I wanted a Mac but all I got was this lame PC

<br/><a href="http://video.msn.com/video.aspx?vid=0bb6a07c-c829-4562-8375-49e6693810c7" target="_new" title="Laptop Hunters $1000 - Lauren Gets an HP Pavilion">Video: Laptop Hunters $1000 - Lauren Gets an HP Pavilion</a>

Have you seen the new Microsoft commercial? Lauren, a cute redhead 20-something, needs a new computer -- specifically a 17-inch laptop for under $1,000. She starts at the Apple store before discovering that you can't get a decent Mac for that cheap...so instead she's stuck going to Best Buy or Staples or some store like that and springing for an HP computer. The ad summary -- with a PC, you get more for your buck.

Advertising based strictly on price -- it's a relevant idea, given the state of the US economy, but does it work? I don't think so.

There are two major issues I have with the ad:

1) Advertising based on pricing only works in the short term. To successfully market something, the product has to be valuable. Basing an entire marketing strategy on selling a cheap product is the least effective way to add value to your product. Consumers aren't stupid, and we know that you get what you pay for. (And as a side note, the HP computer that Lauren ends up with sucks.)

2) In the end, Lauren doesn't get what she really wants (a Mac) and instead settles for what she can afford (settles being the key word here). Do you really want your product to be one that people "settle" on? It's hard to build long term brand loyalty when even you admit that the competition is better.

Thoughts?