Skip to main content

Apple releases poetic iPad Air ad, asks ‘What will your verse be?’

apple releases poetic ipad air ad
Image used with permission by copyright holder

While for many people life is about getting the kids to school on time or trying to work out why, as we get older, hair moves from growing on one’s head to growing out of nearby orifices instead, for Apple’s marketing team it’s a whole lot more profound. And when you’re trying to sell a product like the iPad, that’s kinda understandable.

Aired for the first time Sunday during the NFL playoff game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Carolina Panthers, the ad (below) is a continuation of its recently launched Life on iPad campaign. The 90-second slot features Robin Williams repeating some dialog from his 1989 movie Dead Poets Society where he waxes lyrical to a bunch of impressionable students – borrowing a few lines from Walt Whitman’s O Me! O Life! in the process – and finishes up by asking, “What will your verse be?”

Now, with this kind of weighty talk going on, the accompanying visuals aren’t going to show little Johnny playing Angry Birds or a single finger tapping out Chopsticks, of course not. Apple’s ad instead presents us with a series of awesome sights and big happenings, and as you might expect, the iPad Air is never far away – in fact, the Cupertino company wants us to know how its tablet can help us achieve great things, with the Air popping up repeatedly throughout the commercial.

The ad, titled Your Verse Anthem, shows the Air out in the field, with everyone from artists to educators, and workers to sports professionals, all making use of the tablet in a myriad of ways.

So, what do you make of Apple’s attempt to hook the iPad into the world and all its wonder – over-the-top trash or a stroke of marketing genius?

[DT’s iPad Air review]

Editors' Recommendations

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Best Apple deals: Save on AirPods, Apple Watch, iPad, MacBook
Apple MacBook Air M1 open, on a table.

Apple makes some of the most popular tech on the planet. Apple devices offer premium hardware and designs, and its software ecosystem makes work and play easier, more convenient, and often more fun. Apple devices regularly earns spots among the best smartwatches, best laptops, best wireless earbuds, and best tablets. All of these devices offer a great opportunity to save right now, as some of the best Apple deals we’ve seen are currently available to shop. We’ve rounded them all up into one place for your convenience, so if you’re in the market for a new MacBook, Apple Watch, iPad, or something else made by Apple, read onward for more information on the best Apple deals taking place right now.
Apple AirTag (4-Pack) -- $83, was $99

Insert the Apple AirTag into your bag, gadget, or any item that you may misplace, so that you can track it if you lose it. The Apple AirTag is one of the best Bluetooth trackers if you're using an iPhone or iPad because not only does it offer a one-tap setup, but it can utilize the millions of devices in Apple's Find My network to help you find your stuff if it goes beyond the Bluetooth range of 30 feet. It's powered by a replaceable battery that can last for more than a year before you need a new one.

Read more
You may have to wait a while longer for new iPads
The backs of Apple's iPad Air and iPad Pro, with the tablets place on a table.

Just days ago, the Chinese website IT Home said Apple would announce the launch of its 2024 iPads on Tuesday, March 26. However, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman — who still believes new iPads will arrive this spring — has debunked this rumor. In other words, we'll probably have to wait a little longer for new Apple tablets to arrive.

Gurman had previously stated that Apple's next-generation tablets would arrive in late March or April.  Of the March 26 rumor, Gurman took to X, formerly Twitter, to say it was "not true."

Read more
YouTube TV just got even better on iPhones and iPads
Multiview on YouTube TV on an iPad.

If you use the most popular live-streaming service on an iPhone or iPad, things just got even better. YouTube TV — which boasts more than 8 million subscribers — just pushed multiview live on Apple's mobile devices, as previously promised.

It works basically the same way it does on a television. YouTube TV picks the programs available in multiview, and you get them all at once, with audio coming from one of the shows. Tap another, and the audio switches. And just as before, you can get multiview for sports, news, business, or weather. (Though we definitely don't recommend watching four news channels at once in an election year.) It's just in time for March Madness, which is great, though we hope you'll be able to pick your own games instead of just sticking with the multiple viewing options YouTube TV gives. This will be great come fall, though, when the new season of NFL Sunday Ticket takes hold.

Read more