The Largest iPhone Is Powered By Windows

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Irony, anyone?

Posted via email from the minidisco

So there's some buzz around Apple

As of 4pm on the first day of the WWDC, Apple owns 10 of the top 20 search terms on Google (including four of the top five).

What wouldn't Microsoft (or any brand) do for this type of buzz?

In case you missed it...

And I'm fairly sure you didn't. MacWorld kicked off this morning with Steve Job's keynote address and the long rumored announcement of the MacBook Air, along with updates to the iPhone, movie rentals through iTunes and another shot at AppleTV.

But it was the long-rumored MacBook Air that was the centerpiece of Apple's new offerings. Some specs:

• 13.3 inch backlit LED display
• .76 inches at its thickest point; .16 inches at its thinnest
• 3 pounds
• 80GB hard drive
• Track pad uses same touch-screen technology as iPhone
• Backlit keyboard
• USB, Micro-DVI and headphone inputs only; no optical drive
• Starting at $1,799

The MacBook Air is built for the wireless world, ditching the optical drive and minimizing inputs to just three of the most essential, all hidden behind a flip-down door until needed. To make this reductionist Mac possible, Apple has created Remote Disc, which lets you wirelessly transfer files from other Macs and PCs in the vicinity. (I'm unclear if they have to be on your same network). The already-released Time Capsule allows users to back up any data already on their MacBook Air. For those of us that watch movies on the computer, Apple is quick to point out their new rental service is a great way to watch movies wirelessly in the absence of the optical drive. Jobs even make a point to mention that it is green in his keynote -- Mercury and Arsenic free LCD and glass, Aluminum frame can be recycled. PVC free on circuitry, and packing is less. As usual, this is another product that is enhanced with the help of other Apple products (i.e. Time Capsule, iTunes Rentals), assuring that your optimal MacBook Air experience will happen all within the Apple family.

I'm pretty happy with my MacBook, which is less than a year old. But Apple is a smart marketer and has once again succeeded in making it feel obsolete. The MacBook Air seems like more of an on-the-go machine, as initial set-up and file storage is dependent upon a previous functioning machine or external storage, so it will be interesting if this signals the end of the regular MacBook line. The MacBook Air is a pretty sleek design, but for $1,799 and the dependence on wireless, it feels like it's missing something. Maybe I'm just too old school for Apple.

MacBook Air Demo (Apple.com)

MacWorld Keynote (TechCrunch)

iPod = hitmaker

In spending a few hours with my car radio a couple weeks ago, an "alternative rock" station's rundown of the top ten songs of the week featured CSS's "Music is My Hot, Hot Sex" at #3, followed by Feist's "1,2,3,4" at #2 (#1 was Radiohead's "Bodysnatchers"). If you watch more than twenty minutes of TV a week, you would recognize Feist and CSS from Apple's recent iPod spots.

iPod ads have always (fittingly) had an ear for good music, choosing to feature U2, Bob Dylan and Paul McCartney, along with lesser known artists, such as Rinôçérôs and The Fratellis. For artists like CSS and Feist, an appearance in a iPod commercial is the break they have been waiting for. The Google trends graph below shows the immediate impact in queries following the premier of the ads. "1,2,3,4" premiered on September 9th; "Music is My Hot, Hot Sex" premiered on October 28th. Although an increase in queries, does not always translate into sales, there has been a noticeable upswing for both of these artists and has led the San Francisco Chronicle to consider Apple, not MTV, the new way for brands to break through.

Before the ad, CSS was averaging sales of 340 albums a week. Following the premier, CSS sold 2,000 albums in the next two weeks, climbed to No. 15 in song downloads and has since broken into Pop-100 chart. Feist, although already with a following of its own, saw album sales jump from a 6,000 per week average up to 28,000 three weeks into the campaign.

Jean-Phillipe Freu of Rinôçérôs saw similar success when his band was featured in Apple's ads. "To be in an iPod commercial gives you credibility. Thousands of bands would do it for free." So Apple is now able to create demand for an artist, sell you their tracks and ring tones and then have new bands beg you to use their music for free in your advertising. Good luck, Zune.

iPod advertising through the years (Wikipedia)

A few things...

...to take into the weekend.

• Cyber Monday traffic up 26% (Reuters)
• John Grant discusses his "Green Marketing Manifesto" (PSFK)
• Mac vs. PC Banner ads crash browsers. Who looks worse: Mac or PC? (Adweek)
• Facebook caves, revamps Beacon (Mediapost)
• Google Reader adds new features: drag & drop and recommendations (Google Reader Blog)
• On second review, Verizon network not as open as we thought (TechCrunch)
• Treehugger's 2007 Gift Guide (Treehugger)
• Machinima! (BBC)