The ad itself: A day with an iPad Pro
Titled, “what’s a computer?,” the one-minute-nine-second ad features a young girl who uses her iPad Pro throughout the day. The girl is seen picking up her iPad Pro in the morning, taking it outside where she uses it to FaceTime to talk to one of her friends. She also takes a screenshot of the conversation and signs on her friend’s fractured hand using the Apple Pencil and then sends the image on Facebook Messenger to another friend. Then the young lady rides around the city, sits on in a furniture shop like area on the pavement, writing on a word processor (to us looks like Microsoft Word) with the iPad Pro Smart Keyboard. She spots a grasshopper, instantly takes a picture of it (the iPad Pro has a pretty good camera, you know), which very cleverly shows iOS 11 and its little tricks – how quickly and smoothly you can switch between apps. That done, she rides around the city, picks up some food from a Taco place, slaps the iPad Pro down on its Smart Keyboard, and then pulls out the Apple Pencil and creates animation around puddles. Then it’s back on the bicycle again, then on a tree (yes!), finishing a newsletter on bugs of the city. She then hangs the bicycle on the back of a bus, gets on a bus, and starts reading a Wonder Woman comic on the iPad Pro, with an older guy sitting next to her obviously looking into her iPad Pro (duh!).
Finally, at the end of the day, she is lying on the grass in her backyard and working on the iPad Pro when a woman (mother or neighbor) comes around and asks, “what are you doing on your computer?” To which our protagonist very casually responds, “what’s a computer?”. The ad ends with an Apple Logo near her on the ground. The ad features the song “Go” by Louis The Child all throughout which binds the ad pretty well.
What we think: Simple, Short, Straightforward…Apple
We have not and we will not shy away from saying that Apple has created some of our favorite ads in the past. The company in most ads highlights the USPs of the product using those three Ss’ that we love; short, simple and straightforward. And this new iPad Pro ad is no different. As far as the first S goes, the one minute nine second is not super short but did not feel like it was very heavy on the head either. It justifies each and every second of it. Yes, Apple could have cut it short and removed the instances where it has highlighted one of the accessories like the Apple pencil or the Smart Keyboard, but that would have compromised on making the iPad Pro appear like the complete computing device. The ad is basically showing how the iPad pro is just so much better and easier to use than a PC and we do not think it would be really possible without these little add-ons. Coming to the second S which is simple, we think having a teenager show how she uses the iPad Pro in her daily life to do whatever she wants to do is probably one of the most uncomplicated ways of showing the functionality of the device. First, we think showing how a teenager uses it as part of her everyday life without really seeming troubled at all, shows both its features and its seamless utility and mobility. Secondly, the ad itself is just super simple. There is no rocket science special effects or Matrix-like visuals being used in the ad. We also loved how easily the ad moves from one feature to another. The sheer transitioning is so smooth that you just do not feel like you are watching an ad which is selling you a product but are watching a short film instead. The third S is about how straightforward and direct the ad is. Yes, we have mentioned that the ad does not hit you like a hard selling ad but it still very well fulfills its purpose. It highlights the product and its USPs with all its extensions. We also loved how the device blended into the girl’s life and was not screaming, “I am an iPad Pro ad, look at me”. It puts all that the device can do in the spotlight and does it without making it too obvious.
We also enjoyed clever little instances in the ad like when the young lady is traveling in the bus and reading a comic and an older guy next to her is also reading some type of paper printed comic, but still ends up peeking into the girl’s iPad Pro! Another thing we loved the punch line of the ad where the girl very casually says, “what’s a computer?” It may seem super casual but definitely shows a bit arrogance on the part of the company, which thinks the iPad Pro is so much more a computer than a computer itself.
Verdict: See this, PC!
The new iPad Pro ad has tried to stir the tech pot by projecting that there exists a class of people in the world who are more concerned with what a computer does than what it looks like. And no matter how half-baked it might sound or untrue it might be, the ad makes a lot of sense. It just leaves you thinking about the iPad Pro and the things you can do with it. Which is why, according to us, the ad fulfills its ad destiny pretty well and can now rest in ad heaven after delivering the message that it came with: “Computers are not meant to stand out. But blend in.” Your move, PCs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQB2NjhJHvY
