Apple touts workplace synergy in 'The Underdogs' ad

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in General Discussion
A new short film released by Apple on Tuesday depicts how the company's products and services come together in the workplace to make a seemingly impossible task possible.




The three-minute ad, titled "Apple At Work -- The Underdogs," demonstrates the benefits of using Apple gear in a frenetic work environment.

The short starts with a woman walking off an elevator, a coffee stain running down her blouse. We soon learn that what at first glance appears to be an unfortunate mishap was actually the result of a serendipitous -- if not costly -- encounter with a top executive who agreed to entertain a pitch meeting.

There is a problem, however, as the woman and her team are given only two days to take an idea, the "round box," from concept to reality.

Using a suite of Apple hardware and software, the team of four powers through the arduous process, from brainstorming to financials to prototyping and design. Spotted throughout the video are iPhone, iPad Pro, iMac, MacBook Pro, Apple Watch, Apple Pencil, Siri, FaceTime, AirDrop, Keynote and Microsoft Excel.

The spot makes good use of film tropes for the sake of humor, while the comedic acting and direction is a fresh departure from Apple's usual style.

The ad ends with the four colleagues standing in the office elevator, waiting to take their now finished presentation -- a round pizza box -- up for review.

Apple in the video's description includes a link to its business webpage, which features the new film and a brief explainer:
Apple products help employees work more simply and productively, solve problems creatively, and collaborate with a shared purpose. And they're all designed to work together beautifully. When people have the power to work the way they want, with the tools they love, they can do their best work and change the future of their business.
In typical Apple form, the video includes a few easter eggs. Perhaps most notable is that the round pizza box is an actual Apple product, one reserved for customers of its Caffe Macs cafeteria. The company even owns a patent for the efficient pie protector.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 11
    fastasleepfastasleep Posts: 6,417member
    At first I thought it was weird they showed off Excel instead of Numbers, but it quickly became apparent the message there was "Yes, you can even collaborate with the jerk on the PC in accounting" (who is a tool who would never own a Mac). Nice dig.
    StrangeDays
  • Reply 2 of 11
    Engaging and funny. My eyes were instantly gripped by the bespectacled man/shaven head who is a moderate Steve Jobs lookalike...
  • Reply 3 of 11
    acejax805acejax805 Posts: 109member
    I found this to be captivating. I really wanted to see the end though haha. Cliffhanger.
  • Reply 4 of 11
    matrix077matrix077 Posts: 868member
    Wow! 

    If Apple Channel works can be as good as this it will be a win..
  • Reply 5 of 11
    How it would end wasn't really what kept me involved as obviously they're going to get the project done on time...unless it was be a Samsung ad where the ''other' team is using S and outdoes the Apple. What kept me engaged: (thinly drawn but effective in their simplicity) personalities; each with their own trait; tight pacing; a sound track that kept things moving along. I was a bit confused, on first viewing, whether she backed into the boss or vice versa. My first take on the guy with glasses was somehow a resemblance to Jeffrey Tambor (Arrested Development).
  • Reply 6 of 11
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    Is that how new products are designed, developed, analyzed and presented these days?   It seemed out of touch -- more like a High School group project than a professionally done process.  
  • Reply 7 of 11
    matrix077matrix077 Posts: 868member
    Is that how new products are designed, developed, analyzed and presented these days?   It seemed out of touch -- more like a High School group project than a professionally done process.  
    It’s a comedy. It’s fictional. A pure entertainment. 

    The only thing.. a very small thing.. I may have a bit of complaint.. is the pacing is just too quick (for my age), otherwise it’s perfect. 
    StrangeDays
  • Reply 8 of 11
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,877member
    No embedded link to the commercial in the story? Here it is:

    https://youtu.be/G9TdA8d5aaU
    GeorgeBMac
  • Reply 9 of 11
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,877member
    Is that how new products are designed, developed, analyzed and presented these days?   It seemed out of touch -- more like a High School group project than a professionally done process.  
    We never saw the presentation, which I assumed was quite professional. How teams get there can indeed be messy. Welcome to life. 
  • Reply 10 of 11
    fastasleepfastasleep Posts: 6,417member
    No embedded link to the commercial in the story? Here it is:

    https://youtu.be/G9TdA8d5aaU
    It’s embedded in the page on Apple’s site the article links to. 
  • Reply 11 of 11
    fastasleepfastasleep Posts: 6,417member

    Is that how new products are designed, developed, analyzed and presented these days?   It seemed out of touch -- more like a High School group project than a professionally done process.  
    It’s a pitch meeting, not the design and development of an actual product. 
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