Gizmodo: apple fanboys

Asian Blogstar Flames Back Apple, iPhone Fanboys

Jesus Diaz — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:00:00 EDT

I have to confess that I still can't get Xiaxue—the amazingly popular Asian blogstar who slammed the iPhone in favor of a Chinese knock-off earlier this month. At first I told Matt that I thought she was a completely dumbtastic bozo but, after seeing this, I think she may be the biggest toe-curling comedy genius since Ricky Gervais. There's something awkwardly funny about her reply to the Apple fanboys' flaming that made me laugh out loud. Wait until the end of the video and everything will make sense. Kind of. What do you think? Stupid moron or comedy genius? (Update: I just saw the previous episode on her series, a NSFW six-minute visit to a sex shop, including her take on toys and penis extender systems. She's definitely funny.)

No wonder she made our top 10 list of hot bloggers in 2006. [Clicknetwork via Fashion Funky—thanks Yash]

Why Apple Fanboys Think Reporters Are Licking Someone's Balls

matt buchanan — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 20:00:36 EDT

The problem with fanboys is that it's never enough—no matter how breathlessly one lauds a gadget, pointing out the smallest of flaws inevitably triggers a tidal wave of email accusing you of sucking the competition's teat (or worse). Mossberg calls it "The Doctrine of Insufficient Adulation." Turns out, there's a scientific explanation for fanboys' maddeningly narrow worldview, Farhad Manjoo explains his new book about the death of objective reality, True Enough. Oh, and congrats, Apple fanboys you're among the worst:

But many fans of Apple often seem to want more. They care little for honest opinion. They want to pick up the paper and see in it a reflection of their own nearly religious zeal for the thing they love. They don't want a review. They want a hagiography.

It's the "hostile media phenomenon" that brings the commentards to virtual doorsteps. Stanford psychologist Lee Moss explains the mind of a fanboy to Farhad this way: "You think there are more facts and better facts on your side than on the other side. The very act of giving them equal weight seems like bias. Like inappropriate evenhandedness."

So no, they don't actually want objectivity, or fair criticism of their beloved, whenever they cry that's all they're asking for. They want everyone to totally and completely agree with them that the object of their unabashed affection truly is the BEST. THING. EVER. They're allergic to shades of ambiguity, or as Farhad puts it:

When they come upon that difference — the gulf between what's in their heads and what's on the page — the audience tends to assume the worst: The reporter must be licking someone's balls.

Unfortunately, there's no mention of a cure. [Machinist via BBG]

Rumor: Supermodel Poses for Next Apple Ads?

Charlie White — Wed, 31 May 2006 09:46:35 EDT

Has Apple has decided to show its fanboys what a real woman looks like? Rumor has it that the company has enlisted the services of sizzling Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen for its next ad campaign.

Apparently that calculatedly scruffy Mac user and his overweight nerd-like PC counterpart weren't quite attractive enough for the Cupertino Fruit Company. Taking a look at the nubile nymphet Gisele Bündchen's website, there is a mention of a project where she worked with Apple, adding credence to the scuttlebutt (pardon my Portuguese translation):

"Gisele photographed a campaign for a line of Apple computers, Mac (Macintosh) in the United States."

The story goes that all the MacBooks got overheated on the shoot, and that sales are supposed to grow 200% after the photos are unveiled from this alleged shoot. But we're not buying that part of the rumor saying she posed with a giant banana for Apple. Please, make it not true. – Charlie White

Gisele Bundchen poses for Apple [Gadgetizer]