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Apple Mac/PC Ads With a UK Twist

Posted by kdawson on Tue Jan 30, 2007 04:26 AM
from the python-would-be-proud dept.
It's funny. Laugh. Businesses Media Television Apple
leppi writes "Japanese isn't the only language barrier Apple's decided to cross with its 'I'm a Mac, I'm a PC' ads. Those Brits love their 'shenanigans and tomfoolery' just as much as the next guy. Watch the Peep Show's Mitchell and Webb do the honors as PC and Mac, respectively."
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  • Yup, these two are suitable PC and Macs (Score:2, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Also in Peep Show Jeremy (the Mac) gets laid a lot whilst Mark (the PC) gets laid about half a time before getting interrupted by the sound of Jeremy getting laid.

    Generally though all the sex is rather retarded or twisted. Jeremy even shags Mark's sister, so I wonder what that's like ... maybe that's like a Mac connecting to a SMB share on a PC or something.
    • Oh my, I wonder how many people will think of that when they do "that new digital camera from Japan" cute girl spot...
    • I saw this ad in the paper yesterday, and of course Peep Show was the first thing I thought of. The thing is though, in Peep Show, Jeremy is a bit of a pillock. Remember the episode where he tries to chat up some girls at a party with a line about olive oil? Something like: "So - olive oil! Fourth pressing? Fifth pressing? I always go for the first pressing. I mean, why wait 'til everyone else has had their fun with the olives?"

      Also, "The bad thing", the "threesome", and everything else ;-)

      • Re:Yup, these two are suitable PC and Macs (Score:5, Informative)

        by biffta (961416) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @05:45AM (#17811714) Homepage Journal
        For those left wondering, Peep Show is a British comedy from channel 4. If any of these ads even made you smirk I'd suggest watching an episode or two, they're fantastically original!

      • Re:Yup, these two are suitable PC and Macs (Score:4, Insightful)

        by delinear (991444) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @06:19AM (#17811840)
        Exactly what I thought when I saw this - Jeremy is funny not because he's "cool", but because he's trying so desperately hard to be cool (and quite often just ends up looking silly). So in essence, they're saying Macs are for people who aren't especially cool but want to look/act like they are (and don't mind parting with more money to achieve it), which is perhaps not the message they were aiming for. Maybe by choosing this pairing for the ads, Apple themselves are trying to be cool and missing the point somewhat, too? (On a sidenote, I love Mitchell and Webb, for all their faults).

        • Re:Yup, these two are suitable PC and Macs (Score:5, Insightful)

          by KDan (90353) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @06:34AM (#17811896) Homepage
          I was thinking exactly that, when I first heard of these ads...

          I think the Apple marketing team has missed one essential point:

          Both of the main characters of Peep Show are wankers!

          That's one of the things that dawns on you as you watch the show is that the two characters are equally worthless human beings. You start off siding with Jeremy because he's cooler, but then realise he's a wanker, so then Mark appears slightly better because he's on the surface a bit more kind... but then he turns out to be a prick as well.

          Which I guess is spot on. Computers are a pain no matter which one you use!

          Daniel

        • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

          by VJ42 (860241)
          That's what I thought of first as well, and I'm under 30; I just like That Mitchell and Webb sound [bbc.co.uk]. Besides, Radio 4 is usually the starting place for good comedy. The Hitch-Hikers guide to the Galaxy, through Goodness Gracious me, to Dead Ringers all started on Radio 4. Along with the timeless classics such as just a minute and I'm sorry I haven't a clue, radio 4 makes good listening for anyone who likes good comedy, not just the over 30s (yes I know you were joking, but unfortunately, the "over 30s only"

    • What's it like? (Score:4, Funny)

      by littleghoti (637230) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @05:05AM (#17811500) Journal
      quote: "Generally though all the sex is rather retarded or twisted. Jeremy even shags Mark's sister, so I wonder what that's like"

      That's tickety-boo!
    • From the article:

      "but the pair do a good job of spicing up the commercials with a bit of dry British humor and sexy good looks"

      I'm sorry but I'm British and although we've always got a joke to hand, we're simply not the best looking people in the World...

        • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

          by somersault (912633)
          Or, you know, it's like they're NOT MEANT TO BE THE SAME CHARACTERS FROM THE SERIES? Most actors can pull that off. The only actor that just seems to remind me of the first place I saw him is the dude who played Agent Smith in the Matrix. Whenever I watch LOTR that's just one of the things that ruins it for me.

  • Direct links to YouTube videos (Score:3, Informative)

    by Null Nihils (965047) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:38AM (#17811356) Journal
    Because you can never have too much karma. ;)

    Here [youtube.com], here [youtube.com], here [youtube.com] and here [youtube.com].

  • The title is all wrong... (Score:5, Funny)

    by bytta (904762) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:39AM (#17811364)
    Shouldn't that be
    Apple Mac/PC Ads With a Twist of Limey?

  • it's a catch 22 (Score:4, Funny)

    by macadamia_harold (947445) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:40AM (#17811376) Homepage
    Japanese isn't the only language barrier Apple's decided to cross with its 'I'm a Mac, I'm a PC' ads. Those Brits love their 'shenanigans and tomfoolery' just as much as the next guy.

    It's almost like they've got General Peckem describing his platform preference to Yossarian.

  • Apple get the terminology WRONG!!! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by pandrijeczko (588093) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:42AM (#17811384)
    "PC" stands for "Personal Computer" which could be running Windows, Linux, *BSD, MSDOS, FreeDOS, etc. etc.

    Perhaps Apple's marketing consultants need to go on a quick computer course - after all, only a Windows PC is vulnerable to the "140,000 viruses" and whilst, using Crossover Office, it's possible to run MS Office on Linux, this is not the norm.

    In the UK, we have an Advertising Standards Agency that should stop misleading adverts - this looks to be a prime example for them now...

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by 91degrees (207121)
      PC is has become a term meaning x86 based PC running Windows. That's evolution of language for you.
      • PC is has become a term meaning x86 based PC running Windows. That's evolution of language for you.

        So what do you call:
        * A PC running linux?
        * A mac bootcamped into windows?
        * A mac running linux?
        * etc?

        • So what do you call:
          * A PC running linux?
          a PC
          * A mac bootcamped into windows?
          a Mac
          * A mac running linux?
          a Mac
          * etc?
          boh?

          I'm not sure about the GP, but "personal computer" does include "Macs" for me, and is about the hardware more than the software I load on it. I do realize that for most people, PC means "with Windows", but anyway, what do most people know about PCs?

        • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

          by Anonymous Coward

          So what do you call: * A PC running linux?

          "A PC running linux."

          * A mac bootcamped into windows?

          "A mac bootcamped into windows."

          * A mac running linux?

          "A mac running linux."

          * etc?

          "etc."

        • So what do you call:

          A PC running linux?

          A computer.

          A mac bootcamped into windows?

          A computer.

          A mac running linux?

          A computer.

        • Name calling (Score:5, Funny)

          by DrYak (748999) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @06:36AM (#17811910) Homepage

          So what do you call:
          * A PC running linux?
          The Way.

          * A mac bootcamped into windows?
          An abomination.

          * A mac running linux?
          Redemption.

          * etc?
          AmigaOS.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by rednuhter (516649)
      to little to late, the press have conveniently 'bent' thechological terminology and the new terms have stuck in the mind of the public.
      Although I used to get annoyed about the miss use of 'PC' and correct anyone how spouted the 'windows PC' version, I now accept that the majority of the public know 'PC' as 'Windows PC'.
      On the other hand I do not get fed up correcting people on the use of the word Hacker, miscreants that break into systems illegally are Crackers !
      People interested in technology are Hackers.
      h [wikipedia.org]
    • In the UK, we have an Advertising Standards Agency that should stop misleading adverts - this looks to be a prime example for them now...

      Perhaps the Advertising Standards Agency should look at the last time they caught Apple bending the truth: [bbc.co.uk]

      Apple Power Mac ads 'misleading'

      Apple has boosted the power of its G5 machines
      A complaint against Apple's claim that its Power Mac G5 was the "world's fastest personal computer" has been upheld by the UK's advertising watchdog.

      The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA

    • Re:Apple get the terminology WRONG!!! (Score:5, Interesting)

      by earthbound kid (859282) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @05:29AM (#17811636) Homepage
      They mention this in the Japanese Get A Mac ads. The PC is like, "Hey, aren't you kind of a PC, too?"
      The Mac, "Yeah, but people like me a lot, so they gave me this kind of a nickname, 'Mac.' Cool, huh?"
      PC, "What!? I want a nickname, too!"
      "Oh, I know, since you're so into doing serious stuff, they could call you 'Work'!" ('Work' sounds like 'Mac' in Japanese.)

      It was a pretty cute routine, but it doesn't work as well in translation. Also, I'm just going by my memory. And I'm only semi-fluent. But it was something like that.
  • Nice ad. Great double act

    Robert Webb (on the right) usually plays the more fashion conscious but much dumber character, and David Mitchell always plays the sensible, educated intelligent character.

    No wonder he likes PCs!

  • The ads from Apple UK (Score:5, Informative)

    by wenzi (6465) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:45AM (#17811404) Homepage
    You can see them here in QT instead of YouTube

    http://www.apple.com/uk/getamac/ [apple.com]

  • Wanting it both ways.. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by goldcd (587052) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:56AM (#17811454) Homepage
    One advert makes the point that the 'PC' is a boring machine designed for boring office activities and the Mac is the free-spirited bundle'o'fun that'll bring joy an amusement to your home.
    Then a couple of adverts later, they proudly tell you how your Mac'll run MS Office, a package which pretty much defines 'non-fun office stuff'

  • And that's Computerwang (Score:4, Funny)

    by 91degrees (207121) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:57AM (#17811458) Journal
    Today our contestants are Simon, who's a PC, and Julie who's also a Mac...

  • hmmm (Score:2, Insightful)

    by TB (7206)
    "Hello, Im a Mac, AND IM A PC. Im all about fun on holidays, looking cool and being a rebel. IM ALL ABOUT GAMES. I dont have any games. I DO, INFACT I HAVE SO MANY GAMES NO MATTER HOW MANY OF THESE ADS WE MAKE I WILL ALWAYS BE IN FRONT. Oh. YUP. So these ads wont do anything to help MacOS? NOPE. Bugger"

  • Most ads suck (Score:3, Insightful)

    by yeber (1027464) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @06:51AM (#17811980)
    and I would include the mac ones. I am a mac user and always have been, but the way these ads are presented does nothing but perpetuate the fanboi propoganda.

  • Whhat the real advert should have looked like (Score:5, Interesting)

    by 'Tractor' Barry (788340) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @07:00AM (#17812024) Homepage
    Hmmm.... I think the real advert would have featured 4 people.

    1 I'm a Windows PC. I'm a crappy, bug riddled, OS which crashes frequently and is prone to getting "pwned" by 6 year old kids using copy & paste scripts. I'm a slut with syphilis.

    2 I'm a MAC PC. I'm a reliable, pretty OS that only runs on overpriced hardware. I'm an effete snob.

    3 I'm Linux. I'll run on almost anything but most of my desktop applications are simply not as good or usable as their Windows/MAC equivalents. I don't need consistency because everyone should "just do their own thing". I'm a hippy.

    4 I'm *BSD. I spend most of my time locked in a cupboard quietly and reliably running all the important things on some old crappy hardware. I'm that weird guy down the road with an IQ of 260 and who's building a space shuttle out of old car parts.

    Bah... If you ask me all PC operating systems are a bit crappy. If only we could have something which combined the development speed and hackability of Linux, the reliability and security of *BSD, the beauty of OSX and the consistency of behaviour and range of desktop programs of Windows. All running on commodity hardware. Maybe one day ?

  • Peep Show (Score:5, Informative)

    by caluml (551744) <slashdotNO@SPAMspamgoeshere.calum.org> on Tuesday January 30 2007, @07:26AM (#17812136) Homepage
    Mitchell, and Webb, for the non-UKians here do a very funny show called Peep Show [calum.org] which I only found out a few months ago, and have been raving about ever since!

    • Re:OK... (Score:4, Insightful)

      by Whiney Mac Fanboy (963289) * <whineymacfanboy@gmail.com> on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:36AM (#17811340) Homepage Journal
      With some truth in them, too...

      Bollocks - they completely ignore the fact that a mac is a PC.

      • I said, some truth.

        The OSs are different.

        And Mac users really don't have to worry about viruses much.

        • Re:OK... (Score:4, Funny)

          by Sj0 (472011) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @07:20AM (#17812114) Homepage Journal
          ITT: The truth about Mac vs. PC.

          "
          Mac: I'm a Mac.
          PC: And I'm a PC.
          Mac: And I'm a PC.
          PC: What?
          Mac: Oh, I can run the latest version of Windows XP just like you!
          PC: But wouldn't that make me more secure than you, since I've got an Nforce4 Ultra motherboard, so I get Nvidia ActiveArmour installed from the moment my network card starts to function?
          Mac: But I AM very pretty."

          "
          Mac: I'm a Mac.
          PC: And I'm a PC. I'm just trying to talk to the latest peripherals.
          Mac: I can do that too..
          PC: What?
          Mac: Oh, I can talk to that sexy little camera from Japan!
          Japanese Girl: Ohaiou Gozaimashda!
          Mac: Domo!
          PC: Hey Samsung-san, what operating system were the people who created you using?
          Japanese Girl: windosu ecksupee-san!
          PC: Ah, arigatou.
          Mac: But I AM very pretty."

          • Re:OK... (Score:4, Funny)

            by CastrTroy (595695) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @08:34AM (#17812630) Homepage
            Yeah, I got an Nforce4 motherboard, and I had to disable all that ActiveArmour stuff because I kept getting errors in just about every file I downloaded. Tried firmware and software updates and everything, problem still exists. Maybe next time I will buy a Mac, because they just work.

            • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

              by Sj0 (472011)
              I'll admit it, I COULD have left it at 'Doesn't that mean you're just as insecure, user unfriendly, and hardware incompatible as you say I am?', but I just had to go the extra mile. It's not that I've got anything against Macs or Mac OSX. I've just got something against stretching the truth, and those commercials do just that.

    • Re:OK... (Score:4, Informative)

      by Mikachu (972457) <mikazuchi@@@gmail...com> on Tuesday January 30 2007, @04:43AM (#17811396) Homepage
      Are the ads funny? Yes.

      Are the ads true? ...not so much.

      Come on, these ads try to suggest that photo albums and videos/music are only available on the Mac. Please.

      • Re:OK... (Score:5, Informative)

        by LKM (227954) on Tuesday January 30 2007, @06:17AM (#17811836) Homepage

        Come on, these ads try to suggest that photo albums and videos/music are only available on the Mac. Please.

        No. They do suggest that this stuff is easier on a Mac. Which is true.

          • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

            by djh101010 (656795) *

            I can't wait for Vista and other upgrades to XP to come out, including little photo apps and media apps. I mean, the iLife stuff is free on Windows (Picasa, IrfanView, WinAMP, WMP), so I won't really use the Vista included crap, just like I wouldn't use the very limited, basic iPhoto. But I can't wait until MS includes it in the OS, so Mac users will shut the fuck up.

            If you think those are equivalent to iLife apps, it shows that you just haven't spent enough (or maybe any) time using both. What, for instance, are you claiming IrfanView is equivalent to? And are you _really_ saying that WMP is equivalent to iTunes? Yeah, they both play music. But, if that's your test, then a Mercedes is equivalant to a Kia.

            As far as MS including useful apps in the OS, yeah, it'd be nice if they would do that. Maybe they'll get Vista right, time will tell. But having used both, I

              • Re:OK... (Score:4)

                by djh101010 (656795) * on Tuesday January 30 2007, @02:12PM (#17817638) Homepage Journal

                If you think those are equivalent to iLife apps, it shows that you just haven't spent enough (or maybe any) time using both.
                Actually I had OS X installed on my PC for a while, until I got really bored with it.

                (shrug) fair enough.

                What, for instance, are you claiming IrfanView is equivalent to? And are you _really_ saying that WMP is equivalent to iTunes? Yeah, they both play music. But, if that's your test, then a Mercedes is equivalant to a Kia.
                I was excited about being able to use iPhoto, after hearing great things about it. But I found its photo management options poor.

                Maybe I'm using it wrong, but - _what_ photo management are you trying to do? Categorize into albums & books? Got that. Sort by roll, or by date? Got that. Sort by filname or whatever metadata? Got that. Not sure what else I'd need. Maybe this is just a "your workflow habits would change going to a different tool", but that's hardly specific to iPhoto.

                Picasa's or ACDSee's are better. And IrfanView is a better quick browser and slideshow viewer, with greater basic photo editing options than iPhoto. Everything about iPhoto is better in freeware or cheap Windows apps.
                Well, I guess that's debatable. I'd rather have one app that does 90% of what I want, and, when I want to go outside, just right click on "edit with -> photoshop" to do the rest. Not sure what problem you have with the slideshows etc, I use irfanview on my windows systems, and iPhoto on my mac, and I don't see any functional difference. Far as that goes, if I just want a quick & dirty slideshow, apple's "preview" app is faster. But whatever.


                iTunes is available for Windows, so I'm not sure why you're bothering to insist that it is something that makes Macs better.

                Perhaps you have me confused with someone else. I was responding to someone (you? Another AC? It's _so_ hard to know/care) bringing up WinAMP and WMP, not someone talking about iTunes for PC vs iTunes for Mac.

                Nevertheless, I use WinAMP more than iTunes because it has a great minimal interface usable while browsing the web.
                Ah. I use this button up in the corner that shrinks the window down when I'm not using it for that purpose. Meets my needs...

                You still haven't said anything actually better about the bundled apps than the free alternatives, so I'll continue considering the statement that "[Photos, video, and music are] easier on a Mac" to be bullshit.

                Well it's not my statement, so I didn't know I had the onus to support someone else's point. Maybe you have me confused with someone else? ut in any case, YES, they are easier. You don't have to download 7 different programs from 5 different sources just to get a freshly loaded system ready to go. Also, the apps have a consistant user interface, very intuitive to use if you are able to break your workflow habits. It's fine if you don't _get it_, but that doesn't mean it's inferior, it just means you don't grok it, or just don't grok it yet.

                Or are you now going to turn around and tell me that the Intel processor in Macs is somehow better at videos and music than the Intel Core 2 Duo in my PC?

                I sense a lot of hostility, and quite frankly, have no interest in countering that. I have no idea why you'd assign a point of view to me on a topic that I haven't even touched on. CPU flavor has _nothing_ to do with application and OS usability. As you undoubtedly know.
    • Dude, that was like the first sentence of the summary! The link was the first word! Is it that hard to read even the first sentence of the FRIGGIN SUMMARY! I guess this is slashdot and that is asking a lot.

    • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

      by Maud_UK (1012119)
      Then you probably had a bad stick of ram, apple doesn't sell magical hardware that's immune to faults. It always amazes me that people seems to just think that when they buy a mac and it crashes that this is normal, it's not, there is a hardward fault or there was an error when apple slaped a copy of the OS on it, macs should never have system wide crashes like, ever.

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