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A Hands-On Zune Review

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the zunetastic dept.

jayintune writes "2old2play.com got the chance to sit down with Microsoft's new media player, the Zune, to give some comments and insight into the players User Interface, Video Playback, Music Sharing, as well as software and setup." From the article: "I had expected the player to be fairly heavy, but after holding the Zune in my hand it was clear that I was wrong. It is not as light as the latest video iPod, but compared to my fourth-generation iPod, the Zune was lighter. The top of the Zune had a clear glass layer while the exterior had a tactile feel to it, nothing like the hard metal and plastic of the iPod devices. The 'skin' of the Zune was a 'rubberized' material that had a smooth seductive feel to it. I found myself unable to stop stroking the device, so much that the demo assistant asked me to put it down."

16 of 279 comments (clear)

  1. NDA? Goose? by ackthpt · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The 'skin' of the Zune was a 'rubberized' material that had a smooth seductive feel to it. I found myself unable to stop stroking the device, so much that the demo assistant asked me to put it down.
    Laughing off the uncomfortable silence, I focused on the player and the user interface (UI). The interface is amazingly responsive to my actions.

    Um... Yeah. looks a news headlines, again. OK... maybe the author just having a little fun with the reader.

    Clicking on the "community" button allowed me to see the other two Zunes nearby. I decided to send them my community member a song. Browsed to my music folder, found to a song and, instead of selecting to play it, I chose to send it. Prompted with a list of Zune's nearby, I chose one and sent it. Watching the other Zune, the user was prompted to download and accepted the request. It took less than 20 seconds to send the whole song which included album art.

    Sounds lengthy, but if you're trying to chat up a hot prospect 20 seconds is plenty of time to break the ice.

    Upon a successful transfer, the music is wrapped with a digital rights management (DRM) layer which will give the user a three day or three-listen license. I don't know about many of our readers, but I can listen to a song over and over again. Three plays... please!

    DRM(!) huhhhhh HUUHHHHH huhhhhh HUUHHHHH Welcome to the dark side I wonder if there's something which allows you to add it to a wishlist to buy later if you decide you like it.

    Yes, it is a first-generation product but I really like the direction Microsoft is taking with the Zune.

    Clearly the reviewer is happy with DRM. Only one model, Hmm.. So when's the Zune Femto coming out?

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
    1. Re:NDA? Goose? by fatphil · · Score: 3, Interesting

      But music is different from music trading.

      about 2/3rds of the people I know and hang around with are musicians (just back from a gig by one of them, in fact), and yet music sharing almost never bubbles up above the horizon, even if music is the prime topic of conversation.

      FatPhil

      --
      Also FatPhil on SoylentNews, id 863
    2. Re:NDA? Goose? by AdmiralWeirdbeard · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Actually, I'd *hate* to be walking around any hipster enclave with one of these.
      I live on Capitol Hill in Seattle, and I can just see retarted hipster indie-rocker wannabe's walking around trying so upload their "band's" single on to any/everyone's Zune.
      It'll be the next venue for that annoying asshat who hangs around the bar w/ cheap PBR pushing cheaply made cd's onto passersby.
      If for no other reason, this should dissuade you from picking one up.
      Just my $0.02

      --
      Come read my stupid blagablog. Rants and Giggles
  2. Zune Meme Analysis by broward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Microsoft's traditional marketing isn't working well.
    Gee? What other ploys can Microsoft try?

    Unfortunately, the mental bandwidth already belongs to iPod, it will be hard to dislodge them in favor of Zune.

    http://www.realmeme.com/roller/page/realmeme?entry =zune_meme_rerun

    1. Re:Zune Meme Analysis by EvanED · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Zune will have to appeal to first time buyers and a lot of them will be asking the same question, "is it as good as an iPod?"

      My MP3 CD player (RioVolt SP250... old school) just bit the dust. Not sure what I'm gonna get in replacement. But *my* question would be "is it cheaper than an iPod?"

      (Actually I might get a player with a built in compactflash slot so I could move pictures from my camera to the hard drive.)

    2. Re:Zune Meme Analysis by wired_LAIN · · Score: 4, Interesting

      I thought that Microsoft was providing all the songs that you bought on itunes for free? I remember reading that in a previous /. article.

      --
      It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.
    3. Re:Zune Meme Analysis by nroose · · Score: 5, Interesting

      iTMS has sold over a BILLION songs. Probably tens of millions of customers.

      So, what happens if you try to share an MP3 file? Does that get DRMed also? That would suck.

      Seems to me like they might sell some of these if they allowed purchasing the song that someone shared with you, right from the device, and then letting you copy it back to your PC.

      I find that compatibility thing funny. MS has spent soooo much time, effort, money, and compromise on backward compatibility in Windows over the years. Perhaps they just had enough of that.

    4. Re:Zune Meme Analysis by vought · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Like the past few years of imminent iPhone announcements, that was a rumor, and as such, wasn't reflected in the cold, hard light of reality. Although I'd chuckle to see Microsoft chuck a couple of billion dollars at the record companies to re-buy everyone's iTMS tracks. Talk about corporate welfare and pissing off the geeks...

      If you've spent a couple of hundred bucks on iTunes Music Store Tracks like me (all backed up as non-DRM AIFF, thank you) then you have to consider that those tracks will not play on the Sune without reripping - and reripping means you get big files that sound at least as good as the original iTMS store files, or you get Windows DRM o' The Week files that sound a trifle bit crappier.

      May I add that this article sounds to have been written by a total flaming fanboy? Holy cripes, I haven't seen so much fawning since Bambi.

    5. Re:Zune Meme Analysis by PlasticArmyMan · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Look at Apple. There's messageboards out there *cough*ipodlounge*cough* that are pretty much Apple Nazis. You even speak out against the ipod, which granted on an iPod message board is probably a bad thing, and you're screwed.

    6. Re:Zune Meme Analysis by I'm+Don+Giovanni · · Score: 4, Interesting
      Not only that, but anyone who has purchased songs in Microsoft's PlaysForSure scheme have been FUCKED by Microsoft. It's incredible to me that there isn't a larger outcry in the press over this.


      I don't understand your logic. How did anyone that buy PlaysForSure music get "FUCKED by Microsoft?" That would imply that those that bought PFS music would be better off in some way if Micrososft didn't come out with Zune, at all. But that's not the case.

      PlaysForSure still exists, and those that bought PFS music can still buy many PFS players. They won't buy Zunes, but how does that mean that they were "FUCKED by Microsoft"? They can buy still buy PFS players, just as they could before Zune. Only if PFS was being terminated, would they be "FUCKED".

      Also, most PFS users use the subscription model; the nice thing about that model is that you're free to switch services at any time without any loss in investment whatsoever.

      As for MS badmouthing Apple's lock-in model, then choosing it for themselves, they're admitting that Apple's model is more successful. Apple fanboys should be happy at being vindicated (but MS is still offering subscription as well as purchases, so they didn't copy Apple's model entirely.)
      --
      -- "I never gave these stories much credence." - HAL 9000
  3. smells fishy by JJ!x · · Score: 5, Interesting

    2 articles; hmm first ditch the Apple iPhone and than stroke the Zune .. something smells fishy here :-)

    1. Re:smells fishy by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Slashdot's culture has fundamentally changed. It's full of Microsoft shills now. The mod ranks are full of Microsoft shills that mod down anyone critical of Microsoft, while modding up anyone that is critical of their competitor's products. They'll mod up anyone defending Microsoft.

      Zonk is one paid by Microsoft to shill for them on this web site. I think it all started when Microsoft started using blogs to promote Vista, and then decided, "hey we can extend this to other products as well... let's start a Sony bashing campaign!"... and that's what's going on right now. We'll see if this has an significant impact on sales.

  4. Zune sounds like a curse word in Hebrew by rminsk · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Zune sounds very much like ziyun which is a Hebrew curse word for f***.

    1. Re:Zune sounds like a curse word in Hebrew by Wumpus · · Score: 2, Interesting

      ...and it doesn't even sound that much like it. I've been reading about the Zune for a while now and the similarity never occured to me. And yes, I'm fluent in Hebrew.

  5. Re:Standard Slashdot response by NineNine · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Actually, I've read in many places that it DOES support Ogg. Can't verify, though.

  6. Re:It's all about marketing by __aawlmn9210 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Love you paranoid applets. Here's the actual site address: http://www.2old2play.com/, by the way. Lytis is the company that "designed and hosts" sites, using Global Compass, Inc. servers. Lytis debuted on 8-03. Your information, while true, is irrelevant. Lytis has no connection with MS- it was hired to get the site titled "2 Old 2 Play" online. It did so. Archives for this marginal, wholly volunteer effort, go back to 3/05. On 4/6/2005, it officially announced in "News" the new 2 Old 2 Play site and there are 5 comments to the post- all spam. Your levels of paranoia are only exceeded by your levels of ignorance. This is an amateur site, hence the site development company. What is it about you applets that makes you this way?