The Droid, the Motorola-made smartphone sold by Verizon, is now taking the iPhone head-on, comparing Apple’s iconic handset to a “tiara-wearing digitally clueless beauty pageant queen.” The new ad, entitled “Pretty” features a blonde woman applying lipstick while walking and admiring an iPhone-looking device.
“It’s not a princess, it’s a robot,” the commercial intones, referring to the Android-based handset. “A phone that trades hair-do for can-do.” Verizon is the rival to AT&T, currently the exclusive iPhone carrier in the United States. Recently, Verizon and AT&T have traded salvos both on-air and in the courtroom.
The ads also take a more masculine tone. At one point, the spot comments the Droid can “rip through the Web like a circular saw through a ripe banana.” The Motorola handset is also described as “fast — racehorse duct-taped to a Scud missle fast.”
The move by Motorola and Verizon appears to be a change in tactics. After the initial “iDon’t Droid” ads used to launch the smartphone, Verizon turned its guns on AT&T. A series of ads depicting the iPhone on the “Island of Misfit Toys” claimed AT&T’s 3G coverage was lacking. Earlier this week, AT&T and Verizon asked a court to dismiss lawsuits filed over that ad and earlier “Map” ads.
The more aggressive Droid ads may also be a response to Apple’s decision to support AT&T. The macho slant may be prompted by a recent survey finding men more interested in Motorola’s Droid.
[Via AppleInsider, Gizmodo and 9to5Mac]
