'Mac Book' Recommends Surface Laptop 2 in New Microsoft Ad

Microsoft has come out with a new marketing campaign that features a man called Mackenzie Book (read: Mac Book) explaining why a Surface Laptop 2 is a better option than an Apple MacBook, in his humble opinion.


The 30-second ad consists of a quick-fire Q&A session between a voiceover narrator and the man-Mac himself, who proceeds to explain why he thinks the Microsoft machine beats Apple's notebook in various departments.

"So Mac, which laptop lasts longer?" the narrator asks.

"Surface laptop lasts longer," Book responds.

The actor's answers are accompanied by the text "Mac Book says Surface laptop ... [lasts longer / is faster / has a better touchscreen.]" The latter response is qualified by the narrator with the remark "Oh right, because MacBooks don't have touchscreens."

The ad ends with two thumbs up from Mr Book and his recommendation: "You should get a Surface. Trust me, I'm Mac Book." His sign-off is followed by the tagline, "Mac Book says get a Surface Laptop."

Microsoft and Apple have often taken aim at each other over the years with jokey Mac vs. PC ads. From 2006 to 2009, Justin Long played a Mac computer in Apple's "Get a Mac" campaign, alongside John Hodgman, who played a PC.

The commercials always started out with the tagline "Hello, I'm a Mac," and were some of Apple's most iconic ads, featuring Long as the cool, casual Mac and Hodgman as a stuffy PC in a suit and tie.

However, Microsoft's latest effort is a decidedly left-field take on the man/Mac concept.


Last year, Microsoft released a holiday ad promoting its Surface Go over Apple's iPad, using the tagline "Big dreams need a real computer."

Microsoft's 2018 ad was aimed at Apple's own "What's a Computer?" ad campaign, which began in 2016 and showed off some things that the iPad Pro can do as a replacement to a traditional laptop computer.

Microsoft released the Surface Laptop 2 in October 2018 and is expected to launch refreshed Surface Pro and Surface Book models later this year.

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Jeff Bezos Cashes in $1.8 Billion of Amazon Stock, Will Keep $1.4 Billion After Taxes

Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and the world’s richest person, has cashed in $1.8 billion worth of Amazon shares, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission submitted last night. Bezos will keep an estimated $1.4 billion from the sale after taxes, based on calculations by Forbes magazine.

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Google Overtakes Apple to Become Most Cash-Rich Company

Google parent company Alphabet has overtaken Apple to become the world's most cash-rich company, reports The Financial Times this morning.


According to the FT, Apple’s cash hoard has fallen to $102 billion, down from a peak of $163 billion at the end of 2017. Meanwhile, Alphabet's $117 billion cash reserve has risen by almost $20 billion over the same period.

However, as FT notes, Alphabet's new title as "king of cash" may be somewhat of a poisoned chalice, as it could antagonize investors who would rather see the cash being used to reward shareholders with buybacks or dividends.

The leadership switch is said to be a result of Apple's own efforts to reduce its liquidity, by taking advantage of US tax reforms to repatriate overseas reserves and pay out to investors. The company has spent $122 billion on buying back stock and paying dividends in the past 18 months.

Alphabet's stock buybacks, by contrast, have been paltry. In the nearly four years since it began repurchasing its own stock, it has spent an average of only $1.7bn a quarter.

In that time, it has handed out more new shares in the form of employee stock benefits than it has bought back through its repurchase programme. As a result, the payments have done nothing to lift its earnings per share — the reason investors generally welcome buybacks.

Alphabet's new cash-rich status also comes at a time when it is under more intensive scrutiny than ever before. Google and its parent company have received over $9 billion in antitrust fines by the EU in the past two years. It is now facing a new antitrust investigation by the Justice Department.

Alphabet's cash reserves have actually increased despite the parent company's heavy investment in real estate for new office builds and data centers, which will form part of the infrastructure supporting Google's increasing AI endeavors.

In terms of most valuable company on the planet, Apple has been overtaken by both Amazon and Microsoft, with the latter now taking that particular crown. Microsoft is now worth nearly $1.1 trillion, after soaring on the back of optimism about its cloud business.

Tag: Google

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Life hacks talk about a lot of issues, from productivity tips and tricks to download for all platforms such as money-saving plans and creative uses for the household stuff. It also speaks to any tips, tricks, shortcut, talent, or innovation technique that upswings productivity and good organization in all walks of life. The term was mostly used by computer professionals who grieve from

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Korea's NRRA Certifies MacBook Pro With Model Number 'A2159' [Updated]

Update: One eagle-eyed reader notes that the model number "A2159" appears to reference Apple's recently refreshed entry-level 13-inch MacBook Pro with two Thunderbolt ports, suggesting the NRRA certification is a post-launch filing.

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Signs of Apple's upcoming MacBook Pro redesign continue to mount with news today that Korea's National Radio Research Agency (NRRA) has now certified unreleased MacBook Pro model A2159.


Regular readers may recall that an unreleased MacBook Pro with the same mysterious model number received FCC approval almost exactly one month ago. The identifier was also registered with the Eurasian Economic Commission in June.

First spotted by MySmartPrice.com, Korea's NRRA filing doesn't give away much about the unreleased MacBook Pro, simply describing the model as a "small-output wireless device" while confirming that it is manufactured in China.

The earlier FCC filing rated the notebook as 20.3V - 3A Max (equivalent to 61W), suggesting to some a refreshed 13-inch MacBook Pro. However, Apple updated its higher-end 13-inch MacBook Pro in May and its entry-level 13-inch model with a Touch Bar last month, but that's not to say it won't refresh the entire line-up in the fall. Apple has refreshed its entire MacBook Pro lineup twice in a year only once before in the Retina era, in 2013.

On the other hand, details from multiple sources have been converging around the possibility that Apple is developing a 16-inch MacBook Pro featuring a new design and a larger display, perhaps enabled through slimmer bezels.


16-inch MacBook Pro rumors began with Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. Back in February, Kuo said the notebook would launch at some point in 2019 with an "all-new design." He has not shared any further details since, but a recent supply chain report said mass production would begin in the fourth quarter of this year.

Kuo also believes the 16-inch MacBook Pro will debut with a new scissor switch keyboard design, which will eventually be used in to other MacBook Air and Pro models in 2020 and 2021. According to supply chain sources, the 16-inch display will be an LCD panel with a 3,072 × 1,920 resolution, supplied by LG.

Whatever the technical details turn out to be, with the previous EEC, FCC, and now NRRA filings all referencing the same mysterious A2159 number in the last few months, all the indications are that we'll see a new MacBook Pro quite soon.

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