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HTC is taking a break from Robert Downey Jr’s services to indulge in some baseball fun with Robinson Cano, a world class second baseman hitter for the Seattle Mariners. The baseball player’s task? To knock the competition out of the park… literally.
Someone at a makeshift pitcher’s mound tossed a Samsung Galaxy Note 4, an iPhone 6 and an LG G3 at Robinson Cano, and he proceeded to obliterate them into pieces with his baseball bat. They did it in full, smooth and crisp slow motion video, though obviously not with the lackluster camera sitting on the rear of the HTC One M9.
It’s edgy and bold, though the existence of this ad says something about the tech faithful — they have amnesia. Remember when OnePlus held a contest asking you to “smash the past” in order to win one of their phones and everyone crucified them?
Well, HTC is actually smashing their own phones, and there’s not a single peep to be had. Is that a product of subconscious OnePlus hate or do people simply not care about a company’s actions if they’ve already proven themselves? That’s just a little something to think about when checking this ad out. It gets our attention, that’s for sure.
Step aside,RDJ,lest your promos are next………………..
Sooooo, what if the batteries exploded on those phones? lol
My thoughts exactly. Reminded me of that one idiot, ‘get me the Febreeze’.
so there was no Note 4…. but there was a S5…
because htc doesn’t have a note 4 competitor?
Why not have Cano just buy a bunch of M9s instead to help HTC’S profit margin.
I think I saw the iPhone bend…
Cool looking video though. I like how they have the HTC phones on stands but the camera angles look like it’s somewhere else.
The entire htc marketing department should be fired
Quentyn,
The reason there will be no backlash for this marketing campaign (vs the one executed by OnePlus) is because HTC is not encouraging everyone to smash their phones for a chance (a freaking chance) to win an invite to buy their phone. The only devices being destroyed are the ones in the video itself.
As I will be upgrading from my M7 this month, I have been searching out any and all info regarding the M9 as well as the S6. I walked into my local Best Buy, and low and behold there are posters advertising the S6! And….wait for it…..ACTUAL S6’s to play with! Samsung knows how to promote its products. HTC…not so much. Horrible Robert Downey Jr. ads that you can only see on You Tube? Stupid slo-mo videos of a baseball player hitting smartphones? I’m guessing that most of HTC’s advertising happens in places other than the USA? It’s almost like they’re conceding defeat even before launch…
I’m glad you found out in one way or another that Samsung has a lot more money than HTC, run successful marketing, and can put up display hardware, all due to that money.
And have the money to pay designers and engineers to: have the foresight to include OIS in their cameras so that videos don’t look like my grandma took em. Include a fingerprint scanner. Push the envelope with software features like multitasking (multi-window). Recognize that there are heating problems with the Qualcomm chip and develop their own. Develop a higher res screen that outperforms the tired HTC SLCD in every way. And…well…pretty much produced a smartphone that kicks the a$$ of the M9 in nearly every facet and in nearly every review available. I have been with HTC since the Incredible. I like Sense. But the M9 stinks, and I’m not gonna stick with them for Sense and the ability to add a memory card. I don’t need a TB of storage on my phone….kinda like I don’t need a fanny pack.
As much as I dislike Samsung, you’re completely right. HTC is the next Blackberry/RIM, except HTC has nothing to fall back on since they only do smartphones mainly.
GO M’s!!!
FINALLY they have some decent advertising. Granted they adopted Samsung’s method of advertising the competition’s product in their own ads, BUT it’s not a cringe worthy ad. All I thought thru the ad was ‘LG makes some nice hardware’.
I would have preferred that also try and smash the M9 and hopefully show the metal body can take a beating (I feel this might’ve been the game plan but it didn’t stand a chance against Cano).