iDroid commercial draws bead on Apple

Update: Droid commercial touts arrival of an Apple killer. But where's the proof?

Over the past few weeks, Verizon has rolled out a series of adverts blasting Apple and the iPhone and touting the imminent release of a new smart phone called the Droid. The iDroid commercials, which have aired during NFL games and the MLB playoffs, question the usefulness of Apple's best-selling phone. (See Droid video below.)

"iDon't have a real keyboard. iDon't run simultaneous apps. iDon't take night shots. iDon't allow open development," reads copy posted on the Droid website. "iDon't customize. iDon't run widgets. iDon't have interchangeable batteries. Everything iDon't, Droid does."

The target – the Apple iPhone – couldn't be more clear. And to judge by the volume of searches today and yesterday for the term "iDroid," the campaign is taking hold. Here's one blogger's take on the Droid spots:

No visual of the second edition of the Droid and not even a projected date for when it's coming. Basically it's a heads-up to Apple from Verizon. "Hey, this is what we got and we are giving you time to make improvements to the iPhone before the Android 2 comes out."

According to early reports, the Droid, which is powered by Verizon Wireless, will include a full QWERTY keyboard, a 5-megapixel digital camera, an interchangeable battery, and a 854x480 touchscreen.

Back in June, Sprint took similar aim at the iPhone, unveiling an advertisement targeting folks who bought an iPhone in June 2007. As Innovation editor Chris Gaylord noted at the time, the ad seemed to hearken back to the ’80s Sega commercial “Genesis does what Nintendon’t.”

Update: Droid commercial touts arrival of an Apple killer. But where's the proof? 

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