Apple has rolled out its third ad in its "If It's Not an iPhone, It's Not an iPhone" campaign, and this time, Apple is taking a different approach by highlighting quantity over quality.
More specifically, Apple's new ad puts the spotlight on its App Store, which has more than 1.5 million apps. Moving away from its usual series of ads showcasing its products being used by people in the real world, the new ad, titled "Amazing Apps" takes a cue from the first two ads in the same series to feature a bunch of iOS apps arranged in a kaleidoscope of rainbow colors set against a white background, with a male voiceover touting their "surprising," "who-knew-a-phone-could-do-that" quality.
"This is an iPhone, and it comes with something amazing - an App Store with over 1.5 million of the best apps available," says the voiceover. "That's over one and a half million hand-picked, awe-inspiring, just surprising, who-knew-a-phone-could-do-that apps. If it's not an iPhone, it's not an iPhone."
This ad is so far the least liked in Apple's latest ad campaign and has received mixed reviews from online audiences who have seen it on YouTube. One and a half million apps may be impressive, but Google has just about the same number of apps on Play Store. Moreover, while there are more than a million apps both for iOS and Android devices, it is not likely that all of them can offer unique, amazing functionality as the ad claims. In fact, there are probably thousands of apps on both the App Store and Play Store that are simply clones of more popular apps and games.
Also, many of these apps are available for Android and Windows devices, and Apple does not really make clear why customers should prefer an iPhone over other smartphones simply because of the number of apps on the App Store. And besides, smartphone users will never really need even just half the number of apps Apple is touting in its latest ad.
On the other hand, Apple's new ads, which are more generic than its previous ads that aimed at tugging at the heartstrings of viewers, can be compared to Coca-Cola's advertising campaigns, which don't really feature the benefits of preferring Coke over Pepsi or any other soda brand. Instead, the ads were simply there for brand awareness, and Apple's new campaign, which also features "Loved" and "Hardware & Software," could be there for the same purpose.