“Alam na ang target market.”
Some Filipino online users quipped that Apple’s newly-announced iPhone 12 in purple color targets the fans of popular South Korean boy group BTS or Bangtan Boys.
The tech giant on Wednesday introduced a purple finish for its latest phone model which accentuates its flat aluminum edges and is color-matched to the back glass.
“The incredible iPhone 12 is the most popular smartphone in the world, and the iPhone 12 family has an over 99 percent customer satisfaction rate,” Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president for worldwide marketing, said in a release.
“The new purple finish, just in time for spring, adds another bright and fun option to the lineup, and we think customers are going to love it,” he added.
Apple unveiled a teaser video for iPhone 12’s new hue on its YouTube which featured “The Candy Man,” a song from the 1971 film “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.”
Reports said that Apple CEO Tim Cook announced iPhone 12’s new color during the company’s “Spring Loaded” event on April 20.
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He said that the vibrant finish is meant to evoke spring, one of the temperate seasons associated with new beginnings where fresh buds bloom and animals awaken from their hibernation.
It is the season succeeding winter and preceding summer.
Based on a meteorological view, spring started on March 1 while the astronomical view notes it began on March 20.
Until Apple’s announcement, the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 Mini were only available in black, white, green and red.
Meanwhile, the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max are available in graphite, gold, silver and blue.
Purple in BTS fandom
The unveiling of the new color prompted the keyword “iPhone 12” to enter local Twitter’s top trending list as Filipinos talk about it online.
Some K-Pop fans quipped that the new finish is in support of BTS, which has been associated with the hue.
In Facebook Messenger, for example, selecting the chat theme “TinyTAN,” which refers to animated characters inspired by the boy group, makes the background color purple.
The boy group is currently an endorser of a smartphone rival, Samsung.
However, it didn’t stop fans from jokingly associating them with Apple’s new color.
the purple iPhone 12… BTS impact. apple said borahae charot
— valerie (@vayiedelapaz) April 20, 2021
Inspired BTS Colored ang iPhone 12. 🥰 #AppleEvent pic.twitter.com/LZoeJ7Lxtv
— Kim Versa 💙 (@kimversa_01) April 20, 2021
Apple came out with this stunning new iPhone 12 color. Alam na sino target market. Charrr 💜#ARMY pic.twitter.com/nH06hm1zYK
— Kimmy Namjoon (@kimmy_namjoon) April 20, 2021
A website said that the color purple has a special meaning between BTS members and their fans called the “ARMY.”
“Purple is the last color of the rainbow colors, so it means I will trust and love you for a long time,” Kim Tae-hyung, also known as V, was quoted as saying to fans in a live performance before.
“We will always trust you and go up the stairs with you. You don’t need to help us all the time. You can hold our hands and follow us now. We’ll go up really high. I’ll make it nice,” he added.
Fans in 2019 celebrated the 1,000th day of V’s speech which sparked the social media trend of “I Purple You.”
V admitted that he “just made it up” but continued to talk about the color’s significance and how it relates to their love for their fans.
