Zune

By Dan Nosowitz Zune HD + ZunePass and HD Dock: If your Apple hater is in the market for a PMP, there's no better option than the Zune HD—in terms of media capabilities, it kicks the iPod Touch's standard-def ass with HD radio, 720p video output, a killer OLED screen and a gorgeous, media-centric UI. It'll pl...

By bryan646 Will the Zune ever support more file types? I don’t have an answer to that, but the hardware will allow it. The Xbox and now Windows 7 natively supports codecs such as Xvix/Divx right out of the box, the Zune should too. In the mean time check out the Zune Video Conversion forum for tips and trick...

By somninaut Schnazzy I guess all Windows users would experience the same thing of the Zune software: a Microsoft music player developed for a Microsoft operating system is expected to run better on Windows than an Apple music player designed for the Macintosh operating system.

By flung The good folks at Ubergizmo have released a review of the Zune HD media player here on their website. Here’s an excerpt from their conclusion: “Technologically, the Zune HD is one of the most powerful mobile devices out there and its user interface is unbelievably fast, but it lacks applic...

By bryan646 I think this review for the most part is dead on but, the author state that “The new model’s 3.3-inch, 480×272 multitouch display and compact form prove that MS can get the design right given a couple of tries.” is all wrong. The second generation of the Zune was and is still a great PMP. The Zune do...

By John Herrman What You'll Need Free hard drive space: VirtualBox is going to create a simulated hard drive (a hard drive image, to be specific) inside your current OS's file system. In other words, you'll need to have space handy to hold a standard OS install, plus whatever apps you're planning on using o...

By therackow Zune 4.0 software: This really was the deciding factor in what iPod alternative I bought. Like it or not, Apple is good at turn-key solutions. iPod/iTunes integration is great. It’s a shame iTunes is as bad as it is now. Zune 4.0 software is so nice, multiple ways to view your content, lots of image...

By Eli Blumenthal The Zune HD Overall, the Zune HD is a big step up from the previous 2 generations of Zune, and something we definitely look forward to see more of in upcoming Zune devices. Texas Hold’em on the Zune HD The Zune HD For the last week or so we were able to spend some good ‘ol time with Microsoft

By NEWS ” Apple Tablet Mockup New rumored details emerged today about tablets from two competitors: Apple and Microsoft.  iLounge says they have 10 new pieces of info on Apple’s tablet…” MORE »Waterproof gadgets on the way - invisibleShield maker, ZAGG, gets some waterproofing tech

By Zealot In my Zune HD review, reader Paul Johnson asked how the Zune HD handled direct sunlight and I realized that that was a very good question, and in fact I simply didn’t know the answer, as I tend to avoid the sunlight like a slug avoids salt. What’s more, that question seems to have become a point o...

By JG Mason Really?  And then your response is “Well, that’s not my job, that’s what the Windows Mobile is doing.”  Really, MS?  Can the Zune run Windows Mobile apps?  Did you not say this as you wouldn’t want it to seem like Windows Mobile team is dragging their feet in getting this deal together?  Then...

By Dan Nosowitz The big question: Can the Zune HD compete with the iPod Touch? I get the sense that Microsoft isn't trying to, exactly. Zune as Media Center The Zune HD is, like the other Zunes, Windows only. It can only sync with the Zune software, which is restricted to Windows.

By dgoldring The next thing you will need to do is update the firmware.  I was a little annoyed by this.  Here it is the first day the new device is available, and the firmware is already out of date.  Still, this was pretty much a matter of plug it in and let it go.  Before long, I had Zune 4.0 loaded on my computer, a...

By Dwight And, interestingly, some of the "magic" is missing. Gone is the ability to "squirt" songs from one Zune to another, which probably is no great loss. I only ever found one other Zune user to do this with, and it was in a room full of Microsoft employees at CES.

By Jason Dunn Second reason? Maybe Microsoft feels that the Zune Pass is SO important that they can't/won't launch Zune Marketplace without it. It's quite integral to the Zune experience - many new Zune features rely on the customer having a Zune Pass - so maybe Microsoft isn't launching in new markets...

By Jason Dunn Good to hear Steve Jobs is healthy - organ donation is so important. I've signed my organs away if something happens to me, and you should too. If you're dead, they won't do you any more good, so why not share?1.8 billion applications downloaded - that's a huge, impressive number. Apps matter. Mi...

By Wilson Rothman I was trying to figure out what it was about the Zune HD's TV interface that I was enjoying so much, and then I realized: Unlike every other device of its size and capacity, this thing is a true portable media center. It's not as fast as a fully fledged PC running Windows Media Center, but it is zi...

By Jason Dunn The Zune HD is designed from the ground up to take on the iPod Touch head to head. The hardware design is completely different from previous Zunes - one look at the sleek thinness tells you that. Microsoft wanted to get some information out about the Zune HD, but they're not spilling all the det...

By ctitanic PC Authority has posted an interesting article about disappointing technologies and there are two Microsoft’s Products that are included in the list of top ten. Could you guess which ones? I’m sure you do: Vista and Zune. Here is what they said about Zune:

By BOMB Matt Supported audio formats include AAC (Apple iTunes), MP3, WMA (Microsoft’s format), and WMA Lossless. I have to ask, can ANYONE bother to support OGG? Probably not, it’s primarily a Linux thing, and this IS a Microsoft platform, in a Windows world. Buy Zune 120 GB Video MP3 Player

By Darren Murph Simply aping one device at a time has just become too easy for the cloning labs in the backwoods of China, as evidenced by the two-for-one produced here by QQ. The K805 does its best Zune and iPod impersonation, and amazingly, it does so at the same time. The all too familiar click wheel is there...

By jonbox With the FM Radio capability, I’m sold. Add in the Zune Pass, and it’s a no brainer. Games is a plus, an opinion from my wife who loves Texas Hold’em and Sudoku, and my 7 yr old who likes Checkers. That’s why 4 of 5 in my house own a Zune, even the 7 year old (who’s a big fan).

By David Tucker One of the best functions of the Zune is that it lends itself to music discovery in several ways. The sharing feature that the Zune launched with is the most well-known and oft-ridiculed method. Microsoft has come out with several iterations of the Zune firmware since then and what most peop...

By Jason Dunn With the Zune 3.0 launch I've noticed a subtle but important shift in media perception: whether it's the new added features of 3.0, or just the fact that the Zune has been around long enough to make it to a third generation, the general attitude I see now in the media is that the Zune is a viable al...

By Jason Dunn So how do the Metro.fi headphones compare to the Zune Premium Headphones? There's really no comparison - the Zune headphones lacked any sense of clarity when I was listening to tracks from Flyleaf, while the Metro.fi headphones handled the same songs without a problem. The Zune headphones...

Related articles from Smartphone Thoughts.com, Zune Thoughts.com.

By Jason Dunn So how do the Metro.fi headphones compare to the Zune Premium Headphones? There's really no comparison - the Zune headphones lacked any sense of clarity when I was listening to tracks from Flyleaf, while the Metro.fi headphones handled the same songs without a problem. The Zune headphones...

Related articles from Pocket PC Thoughts, Zune Thoughts.com.

By Jason Dunn So how do the Metro.fi headphones compare to the Zune Premium Headphones? There's really no comparison - the Zune headphones lacked any sense of clarity when I was listening to tracks from Flyleaf, while the Metro.fi headphones handled the same songs without a problem. The Zune headphones...

Related articles from Pocket PC Thoughts, Smartphone Thoughts.com.

By Adrian Covert Though Microsoft left their new Zune hardware relatively untouched, the firmware and corresponding software got a few nice upgrades that add a bit of functionality. In the firmware, Marketplace is now available over Wi-Fi, while FM Tagging lets you mark songs you hear on the FM Tuner, an...

By Cesar Menendez As you’ve seen, some Zune bits and pieces have been hitting the interwebs…especially the great finds from our fans! Today I’m very excited to admit announce the Zune 3.0 fall update, available for download September 16. Whether you’ve been with us since day one with a Zune 30 or are just head...

By Jon Westfall It's been a week of technological upgrades for me in the Entertainment realm. Prior to Saturday, the last console system I'd owned was 8-bit Nintendo, my smartphone was my only music player that was updated (as I'd outgrown my 30 GB Zune and my 60 GB iPod's screen was just too small anymore),...

By Jon Westfall It's been a week of technological upgrades for me in the Entertainment realm. Prior to Saturday, the last console system I'd owned was 8-bit Nintendo, my smartphone was my only music player that was updated (as I'd outgrown my 30 GB Zune and my 60 GB iPod's screen was just too small anymore),...

By Aaron Zune is going to let the small bands win.  Being the underdog has allowed Microsoft to innovate, and with the Zune they have.  The only question is how long it will take people to realize that being an Apple fanboy isn't the best choice for people who truly want to hear new and good music. I bough...

By Adrian Covert Devices And Platforms Should Never Be Exclusive: The iPod never really took off until it began supporting Windows with it's 2G iteration. Of course, Apple had more to gain from opening up to a much, much larger Windows user base, but it never hurts to make a product more widely available to t...

So "Meet Again" is a bit of a misnomer since I use my Zune everyday but each time an update comes out it always feels like I'm relearning the Zune all over again.  This time it's the Zune 2.5 Spring 2008 Update and like every previous update I have a love/hate relationship with it. The Love

I had some real reservations with Dawngrrl handed me this little gift bag with a new 8GB Microsoft Zune in it. I had been wanting one for quite awhile, but being the guy with 3 iPods (2 now, I sold one!) I wasn’t sure if this little gadget would find it’s way into the rotation. I took it out of the pac...

By jamesche People external to Microsoft have mentioned these shortcomings, but our internal email lists at Microsoft have hit the Zune team the hardest regarding the Zune software. Microsoft employees are VERY hard on other Microsoft employees. It's part of what makes Microsoft such a great compa...

By Drea Avellan Speaking of improving, Microsoft released the new Zune models last month. Do you own one of these? I currently don’t but its on my wishlist…but I may hold out for v3 if those mockups I found are anywhere close to accurate (touch screen! *drool*)

Microsoft has now officially released the Zune 2, the follow up to their mostly shunned original Zune media player. Along with updated firmware and software Microsoft has also slimmed down the design, made the screen even bigger for the 30GB and 80GB models (27% bigger) and a.d.d.a couple mo...

By Jason Chen vs. iTunes: What used to be quite a close match between the Zune suite and iTunes has turned into a one-sided first round knockout for iTunes. Apple's changed iTunes very little since a year ago, but Microsoft has completely re-vamped their offering. We'd rather them de-vamp this, take a loo...

By pinksage great. I saw the Zune as an interesting inflection point of Microsoft knowing how to make generally good music software (Windows Media Player 11), and them knowing how to make great hardware (Xbox). The Xbox is a closed is so focused and streamlined. That was my hope for the Zune (it didn’t

By m.simon@spymacnetwork.com (Michael Simon) Apple Corps could have easily contacted Microsoft and given its own digital music player a little more clout on the open market. A few months of Beatles exclusivity would have given Zune a major one-up on the iPod and forced Apple to pay a little closer attention to the efforts of its longtim...

By TDavid About 33 percent of shoppers bought electronics over the weekend, including flat-panel television sets, Microsoft Corp.’s Zune digital music player and video-game consoles such as Nintendo Co.’s Wii and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3, the NRF said. Microsoft disclaimers

By Dwight Anyway, here's what I think Microsoft needs to do to make the Zune live up to its potential: Lose the software. The Zune's media management software is an unnecessary duplication of what's available in Windows Media Player 11. Instead, it should be a plug-in for WMP11.

By TDavid There is an old saying that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Some think Microsoft Points are an unnecessary hassle, but for those already actively using the Live Marketplace Microsoft Points are convenient. Did I have any trouble getting Zune to see how many Microsoft Points we had on ou...

By Dan Pourhadi This is also a major deviation from iTunes. To manage syncing photos to your iPod on the Mac, you use iPhoto and some settings in iTunes itself. Since Microsoft has no globally-accepted iPhoto equivalent, they built photo management tools right into Zune.

By Jason Chen When we're making a comparison between the iPod and the Zune, it's also important to note that the software makes a big difference in your music experience. You'll have to use the software suite extensively for both playing back music at your computer and organizing songs onto your portab...

By Jason Chen Music Organization/Playlists: Zune only has regular playlists here, which causes my own experience to suffer since I love smart playlists. Both Zune and iTunes have smart playlists, except on Zune it's called Auto Playlists and they're kind of hidden. And when you view a playlist in Zune...

By Dwight Chances are, you've seen Jim Thompson's post revealing that I lost both the Windows Vista and Windows XP Media Center installations on my computer, immediately after installing the software for Zune. I got Vista set up the way I like it and trundled off to bed. In the morning, I thought I'd tr...

By Ryan Block Finally, though, we have to address two things. First: Mac support. Yes, we know Apple users make up between 4-10+% of users in the US (depending who you ask), but not launching with Mac support is a Bad Thing. Microsoft expects Zune users to be Windows users. That's unreasonable. This was inten...

By Jason Chen Microsoft was kind enough to get us some hands-on time with the Zune, not batting an eye as we eagerly slided the player down our pants, enjoying the material it was made out of. Our thoughts first, then a gallery later. So the big news: The Zune will be upgradeable. How? Let us explain...