Slimy Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 (edited) At least one analyst suspects that Microsoft decided to forego announcing pricing of its Zune music player at the last minute due to the surprise announcement last Tuesday that Apple would drop the price of its smallest hard-drive based iPod to $249.This seems to match information obtained by BetaNews over the weekend, which indicated that Apple's announcement caught Microsoft by surprise. The issue created an awkward situation for the Redmond company where a product was announced, but without any kind of retail pricing or availability guidance. Sources within Microsoft indicate that the company is taking a "we will not be undersold" approach in its pricing structure, and was likely to announce a price that was either the same or lower than that of a comparable iPod. Undercutting the iPod is a major goal of Microsoft's upcoming effort, say these sources. American Technology Research analyst Shaw Wu echoed such reports on Friday, saying that the firm believes "Microsoft is re-thinking its pricing strategy amid potential wider losses to stay competitive in the marketplace." The iPod's new low price throws a wrench into Microsoft's plans. The company now needs to decide whether it can afford taking a second large financial risk by sticking to its previous pricing strategy, or hope its increased feature set can buoy the Zune at a price equal to or slightly higher than the iconic iPod. Microsoft is already losing as much as $100 too $200 per Xbox 360 shipped, according to teardowns of the unit, but those losses are sometimes offset by game sales. In this case, consoles are usually seen as "loss leaders," which allow for faster adoption of the console and allows a broader audience to afford the product. Things are different in the digital music realm. Save for iTunes, music stores have made very little in the way of profits due to the high royalties the services are forced to pay the record labels. Thus, these services need to sell substantial amounts of music in order to make any kind of considerable profit. It is unclear if Microsoft executives or its shareholders would approve of yet another device that would lose the company money. However, sources said to expect the Zune to come at a price that is comparable to that of the iPod, even with the price drop. What that pricing may be is yet to be seen. Requests for comment from Microsoft went unanswered as of press time. Source title edited, threads merged Edited September 19, 2006 by John S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Warwagon MVC Posted September 18, 2006 MVC Share Posted September 18, 2006 now if it only played Xvids Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malisk Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 And looked about 10 times better. Yes, then we'd be talking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrisCr0ss Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 im sure a firmware update can enable xvid :p. But wow if its cheap HOLII Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Menge Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 this is great news! competition rocks :) i'm really excited about the zune. it looks nice, it has mp3, video and fm support on a nice screen with a nice user interface: i LIKE it :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dotdot Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 this is great news! competition rocks :) i'm really excited about the zune. it looks nice, it has mp3, video and fm support on a nice screen with a nice user interface: i LIKE it :) ditto :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gowcra Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 interestin' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
asdfoi83wyrl Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 Screenshot courtesy Engadget: Story Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randolph Posted September 18, 2006 Share Posted September 18, 2006 Ok and? Whatever happend to $249.99? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slimy Posted September 18, 2006 Author Share Posted September 18, 2006 According to this, MS will be attempting to beat $249.99 (the price for the 30gb iPod video). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Warwagon MVC Posted September 18, 2006 MVC Share Posted September 18, 2006 According to this, MS will be attempting to beat $249.99 (the price for the 30gb iPod video). nice plug :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
viciv Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 thanks for the news Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis.A Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Zune price Should we take this as official or wait till announcement. Still what do you guys think of that price point? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomwarren Veteran Posted September 19, 2006 Veteran Share Posted September 19, 2006 Nice spot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doli Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 The Zune, Creative 30GB Zen Vision W, and Creative Zen V 2GB look good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shiver202 Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 nice to bad they only have the black zune :woot: they got the white Creative Zen V man i have been lokking for this for a long time :yes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 i dont see it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John S. Veteran Posted September 19, 2006 Veteran Share Posted September 19, 2006 threads merged Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis.A Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 If the first post turns out to be true. We will be in for a treat this holiday season. So excited can't wait for the official details on pricing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jordan. Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Does anyone know the physical dimensions of the zune? I can't seem to find them. I want to know if it is any thicker/bigger than the ipod. That for me will be the deciding factor if to get a zune or ipod. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luis.A Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 Does anyone know the physical dimensions of the zune? I can't seem to find them. I want to know if it is any thicker/bigger than the ipod. That for me will be the deciding factor if to get a zune or ipod. Size and Weight Zune (30GB) has small size especially while serving up that bigger screen. * Weight: 5.6 ounces; * Height: 4.4 inches; * Width: 2.4 inches; * Depth: 0.58 inches; * Colors: black, white, and brown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AxelStone Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 I'll take the Ipod... and stear clear of iTunes. The iPod seems to keep simplicity... albeit I hate the iPod... I'm not shining up to well to the interface of Zune, no matter how "pretty". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PL_ Veteran Posted September 19, 2006 Veteran Share Posted September 19, 2006 How much in GBP? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaffra Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 maybe they'll make core & premium versions :wacko: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saxondale. Posted September 19, 2006 Share Posted September 19, 2006 How much in GBP? ?199 i would imagine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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