Zune Reviews: It's OK, But No iPod

[evo_spook]

True. I also know a white MP3 player made from a certain company that cant be used as a external HDD either :rolleyes:

BS article....End of story.

can you name that one, cause if you are refering to any ipod then you are sadly mistaken

[Andrew Lyle Global Moderator]

not the news i wanted to hear... but honestly, iPod's are WAY over rated, and i refuse to fall into the trend. I enjoy my Sandisk! it's amazing!!

[evo_spook]

not the news i wanted to hear... but honestly, iPod's are WAY over rated, and i refuse to fall into the trend. I enjoy my Sandisk! it's amazing!!

as far as I recall this isn't about the ipod but the zune, so the reply should be

not the news i wanted to hear... but honestly, iPod's are WAY over rated, and i refuse to fall into another trend. I enjoy my Sandisk! it's amazing!!

which is what the zune is shaping up to be, and isn't buying a player just cause it is NOT a ipd, yet another trend?

[Eric Veteran]

Well, the fact that he thinks the iPod looks "elegant" makes me not give a crap about his review. Some iPods look decent at best (5th gen, old nano), but most look really ugly (mini, new nano, old shuffle, etc.). I'll reserve my judgement of the Zune for when I see one in person.

Agreed... The iPods look like medical equipment to me. bleh

[revvo]

not the news i wanted to hear... but honestly, iPod's are WAY over rated, and i refuse to fall into the trend. I enjoy my Sandisk! it's amazing!!

Is it wrong to enjoy a product because it's seen as a trend or in the case of the iPod, a cult-like must-have relic? Not if you know it does exactly what you need in a media player.

Yes I agree, many (and I mean many) buy it because of marketing and peer pressure. Does that mean that the product sucks? Not always. In some cases yes, but in some cases no. I'd say in this case, the iPod is a great mp3 player. There are many other great mp3 players but to say that the iPod ain't one is to be in denial because you see it as the trendwhore's favorite gadget.

I will however say this about Apple. The whole "Let's make our ipods smaller everytime!" gets annoying. The mini was the form factor that I liked and on top of that, the material was an anodized metal finish that's scratch resistant and quite solid. The nano's too small and fragile.

[Fourjays Veteran]

I have read reviews of players that are superior to the iPod. They look as sleek, have better battery life, are of the same size or smaller and so on. Yet they get nowhere, because they miss one thing... They aren't an iPod!

The iPod is a fashion icon, a trend, a fad. People will want one for the sake of it. It's like a Ferrari. If Ferrari were to build a bad car tomorrow (or someone else made a better car), people would still buy it. Because it's a Ferrari, it doesn't matter whether it is a good or bad car, just that it is a Ferrari.

The only way MS will win in the MP3 market is if they do something utterly amazing; 5 times the capacity of the iPod, three quarters of the size, twice the screen resolution, more stylish/hip/cool, superior sound quality, etc

[LTD]

I have read reviews of players that are superior to the iPod. They look as sleek, have better battery life, are of the same size or smaller and so on. Yet they get nowhere, because they miss one thing... They aren't an iPod!

The iPod is a fashion icon, a trend, a fad. People will want one for the sake of it. It's like a Ferrari. If Ferrari were to build a bad car tomorrow (or someone else made a better car), people would still buy it. Because it's a Ferrari, it doesn't matter whether it is a good or bad car, just that it is a Ferrari.

The only way MS will win in the MP3 market is if they do something utterly amazing; 5 times the capacity of the iPod, three quarters of the size, twice the screen resolution, more stylish/hip/cool, superior sound quality, etc

Which is something . . . Apple would do, lol. Right now, the only thing that can kill the iPod is . . . another, better iPod. I'm not being a smartass, that's actually how it is now.

[markwolfe Veteran]

Me too, I saw one at a Wal-mart. The size wasn't the only thing that struck me, it also looked geniunly cheap. The case was rubberized, which is semi-good (Good grip, Looks cheap though). The buttons also looked generic. I want to see what the 6g iPod has to offer before i upgrade my mp3 player.

The larger size is probably due to the larger-sized screen (which I like). I think that the rubberized case is nice - many iPodders put theirs in protective cases, anyway, so the sleek shineyness isn't visible.

One big drawback the wireless (which should have been a big plus) a Zune review stated it takes 15 minutes to transfer a song. :blink: Kinda stinks, if you ask me. Almost not worth having (transfer via a PC would be much faster).

The biggest one is probably the new DRM which is incompatible with Microsoft's own PlaysForSure DRM (much to the chagrin of Microsoft partners in that DRM market!). So, all these companies that were previously in partnerships with Microsoft suddenly find themselves on the short end of the "you are a competitor!" stick. :p

[Spielo]

Ah, I wanted one. Doesn't sound too good.

I'm confused by all the responses by this one... Everything mentioned in Mossberg's et al's reviews was already common knowledge... how could anyone decide that they want a Zune and not be aware of any of the facts... The larger size? common knowledge. The crippled wireless functionality? common knowledge. Zune's store being smaller than iTunes'? common knowledge. The fact that the screen isn't a higher resolution, just bigger? common knowledge. Requires special Zune software to sync? common knowledge.

I'm not criticising the device, just those that had decided that they wanted one, or would have considered buying one, and didn't even know these things about it...

[riahc3]

Let's analyze:

Not really. Every article out there made it clear that this was Microsoft's iPod killer, to be in direct competition with it.

Every MP3 player is dubbed a iPod killer by every news article. I dont believe articles and like I said MS puts this first gen Zune into the market just to see what its like and get some expierence

It's at the cost of a bigger portable player. A smaller, more compact size is better, right?

Of course. I perfer a 1.0 screen over a 3.5. :rolleyes: I guess you like things small huh....

There are dozens of addons for the ipod to add FM radio.

Keyword: addons. The Zune comes with it out-of-the-box. No extra money required.

but seriously how many people would use it if you can instead stick some music that is ad-free without going through that bull**** machine-generated female voice that plays every time a song ends. Some radio stations are good I'll admit it but most are ****.

Another stupid quote :rolleyes: Radio isnt only for music. Its also for sports, news, weather, talkshows, etc. Some people dont want to listen to music all the time on their player. With Zune you can do this out-of-the-box while with the iPod (besides that it sound crappy with stock and most decent headphones) you have to pay additional money.

The iPod can be used as an external HDD, I know I use it sometimes to transfer large files from home to school.

The article ment clearly that its used as a external HDD drive so you can put your MP3 files on there and listen to them as soon as you unplug it. The Zune nor the iPod can do that

BS reply....End of story.

With BS brains like yours, my friend, its the end of humanity :no:

[pyehac]

Hopefully MS will look at this as their first try and improve it to atleast make it a challenge to the upcoming iPod.

Although I'll wait until I see it in my local electronics store and judge it for myself.

[benac]

The larger size is probably due to the larger-sized screen (which I like). I think that the rubberized case is nice - many iPodders put theirs in protective cases, anyway, so the sleek shineyness isn't visible.

The larger size may be do to the larger screen, but it simply appears to big. The rubberized case is probaly nice for grip, the White Zune specifically looked decent but looks generic to me. Many people do put there iPods into iCondoms (Cases) but people still want something that looks shiny/sleek no matter if it's covered up or not. I personally don't want a Dookie brown mp3 player whether it is covered up by a case or not. Why is the iPod so popular?...Design. It's An innovative design that has been proven to work time and time again.

One big drawback the wireless (which should have been a big plus) a Zune review stated it takes 15 minutes to transfer a song. blink.gif Kinda stinks, if you ask me. Almost not worth having (transfer via a PC would be much faster).

15 minutes is defiently too long. I like the idea of transfering songs wirelessly too and from other users. Seems like a unique idea that needs to be solid. Bluetooth would have been a much better wireless solution.

The biggest one is probably the new DRM which is incompatible with Microsoft's own PlaysForSure DRM (much to the chagrin of Microsoft partners in that DRM market!). So, all these companies that were previously in partnerships with Microsoft suddenly find themselves on the short end of the "you are a competitor!" stick.

Defiently.

[ranasrule]

ill stick to my MeizuM6

[nwBen]

Pwnt.

iPod forever.

[spenser.d]

Pwnt.

iPod forever.

Hahaha. You're funny. Keep in mind while I say this, I am the proud owner of an iPod, but it's a fad. It will die, and considering how long it's been popular, it probably won't be too long. People get sick of the same thing being 'cool' forever. Mark my words: it will die sooner rather than later.

-Spenser

[revvo]

Every MP3 player is dubbed a iPod killer by every news article. I dont believe articles and like I said MS puts this first gen Zune into the market just to see what its like and get some expierence

I agree, but that's because nearly every company mimmic'ed some of the stuff the iPod has for their HD-based mp3 player. I haven't seen until now one original mp3 player that brought anything new. They all try to make it feel like an ipod, and that's why they don't succeed. Heck, some companies even try to copy the shape of the ipod's earphones.

Of course. I perfer a 1.0 screen over a 3.5. :rolleyes: I guess you like things small huh....

What 1 inch? Comparing the nano flash drive with a 30gig zune? The iPod video's screen is 2.5. Regarding size, it's truly a personal matter here. Some people don't mind carrying PDA's on them while some try to carry the least possible, but looking at what the cellphones market look like and the success of the ipods or ipod alternatives like iRivers flash players and sandisk, I'd bet you anything that I'm not alone out there who goes for compact gadgets.

Another stupid quote :rolleyes: Radio isnt only for music. Its also for sports, news, weather, talkshows, etc. Some people dont want to listen to music all the time on their player. With Zune you can do this out-of-the-box while with the iPod (besides that it sound crappy with stock and most decent headphones) you have to pay additional money.

You are right regarding the radio part so I'll admit that, but my friend, don't start this whole thing about sound quality because the ipod's sound sucks if you stick with the stock headphones, which truly do suck but if you get a good pair, your sound will be more than awesome for most people. Some audiophiles might not be satisfied, so they might want to go for a MiniDisc for Linear PCM or any mp3 player that supports lossless codecs.

As for humanity? I think we all sort of contribute in slowly ending humanity :rofl:

[WhoTheF]

^^ The battles fun! iPod v/s Microsoft... or Steve v/s Bill. :D

[X@vier]

this is just too bad, I was really looking in to getting one but i don't know about it now, the fact that i can't use it as a removable hard drive and i have to install more software to transfer files over just turns me right off :(

X@vier

[revvo]

^^ The battles fun! iPod v/s Microsoft... or Steve v/s Bill. :D

And I don't even like Apple :rofl:, but I strongly believe that the ipod is a good mp3 player.

I simply believe that you shouldn't avoid a product that might be right for you just because it's the latest trend. Avoiding what you say is a trend sorts of creates a trend of your own, the trend that says "I can be different from the rest!".

[bangbang023 Veteran]

"Songs are priced at 79 points, which some people might think means 79 cents. But 79 points actually cost 99 cents," he lamented. In addition, users can only purchase points in $5 increments rather than simply being charged for a specific song they wish to download

I don't understand how they could have possibly screwed that one up. There are plenty of working models, including their own MSN Music store, that exhibited the success of charging actual currency for the songs instead of using a points system. The ONLY reason I can see them doing it this way is to tie everything in with the 360's points system. However, that said, they've just put a huge nail into the store's coffin. I'm not saying it's the final nail, but it sure as hell is close. How can anyone be so stupid and let this decision pass? It's almost as if you need to have as little common sense as possible to succeed in the corporate world.

[Cyranthus]

i came into work today (Office Depot) and there was a guy from Microsoft setting up the planogram for this Zune. I thought it looked kind of big... more like one of those navigation devices or a PDA... not a media player. Im still kind of interested in it. anyone know what the price of it will be? and any different sizes than the 30 gig?

[temple_treefrog]

Anything labelled "But its not an iPod" always gets me interested. I don't like the iPod. I don't want an iPod. I don't want something that pretends to be an iPod.

I have read equally good and bad reviews of the Zune. I think the first batch will be jenkie though. Every tech writer is going to compare it to the iPod for all the wrong reasons.

You should try one out completely, I never liked the idea of an iPod. Mainly because I worked in retail back then and saw many "dodgy" iPod's returned. But I decided to purchase a 5G 30GB iPod and i'd have to say it's one of the best players on the market. I've owned 3 different Creative models which all stopped working (mainly problems with the headphone jack), and I had to get my Creative Zen Micro replaced 4 times under warranty.

Try one before you make an opinion. :rolleyes:

[Tech_Dude_5000]

The ipod is simple and easy to use. sure its popluar among ages 25 and younger. but its still a great player. and the new 5.5 G ipods are realy nice, a few new features such as search, Brightness control, gap less payback.

I own a 80GB black verson and I have to say it's the best Mp3 player I ever owned. i had a iRiver H10 10GB player but it could't do what my ipod can.

The thing with people hating ipods is they don't know it is munch more the a music player. It can hold pictures. You can snyc your E-mail contacts from outlook and upload them in there. Theres games (even a music quiz whitch is prety cool) You can even use it as a portable HD and transfer files to and from your computer. I serously Hope apple can make the next gen ipod beat out the zune. The zune in my opinion i just microsoft tring to get back all their custmors they lost due to the vista delay.

[MazX_Napalm]

You should try one out completely, I never liked the idea of an iPod.

I have a Zen Touch 40Gb. I bought it about 18 months ago. It is in "as new" condition and I have only recently replaced the headphones (my 1 yr old ripped them off my head damaging the join where the tow leads becone one). I use it everyday for at least 2 hours.

I get 36 hours of play time out of it. Yes I did test this on a job I did delivering some cars across Europe. I would drive 16 hours at a time with the player on the whole time.

I did not need to install any software to use it. Just plug in the USB cable and drag and drop. Oh this works for data files too. All my music is either what I have converted from my cd collection, podcasts and tracks from GarageBand.

It is bigger than an iPod, yes. I don't care. It clips onto my belt just as an iPod would. I does exactly what an iPod would, play music/podcasts, except I don't need to use anything outher than a W2k or WXP pc to add data/music to it.

ITunes is a pain on a network. I have banned the use of it at work. Firstly you have to download something, secondly it chooses My Music as the default store (bad when you are using roaming profiles), it tracks what you listen to and sends it back to Apple (why listen to iTunes when you have an iPod?) and lastly, every track you listen to is first copied to Application Data and then deleted. Why this last thing happens is anyone's guess, but it adds cycles to the pc as well as using bandwidth if you have roaming profiles. I just put my foot down and said that the users must use their iPods if they want to listen to music. End of story.

I personally do not have anything against iPod owners, except those that trash everything else. These seem to be only the Mac owners for some strange reason.

There are defiantly better products out there (Sandisk, Creative,....) and worst products (any thing Sony). The iPod is over rated, over priced and over complicated.

DRM is dictated by the RIAA and the likes, not the manufacturers. If they want to sell music, they have to comply with the supplier. I don't buy anything that is DRM'ed. I'm not saying that I "steal" stuff, but I will buy non-DRM'ed music just because I like people who think that I deserve to do what I like with my own stuff. But this is going off the topic.

[evo_spook]

ITunes is a pain on a network. I have banned the use of it at work. Firstly you have to download something, secondly it chooses My Music as the default store (bad when you are using roaming profiles), it tracks what you listen to and sends it back to Apple (why listen to iTunes when you have an iPod?) and lastly, every track you listen to is first copied to Application Data and then deleted. Why this last thing happens is anyone's guess, but it adds cycles to the pc as well as using bandwidth if you have roaming profiles. I just put my foot down and said that the users must use their iPods if they want to listen to music. End of story.

You do realise most of thyat can be turned off in the preferences