Some new ads in the "I'm a Mac"/"I'm a PC" series debuted today. (Check them out here.) Some thoughts:
- These ads are attempting to do something difficult: explaining to PC users that the everyday hassles of Windows -- restarting your computer every ten minutes, downloading drivers for every new gadget you buy, having your computer captured by spammers and turned into a zombie -- are not just an unavoidable part of computing life.
- More important than any specific argument made by the Mac guy in these ads is his whole attitude. He's not hostile to the PC. He's friendly and slightly condescending. ("You should see this guy with a spreadsheet," he says.) This is a great corporate attitude for Apple, with ~4 percent market share, to project. Treating Windows like the evil empire (in the style of the classic "1984" Apple spot) would only contribute to its air of monopolistic inevitability.
- It's cool that the PC looks slightly like Bill Gates.
- The gag in the "Touché" ad gets the usage wrong: the PC is using the word correctly, and the Mac should get off his case.
