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I don't think Apple has ever promoted its products as "luxurious". Jobs introduced the iPad as "a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price". I

I don't think Apple has ever promoted its products as "luxurious". Jobs introduced the iPad as "a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price". I think that Bezos quote is actually very Apple-like, what with "people are going to love these" and so on.

antimarketing 15y ago
I bet everybody who was a stakeholder in the release of this project had a long talk about messaging this a'la Steve Jobs.
miles_matthias 15y ago
From the clip I saw, Bezos looked awkward and nervous. He looked like the wind was already out of his sails, which doesn't help to create that rock concert environment if that's what he wanted. He paused a lot to wait for applause and got crickets. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whOlvV3HYFM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whOlvV3HYFM
- jodrellblank 15y ago
  He's doing what the RIM CEO did when presenting the playbook! He's clutching a tablet-shaped-MacGuffin which may as well be a bottle of water for all his body language says about it.
- nroach 15y ago
  That clip is disturbing. I understand that not everyone can replicate Jobs' reality distortion field. But, why is Bezos not excited about his own product? There should be a natural enthusiasm that is missing onstage there. And, it's not that Bezos can't do it when he tries! I've seen interviews where he was clearly invigorated about little stuff like shipping infrastructure and AWS details. So this should have been a no-brainer. Maybe he's gotten a sneak preview of what Apple has in store for October and it's now too late to change course.
  - cincinnatus 15y ago
    Apparently this one is a stop-gap device that they had made to get into this holiday season. The tablet they really want to have is still some months away and will miss this year.
- jonknee 15y ago
  > Bezos looked awkward and nervous Sounds about like every time I've heard him speak. He probably let out some really loud laughs too. Remember his welcome video to Zappos employees? It was a paper based presentation (giant sheets!) where among other things he explained mistakes he and Amazon made and then shared "everything I know". He's awkward at moments, but authentic throughout. I like his style. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hxX_Q5CnaA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hxX_Q5CnaA
- anigbrowl 15y ago
  He paused a lot to wait for applause and got crickets. It's a press conference, not a public event. You measure interest by camera shutter clicks, rather than applause :-) He's already achieved his business objective, which is lots and lots of frothy press coverage and market position as a value provider. The longer the poor economic climate lasts, the more this pays off. I can see why you're skeptical, but I felt the same way when I first saw the kindle, and boy-was-I-wrong-about-that.
  - miles_matthias 15y ago
    Ha good point about shutter clicks. I wasn't trying to make an assessment of the product though - I was just trying to make about his presentation style. I think he was hoping for a rockstar presentation where everyone would get energetic and excited from the way he presented alone (regardless of the product). I think the new kindles are cool :)
notatoad 15y ago
maybe luxurious is the wrong way to put it, but the iPad has always been marketed as a luxury-segment product. it is promoted as being something special, not just another everyday CE device. the iPad is like a backyard swimming pool - you don't need one, but it's fun and all your friends will be impressed. the kindle is like a washing machine - you don't need one, but if you don't have one you're going to be going to the laundramat/reading paper books like a barbarian.
- megablast 15y ago
  No, I think the iPad is like a veranda, and the Kindle is like a block of cheese. No, wait, the iPad is like a BMW, and the Kindle is 40,000 frequent flyer points. No, that not right, the iPad is like a Ming vase, while the Kindle is like a big screen tv. yeah, that the way. You analogy is only slightly less awful than mine.

antimarketing 15y ago

I bet everybody who was a stakeholder in the release of this project had a long talk about messaging this a'la Steve Jobs.

miles_matthias 15y ago

From the clip I saw, Bezos looked awkward and nervous. He looked like the wind was already out of his sails, which doesn't help to create that rock concert environment if that's what he wanted. He paused a lot to wait for applause and got crickets. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whOlvV3HYFM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whOlvV3HYFM

jodrellblank 15y ago
He's doing what the RIM CEO did when presenting the playbook! He's clutching a tablet-shaped-MacGuffin which may as well be a bottle of water for all his body language says about it.
nroach 15y ago
That clip is disturbing. I understand that not everyone can replicate Jobs' reality distortion field. But, why is Bezos not excited about his own product? There should be a natural enthusiasm that is missing onstage there. And, it's not that Bezos can't do it when he tries! I've seen interviews where he was clearly invigorated about little stuff like shipping infrastructure and AWS details. So this should have been a no-brainer. Maybe he's gotten a sneak preview of what Apple has in store for October and it's now too late to change course.
- cincinnatus 15y ago
  Apparently this one is a stop-gap device that they had made to get into this holiday season. The tablet they really want to have is still some months away and will miss this year.
jonknee 15y ago
> Bezos looked awkward and nervous Sounds about like every time I've heard him speak. He probably let out some really loud laughs too. Remember his welcome video to Zappos employees? It was a paper based presentation (giant sheets!) where among other things he explained mistakes he and Amazon made and then shared "everything I know". He's awkward at moments, but authentic throughout. I like his style. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hxX_Q5CnaA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hxX_Q5CnaA
anigbrowl 15y ago
He paused a lot to wait for applause and got crickets. It's a press conference, not a public event. You measure interest by camera shutter clicks, rather than applause :-) He's already achieved his business objective, which is lots and lots of frothy press coverage and market position as a value provider. The longer the poor economic climate lasts, the more this pays off. I can see why you're skeptical, but I felt the same way when I first saw the kindle, and boy-was-I-wrong-about-that.
- miles_matthias 15y ago
  Ha good point about shutter clicks. I wasn't trying to make an assessment of the product though - I was just trying to make about his presentation style. I think he was hoping for a rockstar presentation where everyone would get energetic and excited from the way he presented alone (regardless of the product). I think the new kindles are cool :)

notatoad 15y ago

maybe luxurious is the wrong way to put it, but the iPad has always been marketed as a luxury-segment product. it is promoted as being something special, not just another everyday CE device. the iPad is like a backyard swimming pool - you don't need one, but it's fun and all your friends will be impressed. the kindle is like a washing machine - you don't need one, but if you don't have one you're going to be going to the laundramat/reading paper books like a barbarian.

megablast 15y ago
No, I think the iPad is like a veranda, and the Kindle is like a block of cheese. No, wait, the iPad is like a BMW, and the Kindle is 40,000 frequent flyer points. No, that not right, the iPad is like a Ming vase, while the Kindle is like a big screen tv. yeah, that the way. You analogy is only slightly less awful than mine.