Slashdot Mirror
No App Store For Microsoft's Zune HD
Xerfas writes 'Microsoft's Zune HD, set to go on sale Tuesday, will not feature an open application store like its competitor the iPod Touch. It will come with some unique features, though, like an HD radio tuner, and with software that has been well-received by users. Those capabilities will determine whether the ZuneHD sells well — and whether Microsoft decides to keep selling its own music player, said Matt Rosoff, an analyst at Directions on Microsoft.' The Zune marketing manager was quoted in the Seattle Times on whether the Zune would open up for 3rd-party apps, and he gave a response of such mind-numbing PR-speak that John Gruber of Daring Fireball was moved to provide this English translation: "No, because our mobile strategy is a convoluted mess."
I no longer *need* my iPod or any MP3 player. I use an application called Orb that streams all of the media on my Windows desktop to my Cell Phone or any web browser. I don't have to worry about syncing my iPod to download media or running out of space on my iPod. As long as it's on my PC, I can stream it to my phone. Orb is free, but it uses the bandwidth of your home PC to stream out the media...which is fine for music and live TV or video on the cell phone. But the lower video quality is noticeable when you stream it to a desktop. I expect this to change as residential upload speeds will eventually go up.