Apple Demands Microsoft Pull 'Laptop Hunter' Ads (VIDEO, POLL)

The battle between Microsoft and Apple seems to never end. PC World reports that at a Microsoft conference on Wednesday, Microsoft COO Kevin Turner revealed to the audience that an Apple lawyer actually called him to complain about the ubiquitous 'Laptop Hunter' ad campaign.

Here's PC World:

"And you know why I know they're working? Because two weeks ago we got a call from the Apple legal department saying, hey -- this is a true story -- saying, "Hey, you need to stop running those ads, we lowered our prices." They took like $100 off or something. It was the greatest single phone call in the history that I've ever taken in business. (Applause.)"

What made Apple so angry? PC World points out that Apple's price cuts were significant enough to make many of the ad's price information inaccurate. Here's one of the offending Laptop Hunter ads, in which a cheery red-headed woman finds a PC laptop for under $1,000:

WATCH:

And here's one of Apple's advertising responses to those pesky laptop hunters. The ad goes directly after the type of comparison shoppers featured in Microsoft's spot:

Story continues below

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What do you think? Which ad is more persuasive?

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Comments

[Smoooom]

Linux. All the way. Mac a close second with Windows limping in a very distant 3rd.

[BushSmahers]

Anything but that law breaking most un-innovative garbage producing company MS. By definition, you don't know what you are talking about to be a fan of MS.

[Robert Ramsay]

Seriously. Anytime Windows and Apple are compared you can not forget to mention Linux. This is especially true in cases about price. With well developed linux distributions such as Fedora www.fedoraproject.com, openSUSE www.opensuse.org, and Ubuntu www.ubuntu.com you can get the hassle free benefits of OS X and THE lowest price: Free.

[rdnurse]

I hate Macs. Every six months you have to buy this ridiculously priced new software upgrade, and if you want customer service you have to pay $39.99 for unlimited service for one year. That is outrageous! Why can't a company just help the people who bought their product? And that is the same for ALL the products they sell. God forbid your PC doesn't read your iPod, oh no, gonna have to call and I only have one free customer service call.... Macs are a waste of money because they are all expensive and everyone that owns a little Mac is all on their high horse about how they spent 3x as much on their computer that does the same thing as mine. Big Wop. Screw you mac.

[BushSmahers]

You don't have to buy any software upgrades. Just don't, it will run for years and years. Last I looked software from Apple is a lot less than MS charges for the same. Mac owners have the highest customer satisfaction, and Apple has the highest customer service rating. By a lot on both counts. ItTunes runs on PCs so your iPod works fine with your PC. They are not expensive for what you get. You can't get a great computer for $400. If that is your price point, buy a hunk of junk PC for $400. Fine. No, we get on our high horse because PC owners can't or won't use best in class media software for music, images, movies, a truly innovative OS that is stable and runs Office better than Windows and you say things like my machine is a wast of money. You can even run Windows and all it's software natively on and Intel Mac. You guys seem like the crackpots. Right?

[mzrecycle]

Yes, the PC will cost less up front, but unless you're a computer geek, in the years following, you'll spend just as much or MORE in $$$ for help fixing problems. There is no way to fix the loss of time, info, or the level of frustration when the PC develops problems that keep us from using the computer when we need it.

I'm so fed up with Microsoft coming out with new operating systems without correcting the problems with the former system. The new system is more complicated, with more flaws. There is NO help with dealing with these flaws unless we buy an extended service contract (more $$$$).

Even tho it will cost me more, when my PC gives out, I'll buy an Apple product.

[Eris23]

"Yes, the PC will cost less up front, but unless you're a computer geek, in the years following, you'll spend just as much or MORE in $$$ for help fixing problems."

Nonsense. My parents who are in their 60s and are anything but computer geeks have had no such problems. I could be a 24 hour tech support guy for them and I never hearf a word from them. I built them a PC, which had a processor upgrade once, in 2002. Initial cost of the computer? $700. Upgrade? $200. So, in 7 years, they've spent $900 on a computer which has worked fine for them, as they largely just use it for word processing, taxes, and surfing the net.

"I'm so fed up with Microsoft coming out with new operating systems without correcting the problems with the former system. "

Then don't buy them. This is what I find so funny in the argument against PCs. One, Microsoft isn't the only OS. Two, there is no reason to upgrade with every new Microsoft OS, and it's certainly not built into the PC business model. I never bought a copy of Vista, just as I didn't get a copy of Windows ME when it came out. I'm not inclined to pick up Windows 7 either, not even because it supposedly sucks, but because I don't need it.

[Margo Arrowsmith]

Oh, and should I ever need a repair, there are a bunch of people at the back of the store who will fix it while you stand there, or real people on the phone.

[Margo Arrowsmith]

Friends don't let friends by Dell.

As a veteran of the PC wars, I am so happy that I finally came over to Apple.

My last battle with Dell took 4 months without a computer to resolve. All the steps I had to go through just to be able to send it in to have it sent back to me without the ability to show videos! Talking with people half way around the world who have the ability to 'disconnect' is not what I bought onto when I purchased a top of the line lap top.

I bought the bottom of the line Apple and it is so much better. I also get nearly free ($100 a year) one on one classes as often as I want, with someone who is teaching me how to use all the programs.

I spent $700 more for the PC and the only thing it has over the Apple is a cool Majong game. Not worth it!

http://www.squidoo.com/eugenehrobinson

[MNmommy]

Just curious...

How is Microsoft responsible for issues with Dell?

[BushSmahers]

She didn't say MS was responsible. And her comment is within the scope of this discussion. But I would say, fair or not MS owns it in many peoples minds

[Prakosh]

This thread is a discussion of Apple and PCs. Dell is a PC no? Microsoft is generally associated with PCs. but they only make the software. Sometimes PCs also have hardware problems. This would be a problem with the manufacturer not the software or operating system supplier.

[Worrierking]

Mac or PC?

It's really a personal choice. Both have their strengths and weaknesses.

As the only member of a large family with any computer knowledge, I'm the first person to be called when one of my siblings or kids has a problem with their computers.

Whenever someone runs into the same problem over and over and decides it's time for a new computer, I steer them towards a Mac.

i've never received a problem call from one of the Mac converts, but always get calls about setting up a new PC or attempting to get online. This has been going on for more than twenty years now.

Macs work, out of the box. Everything connects the first time. For the technically challenged, there is no other way. My life would be a lot easier if everyone had a Mac.

[johnnyb93]

Apple has been ripping people off for years. But studies have shown that when you overcharge for something a certain (snobbish) type will always buy.

[justanotherday]

What are these studies you speak of?
Apparently written by someone who never owned an mac.
With over 16 years of apples, they've been worth every cent to me and my business.

[BushSmahers]

Studies have shown PC owners can't process information and facts due to their minds being infected by a virus.

[blackwhitegirl]

I'm a graphic designer and I've been a Mac user for 20 years now. Macs are simple to set and use, better at running memory-hungry design programs, and trouble-free. I definitely don't have the time or money to buy a computer as some status symbol.

It's not a matter of some snobbishness (or even being technically challenged). it's a matter of using the right tools for the job. Is a NASCAR driver "snobby" because he doesn't drive a family sedan on the course?

[Yahtzee]

The Apple ad is WAAAAY more effective because it builds on the perception that Apples don't crash and that Windows PCs do so all the time. The Windows/PC ad focuses mainly on price. In fact, together, you get the impression that Windows/PC's are cheap pieces of sh$(t.

The truth, of course, is different and -- at the very least -- far more nuanced than the sycophants from both sides of this silicon-flavored Coke/Pepsi war would have you believe. But the question here is which ad is more effective and I'd go with the Apple.

The only way I see the Windows/PC ad being more effective is that price is probably the main sticking point for newcomers to the personal computing marketplace -- the people who haven't yet been imprinted with brand loyalty. I expect that the Windows/PC pitch that the price point is decisive will resonant with newcomers, the people who will then, hopefully, develop a loyalty to Windows/PC or fear of switching after having invested in the Windows/PC software and learning curve. Apple's ad, on the other hand, is best-suited to targeting existing Windows/PC users and urging them to cross-over.

If you've just spent a week with a disabled Windows/PC computer the Apple ad will resonate with you. But if you're looking for your first computer, and you see the Windows/PC ad, you learn something you'll discover within a half hour or less...so exactly what does it achieve?

[Sophist81]

If only it were true that Macs don't get viruses and never crash. I have used both extensively, and have had both crash on me way too many times.

In spirit, the PC add is more honest. One cannot deny that PCs are generally cheaper than Macs. The PC add is particularly effective when, seeing the cost of the desired Mac, the subject states that she isn't cool enough (read: rich enough) for a Mac. The implication is that the higher price tag is simply a barrier to entrance into an elite social clique of Mac users. And this implication is well founded in Mac's own marketing and product development strategies. Indeed, most of the folks I know who own a Mac are casual computer users with extra money to spend. They all talk about all of the video editing they are going to do with their 'powerful' and 'stable' Macs, but then they just use them to access porn, pirate copyrighted material, and surf HuffingtonPost like everyone else, only having spent more money to be able to do so.

[justanotherday]

Maybe most of the folks you know are casual computer users, but the folks I know are professional artists and musicians that run their macs 12 - 18 hours a day, 7 days a week. The reason they prefer apples, besides the fact that most programs for this type of work run better on apple, is that the down time is minimal. I'll give it that there are PC's that are just as powerful and have many of the same features, but as a friend of mine who uses a PC for music production says...." If you're going to use your PC for work, NEVER go online with it and it will run like the day you bought it." To bad most people don't have that luxury.

[Eris23]

This is also an outdated argument. It was true in the 90s when Windows 95 and 98 were the choices. Microsoft was in the process of playing catch up for a number of multimedia suites. I had Macs for this reason in addition to my PCs.

However, today, I have my studio machine running 24/7 without any problems. It's a PC running XP home edition. Whereas I used to sequence music with my machine connected to all my outboard gear through MIDI, I now do everything 100% software based with no problems. I also do all my video editing and rendering on this machine.

It's why I find the propaganda (and that's what it is) from the Apple side really malicious. It's just a fact nowadays that one can do the same thing on either a Microsoft or Apple OS without any down time. Thus, the only real difference between the two in the end is the price. Apple can't focus on that because it's a losing argument, which is why they've had to go down the road of implying that a.) all PCs are Microsoft and b.) a Microsoft OS is so crippled out of the box that you won't be able to play MP3s, you'll get a virus as soon as you jump on the net, etc. I've got nothing against Apple machines. But, I think they're awful as a company, as they use lies to scare people into paying more for a product.

[DrJohnnySkeptic]

Apple all the way, baby! I've got three of them and love them all.

[yannb]

PCs are to computers what Disco is to music. It's fun, it's got lots of colorful spotlights and shiny gizmos. But in the end, it's out of fashion.

[Sophist81]

Fashion being the operative word. Macs are more fashionable, hence more expensive, hence the tone of the PC add. The add is successful because it says "My value as a person exceeds beyond the brand name of my computer, unlike those other (rich) folks who have to buy specific brands in order to maintain their self worth." The implication is that PC users are people who own computers; Mac users are nothing without their beloved Apple fashion accessories. That makes for an effective ad.

[Sophist81]

Add = ad. Duh.

[Omoishinji]

Apple has consistently knocked computer using Microsoft's operating system, especially with "I'm am Mac. I'm a PC" series. Now Apple is complain about Microsoft's commercials.

As an educated consumers, I look at various factors before buying a computer. It is a combination of hardware and software. Apple has to respect this.

[jsgaetano]

Apple is outright lying. Not only are there viruses which effect OSX... but in the "Pwn to Own" three day hacking competition, the Mac always gets hacked first, shortly after the start of the first day.

Windows and Linux are usually good until the 3rd day, when they allow the hacking of non-OS applications. Windows tends to get hacked because of Adobe Flash- no surprise there, Flash is horribly insecure.

[richie42]

I hope that Ubuntu takes the lead and becomes a good competitor. I'd use linux but I like to play the Sims 3 and all.

[smithnya]

Apple got a bloody nose and wants to go crying home to mommy. I might be wrong, but I don't recall Microsoft bitching during those annoying "I'm a Mac/I'm a PC" commercials.

[richie42]

At least windows's ones are accurate...

[churchhill]

Well then you have a bad memory...

At least the mac ads did not lie about pricing.

[CorporatePork]

the following mac commercial "eliminates" all the lined up pc's for not having features - Yet i can find a pc laptop with better features for at least $400 less than a mac.

I take it this isn't lying.

The pc vs mac advertisements have always used misinformation, and have tried to portray the mac as a stable platform that never crashes.

I have used both macs and pcs with resource requiring software, and have gotten the pinwheel of death more often than i have gotten the blue screen of death.

[Bj Decker]

Microsoft & Mac both suck.
Lets be real.
It's like the American government: 2 parties fight over nothing, and the people loose.

I hate ads about Mac or MS period.

I hope Google is running the whole industry bottom up soon.
Generally : fast, free, reliable, open source & inovative.
Who can argue with that?

[rocketman69]

Free? Only if you like ads everywhere. Remember Web-zero's 'free' internet?

[Leper]

>>I hope Google is running the whole industry bottom up soon.

HOLY CRAP! You can't be serious. Google is as bad as Microsoft and Apple. They want to get their claws in your computer and sell information on you to whoever will put up the money. I agree that Microsoft and Apple (Mac to the ill-informed) suck, but Google is worse because they they will turn your information against you. They already do this with their Google-Ads business.

[jsgaetano]

Google?

I hope you like all your internet data getting thrown into an NSA database, because that's what you get with Google.