Skip to main content

Nokia ad takes a swipe at the iPhone for, of all things, its lack of color options

Image used with permission by copyright holder

We never really believed that availability in a range of colors could ever be the deal breaker when it comes to choosing a new smartphone, but according to a new TV ad from Nokia, it appears to be the case.

Windows Phone 8 coverage
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The Finnish mobile maker has just launched a new ad for its recently-unveiled Lumia 920 smartphone that takes a swipe at the iPhone for its lack of color options. Seriously.

The 60-second animation, viewable below, is, until about halfway through, a rather downbeat, colorless affair (yes, it’s all very deliberate), with its nighttime cityscape setting and solemn soundtrack. A line of identical-looking people enter what is obviously meant to be an Apple store, hand over their cash and receive a smartphone with a large number “5” showing on the screen. When one customer hesitates to take his new phone from the Apple employee and utters a guttural “color?”, all hell breaks loose, with the employee looking like he’s about to smash up his own store and attack everyone inside it (though he doesn’t, of course).

We then cut to the scene outside – yes, the music livens up and suddenly the ad is awash with color as lots of people walk by using their colorful Lumia 920 smartphones.

Could it be the case that Nokia based the ad on the results of market research? Did it discover that more than screen size, battery life, photographic capability, app availability, weight and dimensions and overall user experience, it’s the color that matters most? Or perhaps this is just the first in a series of ads from the mobile maker, each one picking on a different aspect of a rival device.

It’s certainly an altogether different kind of ad in terms of style and content to Samsung’s Apple-bashing ones for its Galaxy S3 smartphone. But will it be effective? Do you know anyone that bought a smartphone because “I couldn’t get the iPhone in red”?

The Lumia 920 was unveiled in New York last month. The Windows Phone 8 device comes with a 4.5-inch screen, a dual-core 1.5Ghz Snapdragon S4 chip and 32GB of onboard memory. It also sports an 8.7-megapixel PureView camera capable of shooting 1080p video, a forward-facing 1.2-megapixel camera, and is capable of wireless charging. But here’s the important bit – it comes in yellow, red, gray, black and white.

What do you think of Nokia’s approach to marketing its new phone? Persuasive?

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)…
The best iPhone 15 Plus screen protectors in 2023: 10 best ones
Someone using Find My with an iPhone 15.

Is 2023 the year of the iPhone? It very well may be, with the Apple iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus specifically receiving big upgrades this year. Following in the iPhone 14 Pro's footsteps, the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus have received a massive design update, including the addition of the Dynamic Island and a notch-less design. Also included is the powerful Apple A16 Bionic processor and a new 48-megapixel camera lens.

It's a strong pair, and if you want a big display to go with your new iPhone, then you want the iPhone 15 Plus. With a big 6.7-inch display, it's one of the largest iPhones currently for sale. But a lot of display is a blessing and a curse, and one bad spill can mean a cracked screen that can ruin your new phone. A screen protector can stop that from happening. However, there are many screen protectors to choose from, and some are definitely better than others. Here are some of the best Apple iPhone 15 Plus screen protectors.

Read more
iPhone 15 Pro Max vs. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra: best $1,200 phone?
Renders of the iPhone 15 Pro Max next to the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is one of the best smartphones of 2023. It’s one of our favorite phones to carry because of the versatile camera system, good battery life, and excellent display.

But there’s a new challenger in town – the iPhone 15 Pro Max. The new Apple iPhone brings better optical zoom capabilities to challenge the Galaxy S23 Ultra. It’s also got a design update with build materials that are solid for long-term use. Here’s how the iPhone 15 Pro Max compares to the Galaxy S23 Ultra, based on everything we know so far.
iPhone 15 Pro Max vs. Galaxy S23 Ultra: specs

Read more
The best iPhone 15 Pro screen protectors in 2023: our 8 favorites
Color options for the iPhone 15 Pro pair.

You, like many others, just ordered the new iPhone 15 Pro and you’re eagerly awaiting its arrival. Congrats! There’s a lot to love about the iPhone 15 Pro, from the sleek and lightweight titanium material to the Action button, as well as USB-C charging so you can finally ditch that Lightning cable. And it’s all powered with the blazingly fast A17 Pro chip and 8GB RAM.

Though the titanium material means it’s lighter and more durable, the front is still made of glass, though Apple has its Ceramic Shield coating. But sometimes that isn’t enough, and you want to go the extra mile and protect the screen even further.

Read more