Let's just take a step back and breathe deeply - it's just a shit ad from a company that usually markets things really well to the masses. They'll do their research and find it doesn't jive, then change their tune to something that does.
Watch the masses lose their collective bowels over the new products that are going to be released over the coming months. You know - that season when people drop a lot of cash on things. This idea that if products aren't updated bi-annually the company is going down the toilet will go away.
I don't live in California but I suspect that a lot of people who do might take some pride in it (think sports teams) and when they make something cool, it's nice to see their home state on there and not just an FCC badge and "Made in China". There's nothing wrong with being proud of your work. The same applies with the "Assembled in USA" badge you might see on an Apple or Google product - be proud.
For people outside of the USA, a "Made in California" sign might be a mark of quality for gadgets, just like "Made in France" for wine, but why adding pride to this?
I'm not a US citizen either. Apple's (and Amazon, Google et al.) primary market is the US. "Designed in California" makes no difference to you and I, but it might make the difference between 15 million vs 15.5 million sales if they drop an extra 0.05 cents worth of paint pointing out where the phone was conceived. That, and I truly believe Apple has a strong sense of pride.
> but why adding pride to this?
Evoking emotion sells your product to people who feel it. Those who don't feel it...eh? They'll still buy the product if they like it. Perhaps you can market it to them in a different way. Broad-spectrum marketing.
Watch the masses lose their collective bowels over the new products that are going to be released over the coming months. You know - that season when people drop a lot of cash on things. This idea that if products aren't updated bi-annually the company is going down the toilet will go away.
I don't live in California but I suspect that a lot of people who do might take some pride in it (think sports teams) and when they make something cool, it's nice to see their home state on there and not just an FCC badge and "Made in China". There's nothing wrong with being proud of your work. The same applies with the "Assembled in USA" badge you might see on an Apple or Google product - be proud.