Apple iPhone vs. Droid: No One Cares

No, this isn't another boring rehash of technical specs and righteous, ecstatic sermons on "openness". Because honestly, no one really cares. At least, not anyone who actually matters: an average consumer.

This is about the general marketing behind the devices, and why Apple wins and Droid loses.

Look at some of the latest Apple commercials:

What do you notice? Apple is focusing almost exclusively on the benefits.  Not the features.

With the Apple iPhone, you stay connected to family no matter the distance, solve some specific problems like keeping up with friends, and generally make your life easier. Warm. Bright. Fun.

Now let's look at some of the Droid commercials:

For all it's attempts to say the word "human" in the first commercial, the sense you get is not very...human.  And this holds for the others as well.  Cold. Dark. Robotic.

Droid commercials seem to focus more on features.  These are important, but they don't have any real emotional impact. In the case of the second commercial, it's downright jolting and bizarre.

Slice through a banana like a circular saw? Is that really the association that pushes someone to buy a phone? So it's really, really fast. Why does that matter? Who knows, because other than obliterating oblong fruit, the commercial doesn't offer a benefit.

And what kind of message is the third ad even trying to get across? 
Introducing a new device, yes.  But it seems like a warning for the next
Borg attack, not a promo for a useful device. Will we all be
assimilated? Is that what Droid "does?"

All three ads are stylistically sterile.  That's great when you're selling surgical equipment, not so great when you're trying to sell a useful device that can do a bunch of cool, fun stuff.

Now, I am willing to admit that Droid might be a better phone in terms of technical prowess, speed, and usefulness. On a technical, geeky side, I get it.  I really do.

But the marketing certainly doesn't make me care. And nor does the average consumer.

Features.  Benefits.  Learn the difference.