Microsoft Zune News/Information Thread

[Spur]

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/10/03/microsoft_unveils_second_generation_of_zune_media_ players.html

Microsoft said it will continue to sell the first-generation 30GB Zune for $200, but will provide an automatic software updated for the player that will bring its software features up to spec with the new models when they go on sale in mid-November.

Unlike the original Zune lineup, customers won't have the option of a picking up a brown model. Instead, the 80GB model will be available only and black, while the two flash models will come in either pink, green, black or glossy red.

Each new Zune will feature what Microsoft calls "the Zune Pad," essentially a navigation button with a touch-sensitive surface. Users will be able to flick their thumbs over the pad to browse through song lists or to fast-forward through picture slide shows or videos. Users will also be able to navigate the Zune Pad using physical cues by pressing on the four sides or the center of the button to adjust the volume or choose the next track.

In addition to distinctive new interface menus, the players will leverage a new wireless sync feature that will automatically sync media over home Wi-Fi networks, ensuring that users always have the latest podcasts and other content ready to go when they leave home. Microsoft said the players will start syncing media from PCs when the device is placed in its dock or plugged in to its AC adapter.

Another feature -- extended wireless sharing -- will let users share full-length songs, albums, playlists, pictures and even audio podcasts from one Zune to another. Shared songs can be played up to three times with no time restrictions, Microsoft said, and shared songs can also be pass along to other Zune users.

[garnet4ever]

Just got one from Buy.com (brown only) for $99, great deal ... 30GB model. Anyway if you're looking ... anyone else have one? Like it ... don't like it?

[Spur]

Tell me how it is.

Two friends of mine have it. One loves it, the other hates it.

[garnet4ever]

Tell me how it is.

Two friends of mine have it. One loves it, the other hates it.

So far so good ... I little heavy and larger than I thought. But the 3 inch screen is nice as well as the resolution. One cool thing is (built in wireless) that you can sync it up via your wireless network to your PC ... that's cool ... but I'll let you know more as I probe through it a little more ...

[SpuR48]

So far so good ... I little heavy and larger than I thought. But the 3 inch screen is nice as well as the resolution. One cool thing is (built in wireless) that you can sync it up via your wireless network to your PC ... that's cool ... but I'll let you know more as I probe through it a little more ...

$100 bucks for 30 gigs?!?

What do you do, just sync w/ media player's playlists??

That's a damn steal!

[cold-cocked]

dumb question but is this a phone or an mp3 player?

[SpuR48]

dumb question but is this a phone or an mp3 player?

Microsoft's version of the iPod.

Which leads me to another question, do they play videos?

[YouCanNeverTell]

Yea they play vids. Most of the complaints I've heard about Zune were due to the PC software. I've used the software loads of times and haven't had any personal problems with it.

I think that had ipod not been first out of the gate Zune would be a much bigger seller. But everyone is so used to the whole ipod and itune thing that microsoft is having a hard time convincing even the most anti-apple consumers to give up their ipods for a zune. Familiarity is often a deciding factor when it comes to upgrading or buying new technology.

[garnet4ever]

alright ... I've played around with my Zune a good bit now. I like it, the only thing I don't care for is it's kind of big and heavier than I like. But I think the new ones with the new design are lighter.
The Zune software is good and yes if you have playlists in Media Player is will pick those up and load 'em up.
It came preloaded with songs and music videos and yes the video playback is sharp and clear.
The wireless sync work well too. All you have to do is set it up on the Zune.
The radio is great. Those stations that broadcast the song titles and stations tag it will pick those up and display as well.
It will read RSS feeds (Podcasts) which you can sync up with sites you set it up for ... like The Spurrier Show, etc.

All in all I think it was good deal and good player ... and there are some good accessories out there too ...

[usc1]

Dont get the Zune. Trust me. You're better off with the Ipod.

[garnet4ever]

Dont get the Zune. Trust me. You're better off with the Ipod.

Why?

[Gyle41386]

I just got one (30 gig). It's awesome.

[garnet4ever]

I just got one (30 gig). It's awesome.

yeah I like it ... same as any other as far as I can tell ... but I haven't ever owned an ipod either ... just Sansa ...

[ConwayGamecock]

Dont get the Zune. Trust me. You're better off with the Ipod.

iPods are fashion accessories. I've owned two of them...now own the Zen Vision:M, two Sandisk Sansas and a Kenwood HD30GB9. The 2G Zune is an improved version, but the wireless syncing isn't much better, IMO, having to be docked or charging, which means it's not really wireless. And it uses Zune Marketplace, not WMP, and is just as closed as the iPod/iTunes ecosystem. The Zune has solid SQ, but sadly no more user EQ.....

[morecockyin2006]

i ordered one of dell the other day for 96...i ordered brown but they sent white...i absolutley love mine, i think everyone should get a zune over an ipod.

[usc1]

Why?

This is why...read it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/technology/09pogue.html?em&ex=1163307600&en=5dab303c42cf990b&ei=5087%0A

[ConwayGamecock]

This is why...read it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/technology/09pogue.html?em&ex=1163307600&en=5dab303c42cf990b&ei=5087%0A

why bother....that editorial is a joke.....not to mention a year old......

[ColaCock]

This is why...read it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/technology/09pogue.html?em&ex=1163307600&en=5dab303c42cf990b&ei=5087%0A

That article is so old and was wrote before the Zune ever really hit shelves. Come with something better than that.

[raz67stang]

I'm interested to learn more about the Zune, I've had 3 Ipods and all of them have died on me after about a year. I havent seen a 30 gig Zune though, All I see are 4,8, and 80 gig

[raz67stang]

check that, just saw a 30 gig. I was wondering if I should get a 30 gig with a hard drive or an 8 gig thats a flash drive. I've heard that jogging messes up your hard drive (which would explain why I've killed 3) does anyone know if thats true? Should I get a flash drive if I want to jog with it?

[ConwayGamecock]

check that, just saw a 30 gig. I was wondering if I should get a 30 gig with a hard drive or an 8 gig thats a flash drive. I've heard that jogging messes up your hard drive (which would explain why I've killed 3) does anyone know if thats true? Should I get a flash drive if I want to jog with it?

HDD technology to counter drive failure from impacts has increased from the early days, with larger buffers and sensors that detect sudden gravitational changes and shuts off driver head operation (which accounts for the vast % of damage to the drives), so it's certainly safer these days than it used to be in the early 2000's. But solid state flash memory will always be more secure than any mechanicallly driven drives, and you don't roll the dice with them as much as you do with HDD's....


The 30GB Zune is the first generation Zune, now called Zune 30. The flash Zunes and 80GB Zunes (Zune 4, 8, and 80) are the newer 2nd generation models, which are thinner, have the "squircle" design, and have metal backs to them....

[usc1]

That article is so old and was wrote before the Zune ever really hit shelves. Come with something better than that.

Does it matter? The zune didnt change sense then did it? Did the features evolve?

[garnet4ever]

check that, just saw a 30 gig. I was wondering if I should get a 30 gig with a hard drive or an 8 gig thats a flash drive. I've heard that jogging messes up your hard drive (which would explain why I've killed 3) does anyone know if thats true? Should I get a flash drive if I want to jog with it?

If I was a jogger man, I could help ya, but all I can say is that doing yard work it, it works fine. Played a little hoops with it on and it was fine also ...

[ColaCock]

Does it matter? The zune didnt change sense then did it? Did the features evolve?

Yes things have changed since then. There are new models that are now flash-based, and there have been significant updates in firmware/shareware.

[ConwayGamecock]

Does it matter? The zune didnt change sense then did it? Did the features evolve?

Both the Zune AND the iPod have changed since that article was posted....

[Spur]

http://www.electronista.com/articles/08/02/11/microsoft.buys.danger/

Microsoft today revealed that it was acquiring Danger Inc., triggering a shift in the mobile phone business. The deal's terms have not been disclosed but will see the smaller firm, best known for the software powering Sidekick messaging phones, folded into the Entertainment and Services Division at Microsoft. The buyout will help Microsoft enter the "consumer space" for phones and will simultaneously let Danger expand its partnerships to other companies. Neither firm has said when they expect the deal to be approved by US officials.

The acquisition revives talk of a possible Zune phone. Although Microsoft has previously denied any plans in the area, the Entertainment and Devices division is almost exclusively limited to consumer hardware such as the Xbox 360 game console and the Zune line of media players, with the bulk of Microsoft's mobile OS development taking root in its separate Windows Mobile project. Microsoft also already has Windows Live messaging features built into the Xbox 360's software interface, reducing the need for Danger's help.

A rumor early last year initially suggested that a Zune-branded phone would be available as early as December but has since been quashed, with only the second generation of Zune media players launching in the same timeframe.

Microsoft has increasingly turned to developing its own devices rather than following its past practices of licensing software to others. Although it had developed its PlaysForSure program to encourage the spread of Windows Media and fight the dominance of iTunes and the iPod, it introduced the Zune in November 2006 with a proprietary store and file format that ultimately forced the closure of MTV's URGE and other music stores that had expected cooperation rather than competition from Microsoft. The Zune players themselves are also believed to have taken share from PlaysForSure-capable devices rather than Apple.

[JAYBEZ]

Hey, who knows. Maybe google and MS will resolve their differences and MS phones can run the new google software...

[Spur]

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13526_3-9951513-27.html

GameStop, a leading video game retailer, has decided that it will no longer stock Microsoft's Zune players, citing poor sales. And while I don't quite agree with my fellow-blogger Don Reisinger that this is the beginning of the end for Zune, it's hard to see any silver lining in the news.