Quick Zune Review
December 5th, 2006
Now that I’ve had ample time to explore my Zune, its time to talk about the pros and cons of Microsoft’s new device. In order to do this, we’ll need to split the Zune experience into two categories: the device itself, and the Zune software that is needed to sync your media with the device.
The Zune Device
The Zune itself is a very solid feeling product, and while definitely thicker than the iPod, it fits well in your hand. The plastic casing is lightly textured providing a decent grip. The wheel is actually a disguised D-Pad that works quite well. No need to rotate to navigate up or down, simply pressing the edges of the wheel take you where you want to go with little effort or confusion. Along with the nice control set, the Zune provides a good headphone jack that tightly holds the plug in place. The screen has a excellent brightness and an acceptable refresh rate providing very good display of video playback. Even though it has the same resolution as an iPod, the increased refresh rate allows for a better viewing experience. The sound is quite impressive with a good range and crisp notes. I was very pleased with the device and prefer it over an iPod. I don’t think that it is an “iPod killer” but then Microsoft never said it was. The media spun that line and ran with it.
The Zune Software
I must say that I find the software to be mediocre at best, it is quite a disappointment. First off, why didn’t Microsoft utilize Windows Media Player to sync media to the Zune? Instead you are forced to use a rather clunky piece of software that seems to be half-baked. As much as the device can be seen as an equal to the iPod, the software compares equally with iTunes - equally unimpressive. While I didn’t run into the nightmare some people did with the installation, I am not sure if I lucked out or if it was because I downloaded the software instead of using the disc. The software seems to stray from Microsoft’s usual method of intuitiveness and you end up hunting for what you are looking for. Make sure to not change any of the sync settings unless it is to change it to manual sync, you can set yourself up for hours of frustration trying to get things working right again.
Conclusion
All in all, I think Redmond’s first attempt at a portable media player has turned out well. I am looking forward to future firmware updates and software modifications (and hoping for some future compatibility with WMP!).
December 5th, 2006 at 6:31 pm
I agree. What the heck were they thinking by not allowing WMP sync?
December 5th, 2006 at 9:49 pm
Something that I noticed.. I saw a Zune commercial before a movie at a local theater and noted the url, zune.net. I visited out of curiosity and realized the only place that the home page references Microsoft is in the copyright text in the footer, small point. Every tech-savvy person knows Zune == MSFT, but I was curious if they wanted to distance the product from their branding for others or what their reasoning was.
As for the software, I’m not really that surprised. I’m sure it was supposed to be better, but the allure of a pre-Christmas release was, perhaps, too much to pass by…
I think the Zune is an interesting experiment, to say the least. Will MSFT’s marketing machine be able to take a device (Gigabeat) which was unable to get significant market share when sold by Toshiba, tweak it cosmetically and make more progress with it? I think that making the controls look like an iPod even though they don’t function like one is an interesting homage to Apple. I personally find the rotational interface more efficient, but I accept that different people like different interfaces.
December 6th, 2006 at 7:03 am
Wait, I figured it out last night while waiting for sleep… why MSFT made the Zune look like an iPod. Consumer camouflage.
I can imagine many a non-tech-savvy dad walking into walmart for an iPod, having only seen a picture, and (rather than asking for directions) leaving with a Zune. Brilliant! Kids beware!
December 6th, 2006 at 7:33 am
Consumer camouflage is a good take but it is probably a more ingenious plan. Microsoft most likely had some top secret meeting and devised a plan to rescue the young from iPod madness by designing such a device. It seems to work, every iPod user that I’ve shown the Zune to has been interested in getting one. It magically breaks the spell and releases them from their iPod induced zombie state.
December 7th, 2006 at 12:10 pm
yup, if i could find a sweet deal on a 30GB one i’d prob get one and then upgrade that HD to an 80GB and mock my ipod 60gb totting pals on how i paid for a 30GB but made mine a 80GB.. hehhe..
good review.. how about some zune pics??
December 8th, 2006 at 4:31 pm
I just purchased my Zune. I already had an iPod 60 gig. I don’t buy much music from their sources so just ripping and anything that might come along free is good enough for me. About 2 years ago emusic had a flat rate for all the music you could dl and I took great advantage of that. Since then they changed their policy to max dl’s. So I have a few hundred from that source, mostly jazz and salsa.
I like the Zune a lot better. That difficult wheel action was not for me. I keep passing the item I want and carefull go back. Then the scratches. I have a plastice carrier and it still gets scratches.
The Zune interface is great. I also like the FM, and the video transfer is simple the way you instructed above. I hope they do more with the WiFi in the future.
You’re probably right that this is not an iPod killer but it may make a dent.
December 10th, 2006 at 5:15 pm
might be getting a zune if i can get in the amazon $90 for a 30GB one! hehe.. wish me luck!
voting ended today but here’s a link to further amazon deals for xmas:
http://promotions.amazon.com/gp/holiday/cv/homepage
July 11th, 2008 at 6:55 am
If it’s the Gigabeat in disguise, then they royally screwed up. I’ve had a 40GB Gigabeat for a couple of years now, and I love it.
Strangely, when I plug it in to my PC, one of the options is to use WMP to synchronize my songs!
Of course, they use a modified MP3 format to store the songs, so they may have been required to convert everything over to WMA.