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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2009

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If Sushi's Your Turkey Cure, Steer Clear of 'Ex-Lax Fish'

Anal seepage among pitfalls of escolar, aka white tuna

Nov 24, 09 10:42 PM CST
Saab Veering Toward Junkyard

GM's failed bid to unload Swedish automaker may spell its doom

Nov 25, 09 9:54 AM CST
OPINION

Requiem for
the Soft Sell
of the Catalog

As retailers focus online, the 'serene' paper version will be missed

Nov 25, 09 12:42 PM CST
OPINION

One Non-Profit Should
Index the Internet

It would make things faster for everyone

Nov 25, 09 3:25 PM CST
MALKIN GETS FESTIVE

This Year's Top Liberal Turkeys

Stimulus, President O-bow-ma get top billing

Nov 25, 09 8:01 PM CST
Publishers Forming
'Magazine iTunes'

Online newsstand to combat slumping sales

Nov 25, 09 7:36 AM CST
AIG Settles With Ex-CEO:
Will Pay Fees, Return Rug

Company agrees to shell out up to $150 million

Nov 25, 09 5:20 PM CST
Airlines Fined for
Stranding Flyers on Tarmac

Dunne 175K for locking passengers on delayed flight

Nov 25, 09 1:43 AM CST
WHITE HOUSE STATE DINNER

India, DC,
Hollywood Mix
at Obama Shindig

GOP, Dems rub elbows with movie stars, media types

Nov 24, 09 9:18 AM CST
THOMAS FRANK

Give Thanks We're Not Thanking Wall St.

Be grateful for new skepticism on financial industry

Nov 25, 09 8:04 AM CST
Gas Fumes
May Pump Up
Road Rage

Study finds link to increased aggression in rats

Nov 25, 09 5:24 AM CST
AND SO IS MEDIA COVERAGE

New Moon Sexist, Say Critics

Do needy Bella and the big, strong men in her life reinforce stereotypes?

Nov 24, 09 11:13 AM CST
UNHAPPY HOLIDAYS

NBC Turns Down PETA Ad

Commercial, intended for Macy's parade, has no disturbing images

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|NEXT STORY »

Laptop Hunter Ads Tweaked After Apple Gripe

By Rob Quinn| Posted Jul 24, 09 5:55 AM CDT|

(Newser) – Microsoft has changed at least one of its highly successful "Laptop Hunter" ads after Apple called to complain about it, Advertising Age reports. In the original, a law student shopping for a laptop observes: "This Mac is $2,000, and that's before adding anything." Her mother adds, "Why would you pay twice the price?" But Apple's lawyer called to say the ad was out of date, and Mac prices had gone down. So the shopper now says only: "It seems like you're paying a lot for the brand." She still rejects a Mac in favor of a $972 Dell PC.

The edit "does not change the focus of the campaign, which is to showcase the value and choice of the PC," a Microsoft spokeswoman says. Microsoft’s chief operating officer gleefully told a company conference this month that Apple's complaint about the ads was "the greatest single phone call" he's ever taken.

[Images (2)]

[Videos (1)]

A Hewlett Packard laptop running Microsoft Windows XP is on display at Best Buy in Mountain View, Calif. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

Visitors check out Macbook Pro laptops at the Apple Store in New York. (AP Photos/Bebeto Matthews)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

This revised version of the "Laptop Hunter" ad doesn't mention the Mac's price. (WindowsVideos)

View larger videos >>

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11.24.09

Murdoch and Microsoft: The Mice Are Trying to Roar

11.23.09

Books Are Bad for You

29 comments

VIEWING:

Nwambe
Jul 24, 09 7:15 AM CDT

Yeah... But really, Dell? I mean, I had one, and it wasn't exactly the most stable... or functional... or cool-running machine. It did the job, don't get me wrong, but the headphone port wore out, the screen had issues, the hard drive made noise... Dude, do you really want a Dell? :P Reply

| 0 minutes ago

Reader65069154
Jul 24, 09 8:26 AM CDT

Compare a Mac and Dell laptop with 2gb ram, 160gb hard drive and dual core 2ghz processor. MacBook starts at $925. Dell Inspiron 13 starts at $499. From a cost perspective, I can buy 2 Dells, and if one breaks, I can throw it away and start using the other one for the same price as the Mac. This is why they are getting creamed by this campaign. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Reader2898
Jul 24, 09 8:52 AM CDT

'Creamed'? Apple just posted record profits for Q1, and sold 9% more computers than in Q1 last year.

IN RESPONSE:

Reader65069154
Jul 24, 09 8:55 AM CDT

In this campaign. It didn't exist in Q1, and by all indicators, Mac is feeling the heat from this or they wouldn't be whining about it.

IN RESPONSE:

Reader2898
Jul 24, 09 9:08 AM CDT

Okay, we'll re-comment in three months. I find the whole Mac/Microsoft 'competition' amusing anyway... Macs run WIndows! Microsoft -- which doesn't make a computer -- makes money whenever someone buys Windows for Mac. But competition helps gin up sales, I guess.

IN RESPONSE:

Reader2898
Jul 24, 09 9:09 AM CDT

...er, that shouldn't be 'windows for mac', which doesn't exist, but 'runs windows on a mac'.

IN RESPONSE:

Reader65069154
Jul 24, 09 10:57 AM CDT

I really don't think this campaign is as likely to hurt Mac sales as it is to boost PC sales. Is Apple making money on PC's or is the I-phone propping them up these days? I'm no Microsoft fan, and I've often wondered *why* anyone would run Windows on a Mac, by the way.. seems like you're paying a premium to run a bad OS.

IN RESPONSE:

scootersrockin
Jul 24, 09 4:14 PM CDT

Apple posted profits due to the new iPhone and all its apps that people buy. They aren't selling all that many computers right now.

IN RESPONSE:

AClotfelter
Jul 24, 09 7:59 PM CDT

"Macs run WIndows!" newer Macs CAN run windows... if you purchase and install it on your Mac, but macs certainly don't COME with Windows, and MS definitely isn't getting money from most Mac sales.

| 0 minutes ago

BlahBlahBlah
Jul 24, 09 8:45 AM CDT

Apple = SUCK Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Yourself
Jul 24, 09 10:06 AM CDT

wow cause that was a real indepth comment. the least you could do is muster up some sort of reasoning as to why you think it sucks.

-2

IN RESPONSE:

psycada
Jul 24, 09 10:18 AM CDT

Apple=Proprietary Proprietary=Suck, therefore Apple=Suck. Basic math... Any better?

| 0 minutes ago

manbearwire
Jul 24, 09 9:01 AM CDT

Go Linux! Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Yourself
Jul 24, 09 10:06 AM CDT

lol i can't help but laugh at that comment seeing as OSX is built off of linux, hence why i've seen OSX installed on a Dell Mini 9 :)

IN RESPONSE:

Cegorach
Aug 3, 09 3:25 PM CDT

I highly doubt that OSX is built off of the linux kernel, as the kernel is licensed under the GPL, and you can't charge for software based off of GPL code...

IN RESPONSE:

aces08
Sep 12, 09 11:20 AM CDT

OSX is built off of UNIX not Linux

| 0 minutes ago

ruserious
Jul 24, 09 9:29 AM CDT

My college had a laptop policy where we could choose between Dell and Apple. I initially chose a $1750 Dell: I went through a D610 that blew up (I know nothing about computers or terms), so Dell sent me a D620, which had so many problems that Dell finally said they couldn't help me anymore. So I gave it away to be rid of it and bought an $1100 Mac (student discount!), which has worked perfectly for over a year. Best money I ever spent. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Yourself
Jul 24, 09 10:07 AM CDT

your school dictated which laptop you could or couldn't buy? i'm confused about that part of the story...

IN RESPONSE:

psycada
Jul 24, 09 10:21 AM CDT

Your D610 was faulty. We've used them at my job for three years and had few issues, with over 200 in circulation. They held up so well, my company decided to keep them as spares when they upgraded to d630s.

IN RESPONSE:

2-bits
Jul 24, 09 10:23 AM CDT

Many school IT departments try to limit headaches by controlling the kind of software and hardware that student can use. They generally require special software as well. A lot of this is unenforceable as hell, so go wild if you want. My school, thankfully, does not have a policy like this.

IN RESPONSE:

ruserious
Jul 24, 09 11:45 AM CDT

Yes, we only had 2 laptops to choose from, and it was required we pick one. Out of the 2500 people at my school, about 65% of my class chose PCs, and I had only spoken to one person by my senior year that hadn't had some issue with it. Most of my friends had to get multiple laptops, have hard drives replaced, hold their screens together with duct tape...I think I've seen it all. And 2-bits is right, as I learned after three years of Dell headaches. I could've gone outside the system and purchased something else, but I just didn't know it at the time.

IN RESPONSE:

radnip
Jul 31, 09 2:31 PM CDT

This is my impression as well. My father's HP, just barely 3 years old, is already slow, hard to use and takes forever to boot up. My Mac, heading to 6 years old, has had maybe 2 new programs installed and I had to get a new keyboard. That's it. It's still going. I need a new computer for a new office and guess what? I'm only shopping for Macs. My friend with the PC laptop that was cheap but pretty much obsolete the second it arrived? She comes over to use my computer. My sister and brother in law, who are diehard PC users? They're on their 6th PC for my 1 Mac. My friend who needs a PC to play games? He's on his 3rd PC to my 1 Mac. and So on and so forth. Is a PC a better deal? Financially, I don't think so. If you need it to run some things, then yes, you might be a PC. As for running Windows on a Mac, I know you can do it and my brother even has it installed on his Mac but I've never seen him run his Mac as a Windows machine...

| 0 minutes ago

wwwonderer
Jul 24, 09 10:11 AM CDT

The thingto me about this is that Apple's I'm-a-Mac-and-I'm-a-PC commercials try to depict (Windows) PC users as these low-class, uninspired, accounting and engineering bots. That's fair? Should Apple be required to remove that ad where a person says they want a machine that doesn't crash and has no viruses because Macs -and ANY computer for that matter- CERTAINLY crashes and a few months ago they disovered a Mac virus? Really? Reply

| 0 minutes ago

NoneofurBusiness
Jul 24, 09 10:18 AM CDT

Microsoft actually DOES make a lap-top.. Reader2898 do your research. Though I'm not by any means sticking up for the brand. In fact I loathe Microsoft laptops with a passion. The cost ran me 1,000+ when all the components were installed. Within 6-months the sound card gave way, videos were unwatchable and even with constant security scans I managed to get a virus that made dial up seem like light speed. I bought an HP-DV 6000 for A cool $600(everything included) and couldn't be happier. Reply

IN RESPONSE:

Reader2898
Jul 24, 09 10:54 AM CDT

Details, details... My point is, they're a software company.

IN RESPONSE:

CenterIndependant
Sep 22, 09 11:25 PM CDT

Thats a sign you should stay away from computers if you manage to screw one up that bad.

| 0 minutes ago

aces08
Sep 12, 09 11:23 AM CDT

If your not a dumbass with your PC it will be more cost effective and better than a Mac, endstory. If your looking for a machine that's double the price and doesn't require any taking care of then go mac. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

CenterIndependant
Sep 22, 09 11:24 PM CDT

I do not know why someone would spend that much on a computer(Mac) since you will need to replace one every what 2 or 3 years because of rapid technology advancements? I build my own computers and I do allot of research on computer parts... Apple is seriously over pricing their computers. Allot of people do not know that Apple does not even own or run a manufacturing plant..they outsource everything to mostly Chinese and Taiwan companies who also build PC parts. For example the MAC screens are Samsung screens... their cases are made by Foxconn who also makes cases for the PC market. Its also possible you can duel install a hacked Mac OSX on a Windows PC "Hackintosh". Reply

| 0 minutes ago

CenterIndependant
Sep 22, 09 11:30 PM CDT

Advice... if you cant figure out how to even program your own home dvd player get a Mac. Some people are just not technically and thats why we have a mac. I've did help support for many years, and I once had someone thought the dvd tray was a coffee holder. Macs ar not very complicated and almost idiot proof, and less software available for it to slow down your system. Reply

| 0 minutes ago

View all 29 comments »

Microsoft • advertising • Apple • laptop • consumer electronics • advertising campaign

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