While the Microsoft advertisements we have seen popping out lately are really lame, and they aren't even focused on Microsoft, after all, it seems they had the effect desired - public's perception of brand value has gone down a lot lately for Apple, as you can see in the graph above.
Back in February, Apple got a value perception score of 70, and now Microsoft advertisements have pushed it all the way down to 12. Just don't get it wrong - it's all about the public being brainwashed by Microsoft's lame ads that are targeting "cheaper computers" and nothing more.
Reality is completely different, and I don't know why... but Microsoft really deserves a little trial for its latest ads - at least that's my opinion. On the other hand, Apple's "Get a Mac" ads were also playing dirty, so I guess Microsoft has just settled the score with its latest ads...
For now, this impressive negative drop for Apple doesn't show in terms of sales numbers, and it probably won't do that anytime soon. After all, the iPod reigns supreme, and - no matter how you take it - the Mac will always remain a better choice for someone's first computer. You only need to think about it in the long run, and just forget about short term satisfaction of a better price.