The Revolutionary iHam
From the PR/Marketing firm Shackleton in Spain, a super funny riff on Apple products (which has been circulating in the Spanish blogosphere for months). The introductory video will make you burp bacon, it's so funny. Lulz deconstruction, for non-Spanish readers: the "j" would sound like "h" in Spanish if you said the word "iJam." Anyway, somehow the guy's Castellano accent makes it even funnier, because the "th" sounds are all so fancy to my mexican-spanish-trained ear.
Below: More recently, some guys tried to return their iHam at the Apple store, and were rebuffed. Wikreate's response to Shackleton's iJam.
[Thanks, Ari Kuschnir]
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The reason for the "5J" is that the highest class of jamon iberico (pata negra) fulfills 5 different categories of excellence, referred to as the 5 jotas.
http://www.ibergour.co.uk/en/productos/ficha_producto?id_prod=jm5jj
http://www.jamoniberico.com/esp/src5jotasset.htm
Just a note, Spaniards take their pork quite seriously. A Ham is often given to employees as their Christmas bonus, and otherwise in stores it can retail for several hundred euro.
#1El_Cid, oh, thanks! I don't know much about food culture in Spain, and I felt like I must be missing a lot of the extra humor here as a result, even though I do grok the language.
Hello Xeni. This time you got it: I haven't laughed that much in years...
The Wikreate response was awesome! Though I have to say it would be a great urban prank to have a bunch of people 'walk out' of an applestore with something like this, make it seem like a product launch outside of the store with people interviewing them asking them if they like their new apple product, and seeing the type of ibuzz one can make for apples "newest" product.
Great post, much lulz indeed! I've spent time growing up in both Spain and Puerto Rico, and although my Spanish is rather rusty now, I still use the Castilian accent when I speak it.
And yes, my Mexican friends crack up at my "fancy-pants" Spanish.
Also, for the second time today, Boing Boing has made me hungry.
Jamon it, jamon it, jamonemonemonmon it.
I always hated that "wonderful" iJam idea. These Spaniards get mix English and Spanish pronuntiations all ilogically in this "parody".
They pronounce the "i" in English, yet the "J" in Spanish. Written as it is -iJam- it should be pronounced either "ee-ham" (Spanish); or "i-jam" (English, and "jam" has nothing to do with "ham"). Yet they say i-ham. Totally stupid to my eyes.
Hey, the "J" it's there because of the word "jamón" (ham). It's Spanish for FSMsake!!
#8 In the instruction manual of the iJam they explain the idea behind the product: Spaniards are at the same time traditionalist and gadget-loving, the name iJam represents the fusion between the spanish and english pronunciations.
Love the homage to QT (Battle Without Honor Or Humanity - Tomoyasu Hotei)!
And the staff dutifully trying to find the iJam on the website...
GenericVox: "And yes, my Mexican friends crack up at my "fancy-pants" Spanish" It never occurred to me that former Spanish colonials would think the same of their former imperial master's accents as we former British colonials do of ours.
Makes sense I guess...
Thanks Xeni for this and everything you do!
No hay de que, dude.
Interesting:
HyperWords translation: It does not have which, it doubts. Man that's deep (or is it gibberish?)
Google translation: There is that, dude. or You are welcome, dude. Closer!
wiktionary.org translation: Don't mention it or No problem (dude). Bing!
A couple of comments (from a Spaniard):
The presenter accent is not the usual castilian one, it is exaggeratedly posh (you know, an Apple guy, look at his glasses ;) )
#8: in Spain, the most common pronunciation of iPod is ee-pod (stressing the o, by the way).
From the video, paleta is the foreleg of pork, considered of lower quality than the hind leg, or jamón. This is why they are returning the iHam.
Is it a part of the awaited "Mobile Meat"?
@krollspell,
From the video, paleta is the foreleg of pork,
Hahah another example of my mexispanish-induced confusion. I was like, "they're not returning a popsicle! what the hell."