tech report have posted a great article comparing the ipod and the zune

enjoy

ipod vs zune

April 10 2007 - The chances of a Zune Scene editor running into a Microsoft Zune employee in the wild are pretty slim, but recently the stars were aligned and I got the inside scoop on the Zune 2.0 and also the flash based Zune coming out in 2007. I will attempt to preserve the identity of the Microsoft employee, he had no idea I write for Zune Scene, no idea at all. The whole conversation occurred on a business trip, you see, we Zune Scene editors have day jobs and are hard to spot in the wild also.

When I asked the guy where he worked he said Microsoft. That got my attention so I asked what he did, the answer was: “Zune”. He gave his name and title which I will withhold. So I gave him a barrage of questions and here’s what I found out:

Zune 2.0 and a smaller flash based Zune will be sold this year. He would not tell me the marketing names but referred to them as the big one and little one. The hard drive version looks like the generation 1 Zune, but is thinner. It has a larger hard drive and still uses the doubleshot. The flash based player he said is about “3 by 1 1/4 by 1/4 inches” in size. It is video capable and he said the screen covers about 75% of the front, similar to the hard drive Zune. The flash player has Wi-Fi and also uses a double shot. We discussed colors, he said there were several but did not disclose them. He had some interesting points about the clamshells saying that they can’t be opened easily like the current Zune. Both devices have completed the design phase, although some last minute minor tweaks to the hardware will occur. When I asked about memory capacity he said “you have to beat the competition you know” he also said the flash memory fills the smaller device from top to bottom. Surprisingly he gave some hard numbers: 2.4 million next gen Zunes will be fabricated prior the 2007 holiday season. About 2/3 of them are the smaller flash units. ” A new building is currently under construction in Dao Min China, next to the one that makes the XBOX 360″ he said. In Zune Scene’s opinion, based on that statement, it appears the Zune 2.0 will not be another Toshiba Gigabeat based device.

I also asked about the Zune Phone and he changed the subject and that pretty much ended the conversation unfortunately. So there you have it, the first details of the Zune 2.0 and flash device.

Source : ZuneScene 

Since its unremarkable launch in November, the Zune has failed to capture significant market share in the MP3 player arena. It has managed to hang around, though, partly because competition around it has been stale. With the long-awaited move of digital rights management (DRM)-free music to iTunes, however, Microsoft has fallen even more behind the curve.

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Five months after its introduction, industry experts give Microsoft Corp.’s Zune media player barely passing grades in terms of its marketplace success while Microsoft insists the device is on course.

“I’d give them a B-minus,” said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis for market research firm NPD Group. Other analysts gave Microsoft roughly the same marks.

“We are very definitely on target,” insisted Jason Reindorp, a Microsoft marketing director for Zune. He said there will be some changes in Zune’s direction, including, possibly, a Zune phone, but said Microsoft is satisfied with Zune’s progress.
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Microsoft on Wednesday released a minor update to its Zune software aimed at fixing several issues, including one that was causing some users to hear skipping when playing back purchased songs.

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It’s become standard practice in the consumer electronics industry: When it doubt, paint it pink. But strategies like that usually work best when a color is still hot, or at least lukewarm.

Perhaps that explains why Microsoft–rarely accused of setting trends these days–is coming out with a pink Zune now. Cliczune says EBgames.com has confirmed that the pastel version of the media player will be available May 1 for $250 with the standard 30GB storage capacity.

We doubt that the new hue will propel the Zune over the iPod anytime soon, but there was a fair amount of buzz over a few special pink versions in circulation back in November. And then there was that eBay auction where a pink Zune went for $960.

Source : cnet

Microsoft is still planning a software update soon to fix several issues with its Zune music player, but releasing the patch is taking longer than expected.

The software maker said last month to expect a patch in mid-March. The update is designed to address a couple of issues, including one that causes some songs downloaded from Microsoft’s online Zune Marketplace store to skip when played on the device.

Microsoft isn’t giving a new time frame, but marketing director Jason Reindorp said in an e-mail that “it is very close to being ready.”

“The original date was an estimate based on how long we thought it would take to finish development work and put the update through normal testing processes,” Reindorp said. “As with any project like this, things can sometimes take a little less time or a little more time.”

Microsoft issued a Zune update in December to allow the player and the desktop Zune software to work with Windows Vista.
Source : cnet

The ipod has been one of the best little gadgets that apple has designed in a long time. Not only was it great for mac lovers for also for those who still like owning a pc. Microsoft has something in mind that will blow the ipod and the ipod nano clear out of the water.

Microsoft calls it the zune and the features that this little mp3 player so far is showing much more promise then the ipod ever did. The zune has a retail price of $249.99 and guess what that is more then worth the price just because of all the features the little powerhouse has. It gives you storage that you will probably never be able to fill along with being able to send information to other zunes through an ingenious wireless zune to zune connection.

I can see apple starting to worry about the zune not only because it is a competitor for the ipod but also because microsoft has been able to dominate the computer market for a very long time and odds are will always.

There is talk of a zune shortage during the release time and this can always be met with many trying to get their hands on them as soon as possible. There are at the moment 3 great colors for the zune and odds are there will either be updated colors or skins that could possibly go over the case. Microsoft is also setting up a song site where zune owners can get a membership to and get a ton of songs that will go right into the zune.

Whether you are an apple fan or not you have to realize that the zune will end up taking over what ipod started. There were many diehard pc fans who ended up going and buying an ipod so whatever you do don’t feel like you are a trator to your brand. You just need to go with what suits you best and has the features that you are looking for. For most though it is hot, it is new and it is something that they need right now.

There are many places where you can purchase the zune just make sure and pick one up before they get too hard to buy. Odds are you will start to see these selling on ebay for an appreciated price due o the demand. Also don’t forget that there are ways to get the brand new $249.99 zune completely free. Odds are a free zune is much better then paying for one but you need to be the judge of that.

It looks like most people are going to be getting the white zune and then there are a few who are actually going to test out the brown colored one. Not really the best choice for an electronic device but looks like money none the less.

All around probably going to be one of the best devices to be sold in the year 2007 and for good reason. Stop wasting your time and get a microsoft zune today.
Source : http://macvirgin.net/?p=104

I got my zune delivered 2 days ago. All in all im absolutely loving it. I am gonna spend more time getting to know the zune and the software before i post a full review at Electric Bandits

in the mean time i will be posting about my experiences with it and the best software available etc

lpxxfaintxx  from zuneboards has made up a hack which stops guest syncing. more info here.