New Motorola ad takes aim at Apple

By Sean Brunett  | Jul 28 2010 | 10:18 am  | 40 Comments

Motorola aims at Apple

Ever since the onset of Apple's "Antennagate" whoopsie, iPhone competitors have been hitting back hard, probably because Apple's been trying to drag everyone else down with it, with the Droid X the most recent target of Steve Job's gnarled finger pointing. 

We've previously seen an ad from Samsung that fought back, and now Motorola has joined the game with a new, more direct, ad for the Droid X. 

As you can see, the first words that pop out at you are "No Jacket Required," an obvious stab a Apple giving free cases to anyone who wants their phone to actually work. It has been fun to see the whole drama play out.  [via Motorola's Facebook page] Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

Sean Brunett

Sean Brunett Contributing Writer

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There are 40 comments

ruel24 says:

Very slick!

MowDownJoe says:

Well, after the "Hold It Any Way You Like" ad for the Droid X, they kinda have to keep up with what Apple's doing as far as this whole "AntennaGate" thing. Only makes sense they update that ad.

Mordecaidrake says:

As much as I love Android, it's never gonna knock Apple down from number 1. These advertisements are pointless :(

rufflez says:

Take a look at how Apple's childish behavior in handling THEIR problem and reevaluate your statement. FYI, they aren't no.1 in the real world and they are losing ground. Personally, I have no loyalty to them. My Macbook has been running like total garbage since I put Snow Leopard on it. They have done a sub-par job at making me happy and it looks like the iPhone people are finally seeing the light... well, some of them. Some fanboi's go way too into the scene.

ruel24 says:

Personally, I think the multiple carriers and multiple phone makers will propel Android to the top spot. I think Verizon's Droid packaging and marketing push has really given it a shot in the arm in the American public's eye. By the time Google releases the followup to Gingerbread, Android should be enjoying a comfortable lead. It takes time to grab the public's eye away from a product that's been far more hyped and marketed for a much longer time.

Kipp says:

You must be out of your mind! The droid is coming but seriously apple will run out of steam sooner or later when you only have on company dev and research for both hardware and software compared to I dont know how many sooner or later the more diverse platform will reinvent the wheel

storm14k says:

I think the rate of change of market share that comscore releases quarter after quarter tends to disagree with you.

Toro says:

Android market share will soon be #2 only behind Symbian

JediJesus95 says:

These advertisements are perfect and if they only sway a small number of people then they have done their job.

ObsidianGT says:

Steve-O's magic dust has been working hard on you if you think that the iPhone is "number 1".

In the US, Blackberry is number 1 in both active market share and units sold. In the rest of the developed world, Nokia pretty much holds that spot by a gigantic margin. Only Android has been making grounds over the past 6 months.

What, besides the iPod, can Apple claim the number 1 spot for on any of their hardware? The one-button mouse doesn't count!

crimsonandgold says:

Crash and Burn Apple!

Simba501 says:

Lol! Apple you suck!

VDub2174 says:

Love it!!!!!

storm14k says:

Will someone address the bigger story PLEASE??? LOL. Moto says they have an antenna at the bottom AND the top. Apple singled out the bottom of the Droid X in their video and showed the signal dropping. So does the antenna at the top not work......OR.....has Apple been caught in a lie.

I honestly think Moto tossed that double antenna bone out there to see if someone else would pick it up and do the dirty work of calling BS on Apple and their so called tests. How did the signal drop with the top antenna not being covered? PLEASE somebody look into it.

crcr says:

If you look closely in the video, Bill Walton or whatever friggin giant crApple hired to hold the Droid X, had one finger at the top of the phone on the spot where the top antenna is.

But I have tried that with my Droid X, plus covering it with both hands, and it drops no bars at all.

The video is a FRAUD! crApple turned on a cell phone jammer during the video to make the signal bars drop.

elfbjorn says:

Let me preface this by saying that I, like some of the other folks below, like both devices. I'll also add that I think the ad is pretty slick. I can appreciate good marketing. Nice job, MOT.

I am also an iPhone 4 user. I have played around with Android devices and have a great deal of respect for the OS and for the hardware. One thing I've noticed is that, generally, iPhone users (whether 3G, 3GS, or 4) don't bash other devices to quite the same degree that Android users do (specifically bashing Apple). Now, that's not to say that iPhone users don't bash other platforms, but we're really put on the defensive much more than putting ourselves on the offensive. Why? Because we prefer a specific device which, truth be told, happens to be an amazing one at that? You don't like Apple? Fine. You think Steve Jobs is Satan himself? Okay. All your choice. Having carried the iPhone 4 now for several weeks, and an iPhone 3G for almost 2 years prior, I can tell you with 100% certainty that I am extremely satisfied with its performance, its workmanship, its OS, its features, and its app availability. Is it the end-all, be-all device? No. But guess what? Neither is the Droid X.

With that said, I do want to point out something else. You're a moron. I reviewed the video and can, in fact, confirm that the finger was on the top of the phone -- a pretty natural way to hold that phone. Jobs does, in fact, say that different people will hold different phones different ways. He never said that every single person who has the competitors' phones will experience the same thing. That night, thinking that Steve Jobs was trying to get away with time-lapse photography (which would have been a major embarrassment to him, Apple, and the industry as a whole) tried the same experiment on a Blackberry Curve. Wanna know what happened? It took 5 seconds to go from 5 bars to 1. Guess which phone I tried it with just yesterday? Yeah, that'd be LG Ally. Ummm... Yeah. Well, I'll let you do the math. SSDD.

The bottom line is, you really (as a community) don't need to attack the iPhone. Leave the bashing to the marketing teams of the manufacturers. You're just a user, and apparently, a pretty ignorant one at that.

Just like the song goes, "If you don't want an iPhone 4, don't buy it."

likwidsoul says:

Yeah I watched the video multiple times and it looks time lapsed. You see people appear and disappear in the background in a flash and there is no sound but white noise. You can't even hear the call in progress. I also watched some response videos and guess what you can hear the call. Plus I don't know if you had on lead gloves but I've done this same thing multiple times with multiple phones on a host of carriers and I can duplicate the signal bars dropping but when I check the signal strength its still kicking strong and none of the calls dropped. Or even crackled for that fact. So who cares what the bars say if the phone don't drop the calls then its good. I don't care what type it is. Issue with the iPhone isn't no bars its dropped calls because of a design defect and a free cover for the phone is a cop out. They should be fixing the problem and offering replacements.

elfbjorn says:

likqidsoul: Nobody will ever hear me say that the iPhone is a flawless piece of machinery. Same, nobody will ever hear me say that of the Droix X, Blackberry Storm (well, don't get me started on that one!), Palm Pre, or whatever. Every device has its issues.

I respect your position regarding "...who cares what the bars say..." You're right on the mark. On my iPhone, no doubt, my bars drop. My signal doesn't. There are those who have experienced calls dropping. I am not among them. That doesn't mean that the problem doesn't exist.

You want to know a *real* flaw with the iPhone 4? It's that the proximity sensor isn't working properly. I have dropped calls -- because my face hits the "End Call" button, not because I've lost signal. Given that I rarely hold the phone against my ear anyway, it's not a major catastrophe for me. (I'd go ALMOST so far as placing a bet that that's the reason for a large volume of the reported dropped calls. But, again -- I'm not here to dispute the claims of other iPhone 4 users.)

My qualm with the earlier post is that it was naive nonsense. They jammed the signals? Come on. The experiment was a fraud? Hmmm. That's just stupidity and it just fuels the cycle. Don't get me wrong -- I recognize the audience I'm in. The same nonsense goes on with PCWorld vs. MacWorld websites, FIOS vs. Comcast sites (again -- don't get me started here...), sports teams, etc.

As an iPhone 4 user and a 2 year user of the iPhone 3G, and a 3 year Mac enthusiast (previously Windows and Linux all the way), I am stating publicly that I have a lot of respect for Motorola's device (and other equivalent devices), as well as the Android OS. You don't seem to get a lot of that the other way. Maybe you don't get a lot of it *either* way. But the fact is, this whole "antennagate" thing has gotten blown SO WAY out of proportion.

I have some (key word: some) respect for Steve Jobs coming out and holding the conference. Yes, there was a great deal of saving face, marketing rhetoric, and the like. I have less than 0 respect for RIM's CEO coming out a day or two later saying that there is no such issue with Blackberry devices. Is he kidding me??? Someone buy that guy a clue. Steve Jobs, and Apple as a whole, is in the business for one reason and one reason alone: to make money. Anyone who thinks that he's the next telecommunications prophet or savior, that he's doing everything for the good of the industry, is an idiot. I'm not snowed by him, either, and I'm not a fanboy. I just happen to like my iPhone.

Well, that's my rant. In closing, "Why can't we all just get along?"

darreno1 says:

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=737289

That video explains it well. Yes with every phone covering the antenna will lead to signal degradation. No one is going to dispute that and that's all Apple showed in a nutshell. The real story though, is it takes just one finger to cause the iPhone 4, under a low to moderate signal to lose all connectivity. NO OTHER MODERN SMARTPHONE DOES THAT.

IT IS A DESIGN FLAW PLAIN AND SIMPLE.

You can write paragraphs upon paragraphs defending it but it doesn't change that fact. I've done several speed tests with my Droid X cupping the bottom with both hands and while the speed dropped, the phone still functioned just fine - I was able to browse and make calls.

jahoobob says:

The double antenna issue needs no "looking into" as it has been known almost from outset that it indeed has two antennae. This not something that was "revealed" after crApples lame claims surfaced.

dacp283 says:

Its easy to predict the top spot....Look at how far Apple has developed the Itoy over the past four years. Its barely evolved at all. In just the past year the android platforms have exploded the cellphone market and show absolutely no signs of slowing down. Apple is now playing catchup and struggling to come up with something fresh. They rushed the 4 and look how that turned out. Apple is dead in the water and sinking fast. Good riddance.

Brianh23 says:

I'll start off by saying that I have an iPhone 4 and luckily have not had any issues at all. I don't even need a case, however, that being said, Apple definitely asked for it. They hold themselves to such a high standard, that everyone didn't hesitate to jump on this antenna issue. Then, to make things worse, they try to bring down other major phone companies with them. I understand they tried to do it in a complimenting way, but really wasn't necessary (even worse that they continue to do it). I'm a fan of android and iOS, just as a preference and for my needs I prefer iOS (yes I have tried android: Incredible, Moto Droid, Eris, Captivate). Basically, what I'm saying is, Apple F'd up and then didn't completely own up to it.

ruel24 says:

Nice to read a comment by someone that isn't a biased fanboy. I, too, like them both. However, I see Android gaining dominance because Apple's insecure desire to have total control, limited carriers, and Apple simply can't make enough of them as is. Multiple carriers and multiple phone manufacturers, combined with a more open market for the developers will eventually leave iPhone behind, much the same way Windows did the Mac. BUT...don't count Apple out. They're very clever and innovative.

Brianh23 says:

@ruel24
Thanks, also nice to see someone else who isn't a fanboy. Yeah I agree with you there, android definitely keeps getting better and better. I love the customization, great widgets, notifications, etc. Like you said though, Apple is always up to something and definitely innovative, but I guess we'll have to wait and see how well they keep up with the competition.

Toro says:

fyi, Android > iOS

mr.saving says:

Love it

JohnnyACE562 says:

The people @ Motorola have got to quit with that eFuse nonsense before they ever say a WORD against Apple.

{{-_-}}

BoNg420 says:

What????

This is a totally different thing we are talking about here.

Apple has crappy antenna vs Motorola's "efuse"

Totally different things. The efuse is to protect the device, and apple just has a crappy antenna. 2 different topics here. Moto is just trying to protect its device.

JohnnyACE562 says:

Protection from what? Choice? Kinda like Apple's "protection from porn". Nah, it's to protect us from doing what we want with our purchased hardware. At least Apple's goof was an accident. Moto's put the deathgrip on us on purpose. If you're not a fan of rooting then ok, but we still deserve a choice in whether or not to do so. That's like Toyota killing our engine because we put custom rims or a stereo in it.

{{-_-}}

ObsidianGT says:

You're totally off base with this comment. You need to understand the issues at hand before you ever say a WORD against Motorola.

Motorola's design simply disallows the phone from booting if you try to load an unsigned ROM, that is, if you try to tinker with the innards. However, YOU CAN STILL USE YOUR PHONE AS A PHONE.

Just because Apple hasn't figured out a way to prevent custom ROMs from being loaded on their phone, doesn't mean they approve of it. In fact, Apple made the slimy move of lobbying for the DMCA to make it ILLEGAL to "jailbreak" their phones.

Motorola used ingenuity and engineering.

Apple used lawyers.

Back to the issue at hand, Apple has a defective antenna design. A single finger, even a baby's finger, will bridge the cell antenna with the bottom metal piece. This causes radio mayhem that leads to dropped calls and no data unless you're in a very strong AT&T signal area.

JohnnyACE562 says:

What you're saying is true, but I purchased the phone: innards and all. If I want to tinker, I should. For Moto to have a problem like this makes them no better than Apple.

{{-_-}}

JohnnyACE562 says:

And furthermore, I'm tired of being treated as a second-class citizen on Android just because I like rooting. I know not everyone does it but I do. I deserve an Android phone just as much as the mainstream crowd does. I wish Motorola realized that and quit acting like Hitler.

/rant

{{-_-}}

ottscay says:

There's nothing to dislike about that ad!

thedunn805 says:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJG7pbSRvJ8

storm14k says:

That cell phone jammer works well in that room doesn't it. Amazing how no other media publication can reproduce this huh?

Crackberrier09 says:

In other words, “No iCondom required”

booboolala2000 says:

If apple its to stay relevant they need to license their os to other phone manufacturers. Otherwise they need to release more models. If they don't they will slip to the back of the pack.

likwidsoul says:

Lol I thought it was funny that they said just put a case on it. That's like the tape Verizon gave Droid owners to keep the battery door on.

msgnyc says:

for people that were unable to replicate Apples video, it's easy. Take off the batteru cover, cover the lower anyenna with your palm and use your pointer finger to bridge the upper antenna.
Simple ;)

zisel says:

I also enjoy my iphone

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