Old Apple commercials from the 1980s have been resurfacing on YouTube channel EveryAppleAds over the past few days, offering an extensive look at vintage Apple advertising that is normally overshadowed by Apple's famous Super Bowl commercial "1984".

The commercials, which feature both the Macintosh and the Apple II, introduce and promote the general concept of the PC and its usefulness to every day life. The first ad presents the Macintosh computer as a communication tool, while the second promotes the Apple II as a learning tool.


Coincidentally, the ads happen to be resurfacing close to the release of Steve Jobs movie "JOBS", which takes place in the 80s and tells the story behind the creation of both the Macintosh and the Apple II. The movie, which is currently in the promotional stages, is set to be released in theaters on August 16.

Additional vintage Apple ads can be found on the EveryAppleAds YouTube channel.

Top Rated Comments

trekkie604 Avatar
149 months ago
They should bring back this campaign ;)

Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ThisIsMike Avatar
149 months ago
That second commercial is actually really clever... loved that ending. :)
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Michaelgtrusa Avatar
149 months ago
You have to hand the crown to apple, they rule.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DrMotownMac Avatar
149 months ago
My Favorite Apple Video...

In 1998, when I first started dating the woman who is now my wife, I let her talk me into buying a Dell when my 5 year old Mac needed to be replaced. Of course, this was RIGHT BEFORE the iMac came out. So, I ordered my Dell with Windows 98 installed on it, and it was a piece of crap right from the start. None of my old peripherals worked properly, even after I spent money buying Adaptec PCI cards with the appropriate connectors. When I'd call tech support, I'd get the runaround, with Dell telling me it was a Windows problem, Microsoft telling me it was an Adaptec problem, and Adaptec telling me the problem was with my old HP scanner (which worked fine with my old Mac just one week earlier). Also, the bootup time was obscene, the default organization of files and folders didn't make any sense, and it just wasn't fun to use. And I won't even start about the viruses and system crashes....

So, after only 3 months of owning it, the iMac had been announced and I saw this video while browsing the internet one night:

iMac G3 promo video - Simplicity Shootout iMac vs. PC (1998) (http://youtu.be/_spF8pHs-Fc)

So, I showed this to my then girlfriend, and as we both laughed (and almost cried), we agreed that I had made a horrible mistake. This video captures, in a nutshell, exactly why the Mac is superior to the PC. Simplicity. We ended up finding someone to pay me slightly more than 50% of what I paid for the Dell, and I promptly got rid of it and bought an iMac. That Dell was the only PC I had ever owned since my parents bought our family's first computer -- an IBM PC (one of the originals...with two floppy drives and no hard drive) back in 1984...coincidentally the same year the original Macintosh was released. Every other computer I've had, from 1987 until present, has been a Mac.

And as I type this post on my 13 inch MacBook Air (Oct. 2010 release), I contemplate when I'm going to get my NEW MacBook Air! That 12 hour battery life with the faster processor and 512 GB SSD sure is tempting! Not to mention that my AppleCare Warranty will be expiring in late October, AND that my 6-year-old daughter is just learning to type and use computers at school (unfortunately, they're DELL PCs -- YUCK!). So, I need to train her properly in the ways of Apple before she gets lured to the dark side. But, if one of us is getting a "new" computer, it might as well be the one who's paying for it, right? Especially, since my 3-year-old MacBook Air is in perfect condition!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
deannnnn Avatar
149 months ago
These ads were made three years before I was born.

And I'm not a little kid, I'm 23 years old. I grew up with my parents and grandparents constantly telling me what life was like without computers and cell phones and the internet. What are we going to tell our kids we grew up without? I can't wait to find out.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GermanyChris Avatar
149 months ago
Good thread, thanks!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...