Samsung Trolls iPad 'Crush!' Ad, Says 'We Would Never Crush Creativity'

[MacRumors]

Samsung has sought to capitalize on the fallout of Apple's controversial "Crush!" ad for iPad Pro by releasing a Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra ad that includes the tagline "Creativity cannot be crushed."

When Apple last week introduced the new M4 iPad Pro models, it showed a video of a hydraulic press crushing creative tools, including musical instruments, electronic equipment, arcade games, paint and brushes, computers, cameras, and more, with the aim of demonstrating how the iPad represents all of the tools condensed into a single device.

This imagery sparked significant backlash from the creative community and the social media-using public, who interpreted it as a metaphor for Big Tech's destructive impact on creative industries and individual creativity.

The negative reception was so strong that Apple decided to cancel planned TV spots for the ad and publicly apologized, acknowledging that the ad "missed the mark" by not aligning with their intention to celebrate and empower creatives.

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1790824457365594487

Seizing on a perceived marketing opportunity, Samsung has now released an ad of its own, in which a musician walks through the destructive wake of the hydraulic press and picks up a damaged guitar. The musician then sits beside an easel holding a Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra with musical notation on the screen, and proceeds to perform the piece of music. The video was shared on X (Twitter) by Samsung with the accompanying caption, "We would never crush creativity."

Samsung mocking Apple in its ads is nothing new. The company has mocked Apple for everything from design decisions such as the iPhone's removal of the headphone jack (which it also eventually removed) to Apple's lack of a foldable smartphone lineup.

Article Link: Samsung Trolls iPad 'Crush!' Ad, Says 'We Would Never Crush Creativity'

 

[truthsteve]

They won't crush creativity. They'll only copy it.

 

[HeavenDynamic]

I guess that they went to recover the destroyed instruments from Apple's trash, they would never have crushed other instruments for their ad... right?

 

[CheffyDude]

Well, they asked for it.

 

[truthsteve]

Of course Samsung goes into Apple's trash to take whatever they can find.

 

[foobarbaz]

Given historical precedent this means Samsung will make the same kind of ad within 2 years of mocking Apple for it.

 

[neuropsychguy]

First, one positive is that this ad shows a person.

Now on to a critique, which is way more time and energy than this ad deserves.

Samsung’s ad team makes a lot of questionable decisions. This is one of the worst ones they’ve made (I'm not saying it's a terrible ad, just that it's not an effective ad). Throwing together a reactionary ad to an advertisement from another company screams desperation. It allows another company to drive your narrative instead of promoting your own. That's marketing from a position of weakness. Samsung's reactions to the market leader (Apple) usually turn into copying Apple. Doing that in an ad (a reactive ad like this is a form of copying) isn't sending a great message.

Also, this ad is a weak argument for Samsung’s tablet. The tablet isn’t being used -- maybe that's what Samsung's ad team wanted to demonstrate -- but it makes the tablet completely unnecessary. The woman playing the guitar doesn't look at the tablet and doesn't play the scales (not music) shown on the tablet. So maybe Samsung isn’t “crushing” creativity (which was not the point of Apple's ad) but the ad is telling you that you don’t need to use or buy Samsung's tablets. Great marketing message! Not all marketing is about selling a product or service, but this ad doesn't really do anything other than react to an ad. It's an extra low effort reaction video to the creativity and work other people did, which makes the whole ad where "Creativity cannot be crushed" ironic. It's a non-creative response to a creative ad.

The ad mainly calls attention to the elephant in the room (Apple) that makes tablets people use to get things done. Samsung's flagship Galaxy tablets are great from a hardware perspective, but the OS and apps are quite a bit behind Apple's iPadOS and app ecosystem. I used various Android-based tablets for years but switched to iPads to actually do anything useful. Most Android-based tablets are okay for consuming media, but are missing good versions (or any versions) of really useful apps that help people get things done. There are some good art apps on Android but they are on iPadOS too and with more, better options too. There are some niche apps and some games on Android that don't really exist for iPads, but they are more about consumption than production.

One last note. Samsung apparently sells a lot of tablets (I'm not sure how many are the flagship models that are decent iPad alternatives instead of the low end A series tablets), but Samsung's competition isn't Apple, it's Huawei and other companies. Samsung really needs to be focused on its real competition instead of reacting to Apple.

Apple, by the way, does way more to promote and support "creatives" than Samsung ever dreams about doing.

Disclaimer: I like Apple’s Crush ad so take my comment with that in mind. Sure, it could have been done differently, maybe alternative approaches would have been better, but it was effective (and I don't mean at creating controversy -- that was created by people who were looking for reasons to be offended).

 

[MrGimper]

They also said they’d not remove the headphone jack, SD card expansion and removable batteries.

Oh well.

 

[MJaP]

Honestly "the outraged masses" will find something to complain about in anything. It was perfectly clear that the ad was saying all that creativity was being squeezed into something incredibly thin, if "the creative community" were complaining they don't sound that smart or creative to me.

 

[kiranmk2]

I'm impressed they managed to produce something so quickly!

 

[casperes1996]

I think that, as a little piece poking fun at Apple's ad, this is pretty good. Humorous, cute in meaning and creative enough in idea. I would've executed the idea ever so slightly differently, but the premise is cool.
As an ad for Samsung it feels a bit petty, desparate and doesn't really promote the product at all.... But I like the video aside from that.

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

The right sentiment is there.

But an ad this low-effort is not going to make any waves.

Why couldn't they have shown a group of artists and craftsmen picking up all the pieces and putting them back together and having some sort of "healing moment"?

If you're going to virtue-signal then at least put some dollars towards it.

 

[Apple Knowledge Navigator]

Get back to us when you can actually compete with the iPad Pro

 

[dmr727]

Great response by Samsung - they were smart to seize on this opportunity. Wish the ad were a little better though.

 

[Pezimak]

That’s because Samsung doesn’t know the meaning of the word creativity, it just copies Apple all the time when it comes to its ads.

 

[Takeo]

Apparently creativity is an f major scale (which she then doesn’t play). Typical Samsung to not bother with details.

 

[arc of the universe]

highly effective ****

- done quickly after apple's failed Crush ad
- understated
- focus on the artist
- a troll only for those who know the background; but also works for those who might not be aware of original apple ad
- uses tablet for sheet music thereby uses tech as appropriate with focus still on content creation
- even puts in a mention for google AI
- probably ultra low cost

still an accomplice to the evil empire, as ever. but a nice ad.

 

[MJaP]

This was always my favourite...

 

[Hails09]

Get back to us when you can actually compete with the iPad Pro

A bit angry there over a tech company
Why does it matter in the grand scheme of things

 

[Fozziebear71]

I find it insane that our society has created people so fragile that they are outraged about an ad. I would be ashamed of myself if I was one of those people.

 

[wbeasley]

There's nothing more crushing than buying a Samsung phone only to see it 30% off a few months after release... dont hold value.

The flip phones still see the crease... must be all that creativity they cant push in and not suppress

I wonder if Apple spend as much time watching Samsung release and packaging and ads?
They are like the Burger King of McDonalds...

The whole over reaction to the ad that needed an apology. Geez. Cramming a lot in isnt crushing creativity. It's unleashing it. Welcome to 2024 and manufactured outrage.

 

[wbeasley]

That’s because Samsung doesn’t know the meaning of the word creativity, it just copies Apple all the time when it comes to its ads.

and ditching power adaptors. and ditching headphone sockets.

mock it one year, do the same thing next.

 

[JanoschR]

Funny how a company with no creativity and no taste can run such a thing with a straight face.

 

[TechRunner]

The Samsung ad is meh, IMO. Having said that, if Apple had made an ad showing the iPP vacuuming up the creative tools leaving just the iPad behind, it probably would have been much less controversial.

On the other hand, controversy occasionally brings new users to a brand who are curious to see what all the fuss is about.

 

[Boeingfan]

Anyone that has been through the Samsung online refund or complaints process due to a faulty phone knows the only thing they crush is your soul.