hardware issue. It was an ad. If an ad becomes an ‘issue,’ you pull it. They’re selling iPads, not advertising.
Really? This is the result of a small percentage of the human race who didn't like the ad, amplified by the "everyone run to the same side of the boat" effect that social media creates. I may have suggested a funnel - or some other metaphor - but in no way is Apple suggesting destroying creatives' traditional tools. GB / Logic can still record real instruments, the art tools can still photograph and scan real things / art / etc. I've not been to Apple Park, but in a foyer over at the old Cupertino campus there were three physical objects featured: an enshrined Apple I board, a BMW motorcycle (Steve's old one), and a Bosendorfer grand piano (Steve bought it originally for the Mac team.) Alan Kay's only professional affiliation was (maybe still is?) membership in a musical antiquity society (his interest in traditional pipe organs). Apple features and applauds craftsmanship and creativity. Tools evolve, but they never go away. This won't kill them either.
Are they so insecure that even a CGI animation triggers them to this sort of stupidity? Okay... yes, I know the answer...lol.
There was a website at one time “advertising” Bonsai Kittens.
Basically, “instructions” on how to “grow” kittens in jars, like bonsai, with feeding tips and all sorts of ridiculous stuff with lots of funny Photoshopped illustrations.
It was utterly hilarious…
There were comments and some people actually took it seriously! Same here I guess.
Comments
And I am a "Fanboy" since 83
I’ll also point out that the people who made the ad are also ‘creatives’
“Our goal is to always celebrate the myriad of ways users express themselves and bring their ideas to life through iPad,” Apple marketing VP Tor Myhren told Ad Age, an advertising trade publication. “We missed the mark with this video, and we’re sorry.”
It was a poor decision to run it, but a good decision to shelve it so quickly. Kudos Apple.
Am I exaggerating? Well, let me share with you an anecdote.
In the 1980s and 90s in the UK there was only ONE musical instrument insurance company: Allianz. They were superb - reliable, good value, and with an excellent reputation. Then they ran a series of adverts in concert programmes, showing destroyed instruments, purporting to show why you should make sure you had proper insurance. Professional musicians, despite the fact that Allianz were the best insurer, left them in droves, because their adverts were so distasteful. Arguably even today they have the best insurance policies for instruments in the UK, but even 30 years later, their market share hasn't recovered. Even the UK Musicians Union does not recommend them, but partners with a competitor, of which there are now many in the UK, where there used to be none. Whether you consider that rational or reasonable, it's how it is: musicians care about their instruments more than almost anything. A professional classical musician will easily spend close to a 6-figure sum for their instrument (and some will spend well more than that), but unlike a computer they will reckon it will last them their lifetime and well more. Beyond the actual monetary value, this is something you are holding and producing music with for 8 or more hours a day, every day. It's part of who you are. Destroying one in an ad for an ephemeral and comparatively ridiculously cheap iPad, whether CGI or not, is a major faux-pas.
I may have suggested a funnel - or some other metaphor - but in no way is Apple suggesting destroying creatives' traditional tools. GB / Logic can still record real instruments, the art tools can still photograph and scan real things / art / etc. I've not been to Apple Park, but in a foyer over at the old Cupertino campus there were three physical objects featured: an enshrined Apple I board, a BMW motorcycle (Steve's old one), and a Bosendorfer grand piano (Steve bought it originally for the Mac team.) Alan Kay's only professional affiliation was (maybe still is?) membership in a musical antiquity society (his interest in traditional pipe organs). Apple features and applauds craftsmanship and creativity. Tools evolve, but they never go away. This won't kill them either.
There were comments and some people actually took it seriously!
Same here I guess.