New 'All on iPad' ad ditches 'Genius' campaign format
Apple on Tuesday released a new iPad TV spot featuring the third-generation tablet's Retina display along with the host of apps available for the device through the iOS App Store, presenting the product in a style that is a departure from the "Genius" ads shown at the start of Olympics coverage.
Apple's third New iPad commercial puts emphasis on the device's high resolution Retina display, with close-up shots of the device bedded under terse, tight voice over dialogue much like the company's most recent iDevice ads.
Besides the first-party Apple apps like FaceTime, the new commercial shows off iOS 5's system-wide twitter integration as well as the New iPad's AirPlay functionality. Also getting a nod in the spot is payment service Square, which allows small business owners to make credit card transactions directly on an iPad with a magnetic card reader dongle.
Apple's new ad marks a switch back to the simple, product-oriented commercials seen before the controversial "Genius" campaign launched during NBC's Olympic coverage. In the three-spot series, an Apple Genius helps customers in increasingly outlandish scenarios and is reminiscent of the "Get a Mac" campaign. Unlike the Justin Long and John Hodgman collaboration, the quirky "Genius" ads missed their mark and raised the ire of critics who said the spots weren't up to Apple's high standards.
It was reported earlier on Tuesday that Apple would no longer be running the Genius ads during the Olympic games, but it is unclear whether the commercials will find their way back to the small screen later this fall.
Apple's third New iPad commercial puts emphasis on the device's high resolution Retina display, with close-up shots of the device bedded under terse, tight voice over dialogue much like the company's most recent iDevice ads.
Besides the first-party Apple apps like FaceTime, the new commercial shows off iOS 5's system-wide twitter integration as well as the New iPad's AirPlay functionality. Also getting a nod in the spot is payment service Square, which allows small business owners to make credit card transactions directly on an iPad with a magnetic card reader dongle.
Apple's new ad marks a switch back to the simple, product-oriented commercials seen before the controversial "Genius" campaign launched during NBC's Olympic coverage. In the three-spot series, an Apple Genius helps customers in increasingly outlandish scenarios and is reminiscent of the "Get a Mac" campaign. Unlike the Justin Long and John Hodgman collaboration, the quirky "Genius" ads missed their mark and raised the ire of critics who said the spots weren't up to Apple's high standards.
It was reported earlier on Tuesday that Apple would no longer be running the Genius ads during the Olympic games, but it is unclear whether the commercials will find their way back to the small screen later this fall.
Comments
Good ad. Focus on the product, where it should be. I still think the iPad 2 ads were the best. They were just so incredibly powerful.
Like these:
Still not a great ad by Apple standards.
Originally Posted by blackbook
Still not a great ad by Apple standards.
And what made-up standards are those? The ones that brought us "Lemmings" and "Ellen Feiss"?
Kind of back to the ad style they were running before the silly 'Genuis' ones... Nothing new, but still better than those.
Now if they had an ad with an Apple Genius figuring out a way to keep TSA from groping my package.... How's that not a win? I haven't been into almost-cons groping my junk since that time of NEVER!
Originally Posted by ChristophB
…keep TSA from groping my package….
"Honestly, I knew I should have shipped it FedEx Overnight…"
Quote:
Originally Posted by blackbook
Still not a great ad by Apple standards.
Though you were chastised by someone else - I'm with you. They changed the spokesperson / voice and rushed through the commercial relative to past ads. Past iPad ads were calm and gave more time to wonder at the device.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ChristophB
The genius ads were horrid. If I didn't own Apple gear prior it would have discouraged even the consideration.
Now if they had an ad with an Apple Genius figuring out a way to keep TSA from groping my package.... How's that not a win? I haven't been into almost-cons groping my junk since that time of NEVER!
Some people pay money for that. Give the cute fella a wink and he might even buy you coffee.
The title of this is misleading at best. Apple has always promoted the iPod and Mac in drastically different ways. This is more of that tradition. Apple hasn't ditched anything. Also, only people who have found the genius ads "controversial" are tech pundits and geeks. We know from the last controversy of igate their opinions really have no impact with the masses. They do drive web hits however.
Oh I'm sorry, you set Apple's standards now? This looks to be similar to every iPad ad they have ever run. They are doomed for showing how easy the product is. I guess that explains why they only have 80% growth YOY with them. Damn standards!
Well the genius ads were for the Mac. This is an iPad ad. Why not conclude that they abandoned doing their celebrity Siri ads based on this also?
Quote:
Originally Posted by SolipsismX
If not the Genius ads they need some Mac focused campaign to take advantage of the Win shit storm up ahead. Apple will have more Retina Macs in the next year and they all these stores that will help users in ways WinPC users can't imagine. They need to take advantage of it with some campaign.
I happened to be in an Apple store last week. It was a Tuesday, 10:45AM, and the place was utterly packed.
There was a little roped-off area where 12-15 kids - I dunno, 8 to 10 years old, were in some sort of class, making their own storybooks and/or movies, with soundtracks, etc.
Other informal groups were huddled around different hardware, being shown how simple it was to accomplish things...
I would think that showing that sort of fascinated crowd and fascinating ambience would be pretty seductive, avoiding, of course, the intimidation of it appearing too crowded to get attention (and everyone was getting that attention, but you might have to be in the middle of it to realize it).
And I was right on the verge of learning something too...but, it turns out, I'm not 8. ;-)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
And what made-up standards are those? The ones that brought us "Lemmings" and "Ellen Feiss"?
They were both great ads. And well received at the time.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
And what made-up standards are those? The ones that brought us "Lemmings" and "Ellen Feiss"?
Quote:
Originally Posted by DaHarder
Kind of back to the ad style they were running before the silly 'Genuis' ones... Nothing new, but still better than those.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmarcoot
Oh I'm sorry, you set Apple's standards now? This looks to be similar to every iPad ad they have ever run. They are doomed for showing how easy the product is. I guess that explains why they only have 80% growth YOY with them. Damn standards!
It's similar to other iPad ads but it's less classy than the original iPad 3 ads and more generic. Honestly could have been a Samsung or Google ad.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brian Ward
Though you were chastised by someone else - I'm with you. They changed the spokesperson / voice and rushed through the commercial relative to past ads. Past iPad ads were calm and gave more time to wonder at the device.
This.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmarcoot
Also, only people who have found the genius ads "controversial" are tech pundits and geeks. We know from the last controversy of igate their opinions really have no impact with the masses. They do drive web hits however.
This is a true point because I'm pretty sure the "Genius" ads have recieved positive feedback on Youtube, which would signal that consumers don't see the campaign as disastrously horrible as we do, which is good
Originally Posted by Brian Ward
They changed the spokesperson / voice and rushed through the commercial relative to past ads. Past iPad ads were calm and gave more time to wonder at the device.
I like that part of your assessment. I think, though, that any feeling of this one being rushed might come from it being just a 30 second spot, as well as the way the music's written.
I dunno if it's just the 'trying to be hip' factor of the music, but I would have liked something slower (richer) myself, and yeah, the original iPad guy back. There's nothing overtly wrong with this guy's read, it's just lacking a little heart, I think.
Were I doing commercials for Apple, I'd establish an all-around feel for the use of each product first. Something that in literally the first second of the commercial, you'll be trained to know exactly what you're going to learn about in that commercial.
Apple already does this somewhat, but I'd draw even more defined lines.
Take the retina MacBook Pro commercial. Feel? Work. Also encompassed? Power. Productivity. Sophistication. Presence. Resolution.
And then take some of the old iPod touch commercials. Feel? Play. Also encompassed? Fun, expandability, creativity, movement.
For the former, I'd do solid black backgrounds and cello/+piano. Instrumental only.
For the latter, I'd do solid white backgrounds and light (not throbby) modern music, vocals or otherwise.
I would night and day the feel of the commercials, and then I'd run at least one of each for each product I wanted, to specifically highlight their uses. For the multi-device service commercials, I'd do exactly what Apple has been doing and show the devices in focus in real world settings, out of focus.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SolipsismX
If not the Genius ads they need some Mac focused campaign to take advantage of the Win shit storm up ahead. Apple will have more Retina Macs in the next year and they all these stores that will help users in ways WinPC users can't imagine. They need to take advantage of it with some campaign.
A personal favorite classic Mac ad. The last line is the "oh, snap!"
I've seen the same things in my Apple Store. Lots of people... kids to adults... learning things.
If only the commercials showed the inside of an Apple Store... I think that would be helpful.
I bet only a tiny percentage of people who live within range of an Apple store have actually visited one.
Apple is still playing the "switching" game... they gotta get people into the store to show them what's up.
Quote:
Originally Posted by dmarcoot
Oh I'm sorry, you set Apple's standards now? This looks to be similar to every iPad ad they have ever run. They are doomed for showing how easy the product is. I guess that explains why they only have 80% growth YOY with them. Damn standards!
Personally, I find it kind of dull. It's very short. It's also a new ad but it actually says nothing new, or in a new way.
I don't like the way they say "on the retina iPad" at the end of these things either. It sure can't be argued that the term rolls off the tongue, and let's get real ...
... the retina display is not really that much different in person than the old one. IMO it's really tiresome the way they hawk it as the main feature.
iPad 2's and iPad 3's are very difficult to tell apart in person, and if we are honest, the easiest way to tell the two apart when you pick them up is that the iPad 3 is heavier and thicker and warmer in the hand. Those are really the first things you notice, not the retina display. If you stick your face right in it you can see ... oh yes, more pixels, but it's not really brighter or clearer, at least not by any hugely noticeable amount.
I know I'll probably get trolled to death for saying that, but I deal with these devices all day long at work and IMO it's the truth. I've also owned them all, bought them all the second they came out, and used them all day every day ever since. When the "revised" iPad 3 comes out with the IGZO display (unless they wait until iPad 4), we will all realise that the iPad 3 original model was just a chubby placeholder with a less than optimal screen, just like the "fat" nano.