We all had a little chuckle at Apple's "I'm a Mac, and I'm a PC" ads when they came out, but as the weeks wear on, the backlash against the ads has really set in. Slate billed them as "
mean spirited," and it turns out more people identify with the lovable John Hodgman's PC than they seem to with the (not so) subtly smug demeanor donned by Justin Long's Mac. VH1's Best Week Ever more or less sums it up with Christian Finnegan and Nick Kroll's spoof of the ad campaign; as card carrying expensive jeans-wearing Gnarles Barkley-listening nerds, we especially enjoyed the following dialogue:
Mac: Basically, I "stole" footage from Psycho, and then "borrowed" music from the Gnarles Barkley song, and put 'em all together. It's mad stupid.
PC: Do you know what I think is "stupid?"
Mac: What?
PC: Expensive worn jeans, ironic t-shirts, and pretentious film school glasses.
posted July 11th 2006 3:36PM
What MAC seriously need to sell are oem components. Why is it that I can't buy various components and an empty Apple case and build a customizable computer like PCs.
I have to agree, JK.
I had considered one of the "affordable" Macbooks. However, after seeing these commercials(and prices of comparable PC lappys), I was quite turned off to the whole idea. These commercials, by using people, not the product, had quite the opposite effect. It was not "here's some reasons why you should buy our product," but came off as "we Mac users are better than you and let me tell you why(silly PC user)."
@ Matt
I don't consider myself to be an computer expert, but the spyware / virus thing about Windows is just rubbish. I use my PC for 15 hours a day, i don't have a firewall or an antivirus.
How many viruses do i have? Zero. Spyware? None. Why? Because i'm not a sheep that doesn't care about my PC and uses crippled software. I use Opera for surfing, MS Outlook for e-mail and there are no problems in months. Even with Internet Explorer you can surf the web safely, the only thing that matters is your brain - know where to surf and where not tu surf. And i can safely say that i can do practically anything on PC that you can do on your Mac. Except mine is cheaper and can do other stuff.
For a person who doesn't know how to protect himself from spyware, maybe Mac is a better solution, but when almost 90% of home computers are Windows based, they'll be just living in a dreamland and when they come out they won't know what the hell to do with a PC.
I agree that the Mac commercials hide the truth somewhat, but what ads don't?
Just about a year ago, I couldn't even imagine owning a Mac. But now that they run Intel, there's no reason not to. I mean, the Mac Mini looks cool, plus it has Intel so it can run XP. I haven't seen a PC as small as the Mac Mini(at a reasonable price), even though they have come close.
The Mac commercials are creative and funny. And so are the parodies.
Daschalupa, you're hilarious.
I think the purpose of the "I am a mac, I am a pc..." commercials is that Mac needs to attract more non-PowerPC users to make up for the lost market share since their new Intel Macs can't run and pro-aps.
I do not like these commercials though. They are very divisive not to mention not creative.
Well I personally think that if i want games and saftey of software, viri, and malware. I will buy a cheap PC with a cheap Nvidia graphics card. Dual boot Ubunutu and Xp and only use xp for games. Simple as that.
pcs = a waste of time. when i can count on a machine and not have to worry i will buy it. I love my mackbook pro best of both worlds and i mean literally but guess what most people will never see the greatness in macs because they are so hard headed just like so many other people try and experiment and i mean dont just go to the mac store for 10 minutes... see what you like better
Just lazy or no talent? Hows about trying harder boys? Too busy kissing each other offscreen?
These spoofs were almost funny, if they had some meat ... but they are just lame comedy, nothing to do with the original ads even. How much effort you think those boys put into it? At least have the PC guy beat up the Mac guy if you want to bring Macs down a notch! Go a little extreme at least, these jerks have nothing, at least do something physical, besides they are portraying the Mac guy as truely deserving a screen beating, so vidicate the audience's desires jerkoffs!! instead we get wimpy mouth-off and stare down from the PC guy at the end ... they just both look like dweebs (that alone isn't funny hello!!)
so i go to apple's website and try to watch the ads, and there's some error...can't watch them. so I save them to my HD, try to watch them...ahh, another error.
OK, download the latest quicktime for windows (which annoyingly comes packaged with itunes), now I try to play the .mov video file designed for quicktime...whoops! some error I haven't seen before! my computer restarts, and I send an error report to Microsoft.
I go back to Apple's website to watch the videos, and they play, but the video is choppy.
I'm gonna do a system restore just to be safe.
And then upgrade my graphics card after a few years instead of buying an entirely new computer.
I'm writing this from a PC, but in a couple of months I'm buying a beautiful, brand new MacBook. It's going to be great. I prefer macs to PCs just in general. And yes, I identify in these ads more with the mac than the PC, but I always hated them--I felt that they were mean spirited and that they bent the truth in ways I didn't feel comfortable associating myself with. Sure, I think of myself as pretty hip, the jeans I'm wearing cost more than they really needed to, and I listen to Gnarls Barkley, but really, when it comes down to it, I'm just not that rude!
Hmm, but the Mac guy in the original ads didn't wear glasses or an 'ironic' t-shirt. It was plain. Apart from that it just comes across as sour grapes because you know we're right.
This is the original and most comical Mac Vs. PC guy spoof:
http://www.technewsology.com/macvspc.html
daschalup, the best comments ever.
hang on... I've got to wait to post this because the pinwheel is spinning...
I have found the mac ads quite annoying to watch since they are very unrealistic. It's nice to see a spoof on them.
I enjoyed the commercials for a little while. Then they just got annoying. I have used both a PC and a Mac. I am sticking with my PC that I built. Macs are great for the some stuff like photo editing and video editing, but I just like using my PC more. See I am an intelligent PC user so I don't have many problems with viruses and spyware, mainly cause I don't click on every ad I see saying that I have just won. I like being able to open up my PC and just tinker in it. I probably won't switch until I can do that with a Mac. With the way Mac acts that won't ever happen.
kai cherry sounds more like PC than a MAC
where is the fun in locking and moderating threads?
read the good bits grandad and ignore the bad bits!
i've used macs since forever...
i do the commercials are a bit heavy-handed and come off as smug. I kinda dig the PC too, he's funnier. The mac is one of those punks you kinda wanna punch for being so fanboy. i know a guy like that too.
like i said. i love macs and hate our fanboys.
Both PC's and Macs are good computers.
They both do the same things, but PC's are more flexible in terms of upgrades and what you can run.
Beyond that, much of it is just personal preference.
I looked into going with a Mac a few years back, but there are many things I wanted to do (and still do) and the hardware and software I needed to do those things just didn't run on a Mac.
I don't just do spreadsheets and charts, bla bla bla. As much as I like Macs, these new ads by Apple are just stupid. Just as stupid as those beyond-retarded "swticher" ads. They use twisted logic to make it seem like Macs are nothing but "a rock and roll good time and God-level-perfection without any problems EVER" and that PC's are just dry, boring, and nothing but problematic, which of course, is just a retarded, pathetic lie.
Please keep in mind that I don't dislike Macs. I, in fact, really like Macs. But I also love PC's. I just can't stand Apple's stupid commercials.
Just so some people know there's more to a PC than just spreadsheets, here are a few things I do:
- I create music, create video, 2D and 3D art and animation, 3D modeling (for inventions), podcasts, and photos, and manage, edit, and organize it all.
- I run software to run and manage my business.
- I design and manage websites (including my own).
- I videoconference, whiteboard, IM, and chat.
- I perform remote assistance on other peoples' desktops from my home.
- I keep an eye on my home when I'm away via remote surveillance with my small network of wireless cameras.
- I sync and manage all of my gadgets - my cameras, Pocket PC Phone, portable game players, and digital audio player (in my case, an Ipod), and so on.
- I program software for Pocket PC's, Pocket PC Phones, and PC's with Visual Studio Pro .NET.
- I run widgets (which are free and which I and anyone else can create) on my desktop.
- I run a Mac-style launcher on my desktop. Whoop-dee-do.
- I pursue my MANY hobbies (I could on and on about this) - one of which is astronomy - and I control the motorized telescope and imaging equipment with my laptop and software.
- I watch movies, videos, and TV, listen to music, and can send all of this info to my entertainment system or Xbox 360 wirelessly.
- I enjoy reading books and electronic versions of my favorite magazines.
- I run and use all sorts of educational software.
- I play games (most of which don't run on a Mac).
And I do it all on my PC.
And no, this list is not meant to be a PC vs. Mac argument. I understand that a Mac can do most of what I listed. But many things I do in that list, some of which I don't have the space and time to expound on here, I simply can't do on a Mac. That list is just to show that I do many things on my PC that are a blast and really enriching (not just boring crap like these stupid commercials would have an uneducated person believe). You don't just get this on a Mac. You get it on BOTH platforms.
When I hear people talking about how they encoutered viruses and spyware problems on their PC to the degree that they just swtiched to a Mac, or how they thought all the software on a PC was just too hard to use, or they crashed three PC's in a row, or similar arguments (all of which I've heard), all I can do is frown and shake my head while I think, "Many of these people aren't too bright to begin with." And I'm dead serious. I mean, for example, how dumb do you have to be to crash (not just freeze, but crash) three PC's in a row? Years ago, I remember reading an article by a well known computer columnist who said he did just that. That's not an argument against PC's. That's an argument in support of the fact that this person didn't have a brain to begin with.
I just recently read an article about a guy who works in a creative industry and prefers Macs, a man who claims he's certified in PC networking, who said he browsed the web on a PC and went to a number of Mac websites, and when he was done, he had all this spyware and popups to the point that he had to shut the machine off. I'm thinking to myself, "What an idiot! What the heck was this guy doing? Did he take a completely unprotected machine to a bunch of porn sites he knew were designed on Macs? Is that what he meant by 'Mac sites'? I mean, what the heck? Was he even running a firewall of any sort? Was he running anti-virus software? Anti-spyware software? For being certified in PC netorking, he sure doesn't seem to have any knowledge whatsoever about net security, and what poor instincts!" Stories like that don't make me think PC's are a bad choice. It makes me think people like this are highly uneducated, can apparently get certified without understanding anything about the internet and sofware usage, and are not savvy in the least when it comes to using computers. Unbelievable.
Just makes me wonder what the heck people are doing. My parents, who were more on the technophobe side of things, never had these problems with their PC's, ever. And no, I wasn't constantly maintaining their systems. They did.
I've used both Mac and PC platforms, and for the years that I've used PC's, I've never had one single virus on any of my systems, and as you can tell by the above list, I use my computer a LOT, and I'm all over the net.
Spyware has been no issue for me either, as I run anti-spyware software which keeps it off of my system or removes it if it finds anything. Not exactly a big deal. All computers, regardless of platform, are very sophisticated products which need maintainence. No platform can run maintainence free, I don't care what it is.
PC's might need a bit more attention when it comes to internet security, but this is the price for running the OS that controls 95% of the market. When you command that much market space, you're going to be the biggest target. But nothing that running one piece of firewall/anti-virus software can't handle. It runs quietly in the background and protects your system, automatically updates, is simple to use, and you're good to go. Not exactly rocket science. Anti-spyware software can do the same. Oooo. Real hard.
With some people, I wonder what on earth these people are trying to do that is so hard for them on a PC? There are so many software choices out there and they aren't difficult to use. A lot of it just boils down to what you click with, and many people I've talked to don't like the Mac and don't think it's intuitive. They actually like the PC more. I know this is unthinkable to a Mac fan, but there are people on both sides of the ocean. Just because you don't jive with one system, isn't to say that it's inferior to something else in general. It just means that it's not right for YOU.
Running a PC is not difficult. No more difficult than running a Mac. You just have to use your brain.
I love Macs, but I also love my PC.
I write Windows apps at work and play on my iMac and PCs at home. I like both platforms and have managed to work fairly trouble-free.
For each platform, there's an ideal candidate for their use, but between the two user types there is a vast population who'd be fine with either platform. Having the luxury of owning both machines, I don't care to defend one or the other.
On the other hand, I can really understand where the VH1 spoof ad is coming from. Conformist hipsters have latched on to the Mac platform like fleas on a newborn puppy. I too am getting annoyed with the conceited snarky remarks by Justin's Mac character. If you haven't caught on to that vibe too, well then you probably can't see beyond your checkered Vans.
Nothing new here folks
just PCs copying Apple again
Wired, the Pseudo-Sibylline Oracle of the print media, has their own special take on this. And people better not disagree with them, or they'll label them "tired."
The world of the future prophcied by Wired (William Gibson being their in-house Nostradamus) has about as much chance of happening as Apple does of taking away 50 percent of Window's marketshare in the next two years.
About as mean-spirited as a fifth-grade game of dodgeball...
I've avoided Apple stuff solely out of fear I'll cop that annoying iTude.
Honestly, I also think the whole Mac vs. PC thing is bigger than it needs to be, but I think a lot of it comes down to market share.
If Apple had 90% of the market, it would have all the problems that PCs have. The reason Macs work well is because a lot of their stuff is vertical and their systems come in a few well-tested configurations. There is nothing inherently wrong with selling that kind of product, and indeed it makes it much easier to make sure everything works. Some people like it, some people don't.
However, I don't think you can deny that this is a strategy that is feasible only for a small company (Apple) trying to grab market share from a larger company (MS? PC vendors?). Apple has the liberty to make more radical changes (OS 9 to OS X, Power PC to Intel) to roll out newer stuff because they have less market responsibility and more incentive to draw in new customers. What's more, Apple essentially IS or DEFINES the Mac, while MS only has control of the OS that PCs run. Don't even try to tell me that the old PowerPCs running OS 8/9 were 'reliable' and 'worked', because they didn't. All I think of when I think of those systems is... the bomb. So, Apple pushed hard and away from the Macs of yore, and now they have some nice products.
If Microsoft decided today that their next OS would run a completely new kernel and would only work on new hardware, you'd have a huge part of the population up in arms, because so many people use Windows. Microsoft's goal is not necessarily to innovate, because they have to be sure that their actions don't leave their established base for dead. They can't simply start selling PCs that run the right software and hardware for their new OS because there are thousands of other companies that make that software and hardware. On the other hand, Apple wants to grab people away, so they go for an "integrated" solution, which is a relatively new idea that Apple sort of birthed. They have control over all the pieces of the puzzle, and they crank out one (or three) kind of product. I don't think you can truly fault either company for doing what they do.
This is seen all over the economy, in every industry. One company gets big, smaller companies are driven to innovate, competition ensues. If Apple ever reaches market majority, I guarantee you they will face the exact same challenges that PCs and MS face today. It's inevitable. That's another reason why I feel it's unreasonable to say if Macs or PCs are BETTER, because they are under VERY different stressors. To stretch it a bit, it's like saying that because A. Rod hits more home runs in batting practicee than Pujols does in games, A. Rod is better than Pujols.
That said, I won't deny that I like Macs because they're stylish and everything 'works' out of the box. That's nice, I hope they can keep it up. That's what Apple is aiming for. But, quite honestly, everything 'works' on my PC, too, and like someone said earlier, this debate is pretty much moot between a bunch of geeks. No competent PC user has much incentive to switch to a Mac, because clearly, we run our PCs smoothly anyway. So Apple's main customer base becomes their ever loyal fan base, new(er) users, and maybe a handful of creative content artists.
I think, though, that Apple has some thinking to do about the long term, because future generations are going to have a lot of tech-savvy. I'm in college now, and my generation is sort of half and half on how exposed we were to computers as kids. And, let's face it, kids learn lightning fast and are easily impressed, so they care least about 'working out of the box'. It's only older, busier, and more closed-minded people who want things to JUST WORK DAMNIT I DON'T HAVE TIME TO DEAL WITH YOUR DRIVER ISSUES. Not an insult, just a fact. Kids don't care about those things--we just fixed them and moved on. Those of us who grew up on PCs are so familiar with them that we are the type who won't need to switch to Macs. So, in 25 years, when every adult is already PC-savvy, who's Apple going to target? Just a thought.
I blogged about this last month.
http://www.two--four.net/weblog.php?id=P2385
I was not amused.
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The original ads were effective, hence all the people in this blog know about them. The "parody" is a droolingly feeble attempt to gain some attention by association to the original.
All this "hoopla" is just the media trying to get your panties in a bunch.
If you find it amusing - smile
If you don't - Laugh and move on
OMG People... this is JUST supposed to be a funny little skit, done by a couple of guys with too much time on their hands. How in the hell did these two dorks, become the poster children for some sort of "MAC-holy" War!?!
Yes Mac's are pretty... nobody can deny that. The design aspects and the Unix parts are VERY useful, more then a PC person, like myself, would admit too in the past. That being said, I would also, like to point out that Mac’s are also “Very Annoying”.
OSX(whatever), is TOO locked down and the sales people at the apple store, talk to you like you’re a 4 year old. The sales guy couldn’t even tell me how much room the OS took-up on the hard drive. Please, that’s a legitimate question that he couldn’t answer – and yet, there’s all this arrogance with NOTHING to back it up.
I understand that Jobs wants to make things easy for people – but you shouldn’t make-it TOO easy, or they will never learn.
VH1 Network and Microsoft are in business together now. Why should we be surprised that VH1 is taking MS money and doing these three parodies?
VH1's comedy team of Christian Finnegan and Nick Kroll is simply doing the bidding of their corporate masters. Props to them for selling out.
We need that spoof where they compare gaming.
Mac user: Uhh, I can play breakout, super breakout... warcraft II....
wow...i didnt realize there was such strong feelings about this mac/windows thing.
i find the ads funny and thats it. the people who are going to buy macs will do so because they either want/need macs. same for pcs. you guys are putting this whole elitism thing on blast when it really doesnt need to...besides, if anyone thinks they are better then the next man because of the operating system they run, then the world should be coming to an end right aboutttttttt now.
no no wait, now.
screw it. call a truce fan boys and play with the pengiun :D
VH1 Network and Microsoft are in business together now. Why should we be surprised that VH1 is taking MS money and doing these three parodies?
VH1's comedy team of Christian Finnegan and Nick Kroll is simply doing the bidding of their corporate masters. Props to them for selling out.
so...does this mean that apple is going to team up with bravo now?
Wow... Not very clever. I do love some of the other parodies on Youtube, though.