Last night I saw the first ad for the T-Mobile G1, the first mobile handset built on Google’s Android platform.
The spot depicts people in random situations, asking spontaneous questions that bug you at the time, but might not be important when you’re back in front of a computer: “Do sharks have eyelids?”, “Do monkeys make good pets?”, “Can I get this cheaper somewhere else?”
Answers can be found via One-Touch Search, which enables you to run Google queries from your G1 phone. (Way to inflate mobile search hits, GOOG!)
I thought the ad was sympathetic and usability-focused, which Google has always toted as its raison d’etre. But it also reminded me of something I’d seen before. And then I was like, oh yeah!: this same playful curiosity — that way of frowning and staring inquisitively into space as quirky background music colored your thoughts — was nailed by Ask.com. Just this month, too.
And while Google’s spot is easier to identify with, I kinda think Ask — with its flair for the theatrical, a little elbow-poke against the surreal — did it better.
