Skip to main content
Tech Radar TechRadar the technology experts
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
RSS
Asia
flag of Singapore
Singapore
Europe
flag of Danmark
Danmark
flag of Suomi
Suomi
flag of Norge
Norge
flag of Sverige
Sverige
flag of UK
UK
flag of Italia
Italia
flag of Nederland
Nederland
flag of België (Nederlands)
België (Nederlands)
flag of France
France
flag of Deutschland
Deutschland
flag of España
España
North America
flag of US (English)
US (English)
flag of Canada
Canada
flag of México
México
Australasia
flag of Australia
Australia
flag of New Zealand
New Zealand
  • Phones
  • Computing
  • TVs
  • AI
  • Streaming
  • Health
  • Audio
  • VPN
  • More
    • Cameras
    • Home
    • News
    • Reviews
    • Opinion
    • How to
    • Versus
    • Deals
    • Coupons
    • Best
Tech Radar Pro
Tech Radar Gaming
Trending
  • Amazon Prime Day
  • Back to school
  • Nintendo Switch 2
  • Best VPN
  • ChatGPT
  • NYT Wordle today
  • Best laptop
  • Best web hosting
Recommended reading
Three LG mobile phones
Phones LG pulls the final software plug on its phones – here are its 7 best-ever models, ranked
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max in desert titanium from back at an angle shwoing cameras and top of Camera Control button, on top of a red and blue techradar radar logo
Phones The best phone 2025
Assorted Apple, Samsung, and Google devices on a light blue background
Phones The best cell phone deals for July 2025
Apple iPhone 16, Google Pixel 9, and Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge on lavender background with big savings text overlay
Phones My favorite phones are on sale this Memorial Day: the iPhone 16 Pro Max, Galaxy S25 Edge, and Pixel 9
Brad Pitt looks over his right shoulder with 'F1' written behind him
iPhone Apple is advertising its F1 movie through the Wallet app, and I think that's a terrible mistake
Verizon logo on yellow background with assorted phones collage
Verizon The best Verizon deals for July 2025: free iPhone 16 Pro Max, tablets, smartwatches, and more
Apple iPhone 16, iPhone 16 Pro, and iPhone 15 on pink background
iPhone Best iPhone deals for July 2025: latest 16 series, free devices, and more
  1. Phones

The best and worst Christmas mobile device ads

News
By James O'Malley published 24 December 2015

Tis the season to be jolly... or really upset

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Buy buy buy, sell sell sell

Buy buy buy, sell sell sell

For advertisers, Christmas is the busiest time of year. When else is there an event that makes almost everyone happy that you can tie your brand to?

Better still, Christmas is in the public domain so it isn't like Santa or Jesus can sign an exclusive deal with McDonalds or Coke for the rights each year (although there are some conspiracy theories...)

So we thought it was about time to take a look back, at some of the best and worst festive TV mobile device adverts. But here's the thing… we're leaving it to you to decide which is the best and the worst.

Page 1 of 8
Page 1 of 8
Chuck Norris for T-Mobile

Chuck Norris for T-Mobile

To paraphrase the well known meme, infamous 1980s hardman Chuck Norris doesn't mortgage his dignity for a quick buck… he had no dignity in the first place.

And so we start in the Czech Republic where the action star appeared in a campaign for T-Mobile (which still exists outside of the UK). In the below advert, someone tries to demonstrate their dominance over Norris… with predictable conclusions.

The campaign ran across a number of adverts - each as presumably hilarious in Czech as the last.

Page 2 of 8
Page 2 of 8
Samsung Galaxy Gear Snowboarding Advert

Samsung Galaxy Gear Snowboarding Advert

If you're looking to meet someone special this Christmas, then make sure you've got a stupid massive phone strapped to your wrist. The Samsung Galaxy Gear will make you irresistible, according to this video from Samsung's 2013 "Are you Geared Up?" campaign.

Want a woman's number? Why not secretly ask for it under the false pretense of demonstrating a feature on your smartwatch? But of course, if you really want to endear her to you, then don't forget to take crappy secret photos of her from behind as she snowboards downhill.

Page 3 of 8
Page 3 of 8
The Hoff for T-Mobile UK

The Hoff for T-Mobile UK

What is it about rubbish 80s celebrities and T-Mobile? In this video for the company that now forms half of EE in the UK, a group of acapella singers (who apparently featured in an earlier ad), for some reason visit David Hasselhoff in his pantomime dressing room, and sing a medley of Christmas songs together.

At least this was 2010 - if it had happened a couple of years later it would have been the grimly inevitable Christmas Gangnam Style parody.

Page 4 of 8
Page 4 of 8
Christmas Poem for T-Mobile US

Christmas Poem for T-Mobile US

We didn't mean to feature quite so many contributions from T-Mobile, but say what you will about the company but it knows how to make a Christmas impression. And this might be the weird one yet.

This video features actual US CEO John LeGerre sitting in a big chair in front of a roaring fire - Jackanory style. But then his Christmas tale takes a rather more polemical turn than you might expect - attacking rival phone networks and ending with a sweary crescendo. Merry Christmas… we guess.

Page 5 of 8
Page 5 of 8
Samsung's oppressive Christmas

Samsung's oppressive Christmas

This ad from Samsung's "Christmas round ours" campaign last year features the bulky Gear S hidden in between twee family scenes suggesting you should submit to the power of Samsung and all of its many, many products.

But what's more remarkable is that it literally features guys in the pub joking about how heavy and massive the Gear S is - and how strong you have to be to use it. Self burn?

Page 6 of 8
Page 6 of 8
Samsung Sexy Santa Advert

Samsung Sexy Santa Advert

Another Samsung advert and this one is a rather risqué approach to promoting the Galaxy's NFC file transfer functionality on the Galaxy S3 and Galaxy Note 2.

In the video, the elves transfer a video for Santa to watch while on his sleigh… and then Mrs Claus does the same, and recommends he probably not watch it while at work. Filth.

Page 7 of 8
Page 7 of 8
Apple

Apple

Apple's 2013 Christmas advert is a surprisingly wholesome affair. No ultra-trendy hipsters dancing here - this time it is all about family. In the ad, we see a family sat around a TV watching clips that had been shot on an iPhone - with all of the emotion that entails.

Of course, what it doesn't show is the 20 minutes of hassle while they have to work out how to pair the iPhone with the Apple TV, and then the Wi-Fi dropping out after streaming demands too much bandwidth.

Page 8 of 8
Page 8 of 8
James O'Malley
See more News about Phones
Read more
Three LG mobile phones
LG pulls the final software plug on its phones – here are its 7 best-ever models, ranked
Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max in desert titanium from back at an angle shwoing cameras and top of Camera Control button, on top of a red and blue techradar radar logo
The best phone 2025
Assorted Apple, Samsung, and Google devices on a light blue background
The best cell phone deals for July 2025
Apple iPhone 16, Google Pixel 9, and Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge on lavender background with big savings text overlay
My favorite phones are on sale this Memorial Day: the iPhone 16 Pro Max, Galaxy S25 Edge, and Pixel 9
Brad Pitt looks over his right shoulder with 'F1' written behind him
Apple is advertising its F1 movie through the Wallet app, and I think that's a terrible mistake
Verizon logo on yellow background with assorted phones collage
The best Verizon deals for July 2025: free iPhone 16 Pro Max, tablets, smartwatches, and more
Latest in Phones
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra against a yellow background. Text reads: Price Cut
Don't wait for Prime Day - our best-rated Samsung phone is $200 off at Amazon right now
The Motorola Razr Plus on a cyan background. Text reads: Big savings
This $650 Motorola discount at Best Buy is the best price I’ve ever seen for a great foldable phone
Two Google Pixel 6a phones on a table
The Pixel 6a will get a mandatory update that will ‘reduce battery capacity’ soon – and other Pixel phones could be next
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
More Samsung Galaxy tri-fold specs have leaked – as One UI 8 gives us our first glimpse of its design
FaceTime screen on an iPhone
This new iOS 26 FaceTime privacy feature is proving divisive, but here’s why the controversy might be overblown
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6
Gorgeous leaked photos give us our best look yet at the super-slim Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7
Latest in News
Amazon deals 2023
The best early Prime Day deal? A free 6-month Amazon Prime membership for students
The radeon logo on the AMD Radeon RX 9070
Now might be the perfect time to buy an AMD RX 9070 XT, as retailer rumors suggest it's hit a low for the year
Photography of motinor screen with inscription Access denied. Cybercrime concept.
India leads the 10 countries restricting internet access in 2025
Helldivers 2
PS5 hit Helldivers 2 makes history as the first PlayStation-published game to get an Xbox release
Sigil 2
Romero Games has lost funding for its next, unannounced game, with one staffer claiming the 'whole studio' has been laid off due to Microsoft cuts
Ted Lasso season 2's cast including Jason Sudeikis, Brett Goldstein and Cristo Fernandez
Prime Video users, rejoice! Save big on Apple TV+ and watch these 4 shows with 85% or higher Rotten Tomatoes scores using this Amazon add-on deal
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. 1
    The ultra-portable Belkin Boostcharge Pro Magnetic Power Bank with Qi2 ain't cheap, but its versatility won me over anyway
  2. 2
    Losing my keys cost me $600; this Best Buy AirTag sale for July 4 drops the price to under $20 each
  3. 3
    British startup claims to have developed tech that can deliver 65% lossless file compression - but you'll have to pay big for it
  4. 4
    I asked AI to plan the perfect day in London – here’s what it got right and hilariously wrong
  5. 5
    You don't have to be real to score brand deals as an influencer

TechRadar is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Contact Us
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Web notifications
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...