“Designed by Apple” is the third and newest spot in TBWA\Media Arts Lab’s recent reinvention of Apple’s TV ads. The first two, “Photos Every Day” and “Music Every Day” offered a refreshing take on the iPhone, moving it out of Apple’s white world and into the real world. It seemed as though Apple was hitting its stride, until today.

Now, it’s difficult for tech companies to do sentimentality, but it’s not unprecedented (see Google). But, “Designed by Apple” is trying so damn hard to make you feel anything that it misses the mark by a mile. Perhaps it’s watching grown men absolutely lose their shit when Tim Cook mentioned “Finder windows” during yesterday’s Worldwide Developer Conference yesterday, or have the press react to Jonathan Ive‘s pastel-tinged redesign of iOS as though it was 2013′s answer to the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. This is so saccharine that it’s silly.

Maybe the most misguided part is the tagline, “Designed by Apple in California” (check out the web video here). After all, as anyone who’s ever owned an Apple product knows, the words “Assembled in China” always immediately follow that statement on every device.

Well, this is certainly news to us but it looks like the story unfolded as of Memorial Day weekend. Anyhow, in case you haven’t heard, Nick Drake, who’s spent the last four years at TBWA\Chiat\Day LA and the last two-and-a-half serving as its worldwide managing director, is leaving the agency to assume the chief marketing officer position at apparel/footwear brand, Quiksilver. According to the latter company, which is also based in SoCal, Drake will be joining up as CMO effective July 1. From what sources tell us, though, Drake is for the moment still at Chiat LA, where as worldwide MD, he’s responsible for Gatorade, Adidas, Visa and the agency’s content studio, Let There Be Dragons, which he co-founded.

We’re waiting to get some clarification on if there are immediate plans to replace Drake and when his last day at TBWA C\D LA actually. Prior to joining said agency, the exec worked on the client-side for Adidas in Amsterdam, where he served as a global marketing head for the brand.

Well, this tidbit flew under the radar, but thanks to a heads up from tipsters, it appears that Robert Valdes, who recently TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, has indeed joined Droga5 NY as head of interactive production. We’re following up with the latter agency to get some more details on his arrival. As we reported over a month ago, Valdes was leaving TBWA C\D NY, where he spent nearly four years as its head of production, for a “new opportunity.” During his time at Chiat NY and TBWA network, Being, the production vet worked on several projects for Absolut and Jameson among other accounts. Prior to TBWA, Valdes spent three years as an executive producer at CP+B. We’ll fill in the blanks when we can.

Update: Droga5 confirms that Valdes has joined the agency as head of interactive production, which is a newly created position. His first day is today.

From Apple and TBWA/Media Arts Lab comes the spiritual sequel to last month’s “Photos Every Day” spot for the iPhone.

“Music Every Day” uses the exact same formula as its predecessor, with similarly excellent execution. We’ve come a long way from Apple’s original iPod commercials. No longer do we have silhouetted dancers projected against green screens with a loud, indie-rock soundtrack. Instead, just like “Photos Every Day,” we have a simple concept that, more than anything, humanizes iPhone users. What are these people listening to? It doesn’t matter; the important thing is that they’re enjoying it. We see them smile, nodding their heads along to a beat, something that we see occur is real life every single day.

Again, it ends with a single-sentence VO: More people listen to music on the iPhone than any other phone. The entire concept seems obvious, but sometimes it’s the obvious that needs to be said. Credits after the jump.

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It seems like we’ve been hearing about cuts at TBWA\Media Arts Lab (although relatively minor) pretty much every week this month but all tips up until now have proven to be fairly inaccurate . Now, though, we’ve received word from sources that TBWA’s Apple-focused, L.A.-based unit did let go of some staffers last week (the \MAL camp, like always, is keeping quiet). From what we’re hearing, approximately a dozen or so \MAL folks have been cut based on skill sets needed for the business at present.

On the flipside, though, Media Arts Lab, which also has office space in London, Tokyo, Shanghai, Seoul and Sydney, did make some creative hires in recent weeks including former B-Reel creative directors Hector Muelas and Ricardo Viramontes, who now serve as GCDs at the former agency.

Don’t worry, worried tipsters. Though they left TBWA\Chiat\Day LA rather quietly, we’re getting word from sources in the know that there was nothing sinister going on regarding the departures of group creative directors/significant others Becca Morton and Gage Clegg. But yes, we have received confirmation that Morton and Clegg, art director and copywriter by trade, respectively, have left Chiat LA after spending nine years with the agency (as well as with its innovation studio, Let There Be Dragons), where they worked on past and present accounts including Visa (remember the 2008 spot above?), The Grammys, Johnson & Johnson, Pedigree and Southwest.

Now that sources tell us their last freelance work with said agency is in the can, which may explain why their departure was a bit subtle, the pair has struck out on their own as you can see in their most recent LinkedIn update. Here’s an excerpt: “We love coming up with ideas, solving problems, finding solutions and making things that are smart and simple and beautiful. We don’t so much love meetings and politics and not ever being able to go on vacations and such, so have decided to enter the wild and wolly world of freelance.”

Morton and Clegg started out as senior art director and copywriter, respectively, before eventually getting bumped up to GCDs at TBWA C\D LA two years ago.

In perhaps the best spot since the passing of Steve Jobs, Apple and TBWA\Media Arts Lab’s latest for the iPhone, “Photos Every Day,” somehow mixes simplicity with more visually striking images than we’ve seen from the tech giant in quite a while.

“Photos Every Day” takes us outside of Apple’s infinite environment of white space and Helvetica and into the great outdoors, which may be the first time Apple’s ever done that to my recollection. However, I’m young, so correct me if I’m wrong here. The spot highlights one of the iPhone’s greatest, if overlooked feature: its 8-megapixel HD camera. Now, in this day an age, every phone on the market is a camera-phone, as has been the case for nearly a decade now. However, the iPhone’s camera is, and probably will continue to be, a step up from every Nexus or HTC phone on the market.

This is Apple’s way of saying, “Hey, remember this thing? We have the best, and, unlike Siri, it’s actually one of our features that you’ll use constantly for just about everything.” Add to that Instagram, which began as an iPhone exclusive and still works best with iOS, and you have yourself some simple, yet beautiful. Credits after the jump.

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We’ve received confirmation that Robert Valdes, who’s spent just about four years as head of production at TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, is leaving the agency come Friday. From what sources tell us, Valdes is leaving of his own accord for a yet-to-be disclosed “new opportunity” though he won’t be starting his new gig for another month or so. During his at Chiat NY as well as TBWA network, Being, Valdes served as HOP on, among other things, several campaigns for Jameson including the “Iron Horse” spot from a couple of months ago as well as various efforts for Absolut such as the “NY-Z” collaboration with Jay-Z.

Prior to joining TBWA C\D NY, Valdes spent three years serving as executive producer at CP+B.

We’ve been getting a few tips on the Spy line that Ricardo Viramontes and Hector Muelas, who have each spent nearly a year as creative directors at B-Reel, have been lured away by TBWA\Media Arts Lab to, you guessed it, work on Apple. Since\MAL is like Area 51 considering its Apple tie-in, TBWA would not comment on the hirings, but prior to their work at B-Reel, Viramontes served as an art director for four-plus years at W+K New York on accounts including Jordan Brand and has also worked at the likes of CAA (you surely remember this) and BSSP.

Muelas, meanwhile, also worked at CAA on the same campaign among other things as well as W+K Amsterdam on accounts including Nike and Coca-Cola. We’ll let you know if and when Tim Cook & Co. or those on the agency level remove the leash and reveals more specifics.

Sources familiar with the matter confirm that Perry Essig, who’s been with Publicis for well over five years and most recently served as EVP/executive creative director out of its New York office, is leaving the agency for a gig a TBWA\Chiat\Day NY. From what we’ve been told by sources, Essig is moving to Chiat NY, effective May 1, to serve as global creative director on Accenture, which awarded TBWA its global AOR duties nearly two years ago. During his five-year stint at Publicis, Essig served as EVP/ECD on the Citi business (you might remember this spot that’s still been making the rounds) among other things.

Prior to Publicis, Essig served as partner/senior copywriter at Ogilvy on AmEx and Kodak among other accounts and has also served as an ACD at Arnold.