Apple Responds to Microsoft Accusation that Macs are Too Cool

Microsoft recently launched one of their most bizarre advertising campaigns to date, placing Apple squarely in their crosshairs but miserably failing to make a coherent and compelling argument against the hip computer company. Microsoft’s peculiar attempt to paint the Apple Mac lineup as both too expensive and too cool defies logic because it lacks persuasive execution. As if things were not odd enough, Apple has sought fit to respond to the beleaguered campaign with some interesting words.

Apple spokesman Bill Evans, spoke to Macworld about the peculiar advertising campaign after unexpectedly breaking Apple’s silence on the commercials.

“Millions of people have switched to Mac because they love the security, stability and power that comes with world-class hardware and amazing software that just works, right out of the box,” Apple spokesman Bill Evans, told Macworld. “A PC is no bargain when it doesn’t do what you want. The one thing that both Apple and Microsoft can agree on is that everyone thinks the Mac is cool; with its great designs and advanced software, nothing matches it at any price.”

One has to wonder why Microsoft is paying so much money to advertise Apple and HP products. The subtext of the advertisements is supposed to be that Microsoft makes a superior product but that implication is nowhere to be found. Instead, Microsoft focuses on 1) the cool factor and 2) the price factor and 3) the power factor rather than using the time to effectively evangelize for Microsoft.

The three aforementioned arguments have been widely overplayed but completely debunked in every direction, with the exception of the cool factor – Mac’s are just too damn cool! But one has to wonder why Microsoft thought this approach is the most beneficial method of shaking Apple’s mind share, an ever increasing problem for the company with the majority of the market share.

As mentioned elsewhere, the price and power factors are extremely relative. Context is required to adequately understand whether Macs are overpriced and/or underpowered. Macworld does an excellent job speaking to this specific issue.

There are a couple of important points the commercials don’t bring up: the operating system and the cost of owning the computer. Have you noticed that Microsoft never mentions Vista? It’s like the OS doesn’t exist anywhere except on the hard drives of poor, unsuspecting consumers. Apple talks about OS X all the time. Have you ever wondered why? Because it works. It’s that simple.

One of the problems Microsoft currently faces, especially with respect to their challenging Apple, is the company only produces one aspect of the computing experience – the software. This is problematic for Microsoft because Apple is responsible for the entire experience – both the hardware and the software are designed and manufactured by Apple. Unlike Microsoft, Apple can tout not only the value of its flagship operating system but of their hardware products as well.

All attempts by Microsoft to-date have focused solely on the cost of the hardware when such a comparison is neither complete nor fair. There are a ton of hidden costs associated with utilizing Microsoft software these days, ranging from incompatible or problematic third-party hardware to virus protection to a high number of exploited operating system security vulnerabilities. These are the types of issues Microsoft fails to mention in their wacky commercials.

Microsoft will only be truly capable of competing with Apple when they are responsible for more than the operating system and additional minor software components. Until then, the company is forced to focus on the price of hardware they have absolutely no control over. Not only that, but Microsoft must promote other vendors products – such as HP in their latest campaign. This seems entirely counterproductive to the overarching point Microsoft wants to make, unless Microsoft is intending to fail at mocking Apple.

While this miso soup fanboy is an Apple user and evangelizer, I do own and use Windows workstations on a daily basis, both at home and in the office. Each has their utility – it just so happens that I find the Mac allows me to be far more productive than Windows.

In the end, that is what this fight is really about, not which is cooler than the other. It just so happens that I find the Mac to be a more productive platform, and as a lucky side bonus it just so happens to be cool.