zune?

[Ike]

anybody planning on getting one of these? If you had your choice, would it be one of these, or an iPod?

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/09/technology/09pogue.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&ref=technology&pagewanted=1&adxnnlx=1163104715-FdsVxGGeVP8r8uvVBsERSA

[Boomer.....]

iPods are too "the fad". It sure looks like an iPod, though. I have an iRiver.

[royalfan5]

I have thought about it but I think I will wait until the initial bugs surface and are worked out.

[Ike]

I have thought about it but I think I will wait until the initial bugs surface and are worked out.

yeah...I've heard that apple is planning on an iPod with a much larger screen (basically making the whole thing a screen) and some other control. what do you want to bet they try to incorporate some kind of wireless access into it as well? I really don't see MS ever sniffing the market share the Apple has with this...However, I do imagine that it will spur apple to add more innovative things to the ipod....like wireless...

[royalfan5]

yeah...I've heard that apple is planning on an iPod with a much larger screen (basically making the whole thing a screen) and some other control. what do you want to bet they try to incorporate some kind of wireless access into it as well? I really don't see MS ever sniffing the market share the Apple has with this...However, I do imagine that it will spur apple to add more innovative things to the ipod....like wireless...
I assume that wireless will eventually be added to everything. I try to avoid by Apple products, and I will probably by a microsoft product out of spite.

[tbl]

There's a reason Ipods are on top. They're flippin awesome. I started off with the first generation 10G, went to the 40G monochrome, and now I'm 30G video. I never use it for anything other than music, but it's greatness.

[yermom]

yeah, none of the other devices i have tried have an interface that's even close

[mrowl]

nope. waiting for the full screen ipod.

[49r]

I wonder how much McAfee is going to charge for their zune version of VirusScan.... :norm:

[Ike]

I wonder how much McAfee is going to charge for their zune version of VirusScan.... :norm:


probably a lot since they'll have to turn it into music or video first...no HD abilities for the zune succs

[hurricane'bone]

I wonder how much McAfee is going to charge for their zune version of VirusScan.... :norm:


no ****...a friend of mine said he had to buy antivirus for his Windows Mobile Phone.

[Norm In Norman]

My mom bought a Zune for my stepdad and I'm supposed to set it up for him before Christmas. All I've done is charge it and mess with the built in media. First impressions? The screen on it is awesome. The controls are pretty good. It feels not as solid as an ipod (too much plastic and not enough metal). The FM tuner is great (it picks up about everything and has the name of the station and current song playing) but I can't immediately see where there are presets on it. When it picks up a station every .2 mhz, it's quite annoying to get across the dial. I sort of like the menu layout, although they should make use of the whole screen when showing menus. I like the almost full screen album cover showing during playback. When I plugged in my ipod for the first time, it immediately showed up as a hard drive. When I plugged in the Zune? It wanted to install drivers for new hardware.

Tonight I'm going to install the software. I bet it sucks. Do you think I should have my mom return it while she has the chance? The Ipod seems really puny next to it, screen wise. She wanted something my stepdad could easily see. And I imagine I'll have to install all music on it, so the software might not matter.

[SoonerJack]

I assume that wireless will eventually be added to everything. I try to avoid by Apple products, and I will probably by a microsoft product out of spite.

Why do you avoid Apple products?

[Ike]

My mom bought a Zune for my stepdad and I'm supposed to set it up for him before Christmas. All I've done is charge it and mess with the built in media. First impressions? The screen on it is awesome. The controls are pretty good. It feels not as solid as an ipod (too much plastic and not enough metal). The FM tuner is great (it picks up about everything and has the name of the station and current song playing) but I can't immediately see where there are presets on it. When it picks up a station every .2 mhz, it's quite annoying to get across the dial. I sort of like the menu layout, although they should make use of the whole screen when showing menus. I like the almost full screen album cover showing during playback. When I plugged in my ipod for the first time, it immediately showed up as a hard drive. When I plugged in the Zune? It wanted to install drivers for new hardware.

Tonight I'm going to install the software. I bet it sucks. Do you think I should have my mom return it while she has the chance? The Ipod seems really puny next to it, screen wise. She wanted something my stepdad could easily see. And I imagine I'll have to install all music on it, so the software might not matter.

Let me know how that software works. I'm kind of curious.

I've heard that their "zune store" or whatever its called blows monkey nuts. Basically you pre-pay for a certain number of "zune points" that you spend to buy songs. I think they do this so that they can charge more for more popular songs. Thats just a suspicion, because the recording industry has been trying to get apple to do that for itunes, and apple won't budge, because they believe (correctly, I think) that variable pricing per song will turn away many consumers. From all accounts I've heard, Microsoft built the MP3 player that the recording industry wants. Even to the point that Universal records, and probably other studios are getting a kickback for every zune sold.


Also, see if their software will rip a DVD to the zune. Thats one thing I wish I could do with Itunes, but I can't. Instead I have to use a third party program that isn't entirely user friendly.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

Let me know how that software works. I'm kind of curious.

I've heard that their "zune store" or whatever its called blows monkey nuts. Basically you pre-pay for a certain number of "zune points" that you spend to buy songs. I think they do this so that they can charge more for more popular songs. Thats just a suspicion, because the recording industry has been trying to get apple to do that for itunes, and apple won't budge, because they believe (correctly, I think) that variable pricing per song will turn away many consumers. From all accounts I've heard, Microsoft built the MP3 player that the recording industry wants. Even to the point that Universal records, and probably other studios are getting a kickback for every zune sold.


Also, see if their software will rip a DVD to the zune. Thats one thing I wish I could do with Itunes, but I can't. Instead I have to use a third party program that isn't entirely user friendly.

i think its more like the song will expire after so many plays. the "squirting feature" works like that.

[Frozen Sooner]

Ike, you're exactly right. The Zune is a media player built to RIAA and MPAA standards.

I'm guessing that no, the Zune's software will not rip a DVD directly to your Zune, as that's a violation of DMCA as I understand it.

Is it correct that the Zune will not update from your hard drive wirelessly, that the wireless feature is only for the "Play this three times then we're going to spam you with messages to buy the song" feature?

I don't know that that full-screen iPod is ever going to materialize. They've been teasing that for a few years now.

[Ike]

Ike, you're exactly right. The Zune is a media player built to RIAA and MPAA standards.

I'm guessing that no, the Zune's software will not rip a DVD directly to your Zune, as that's a violation of DMCA as I understand it.

Is it correct that the Zune will not update from your hard drive wirelessly, that the wireless feature is only for the "Play this three times then we're going to spam you with messages to buy the song" feature?

I don't know that that full-screen iPod is ever going to materialize. They've been teasing that for a few years now.
Actually, it is only a violation of the DMCA if you use a "circumvention device" to get the video to your ipod or zune. However, since microsoft essentially bent over backwards for the entertainment industry on this one, its possible that they could have leveraged their willingness to not give consumers what they want to get a ripper licensed by the MPAA for putting movies on the Zune. licensed ripper = not a circumvention device.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

did you see microsoft's latest patent request? they are about to become the next gen RIAA/MPAA

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i'm not sure how you could patent something like this as it would seem prior art, but hey why not give it a shot?

http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=196602786&subSection=Breaking+News

[Ike]

did you see microsoft's latest patent request? they are about to become the next gen RIAA/MPAA

you mean this one? ;)

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/29130

[Ike]

i'm not sure how you could patent something like this as it would seem prior art, but hey why not give it a shot?

http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=196602786&subSection=Breaking+News

so what, under their system watching recorded shows would suddenly become like watching the videos on ESPN.com, with ads inbetween each clip that you can't fast forward through.



oh boy, where do I sign up to get me one of these!

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

pretty much

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i think the biggest fear of advertisers is that they lose kids. my 6 year old programs all her favorite shows into the tivo so that she can fast forward through the commercials. she gets an hour of tv a day and by using the tivo she can watch 3 shows instead of 2.

that stupid diet dr pepper add that fox shows 18 times an OU game ****es me off so much that i save up minutes to just fast forward through it.

[Frozen Sooner]

TiVo is going to eventually have to cause a shift in the advertising paradigm.

Personally, I don't generally fast forward through ads when watching a DVR simply because I always make sure I'm doing something else while watching TV, but I know I'm way in the minority on that one.

Product placement is, of course, one way to do it, but I wonder if sometimes it has the opposite effect of annoying people to the point where they won't watch a show if it has too much product placement.

I guess one possible way is to do it like they do soccer matches in other countries-just have a little box with the advertiser's logo on screen the whole time.

[ultimatesooner1]

I have a 40GB Toshiba Gigabeat, it has worked well for the 2 weeks I have had it

[Beano's Fourth Chin]

that stupid diet dr pepper add that fox shows 18 times an OU game ****es me off so much that i save up minutes to just fast forward through it.

I pause as soon as I see it and go to the bathroom or push needles into my eye for 30 seconds and then go back and skip.

[Beano's Fourth Chin]

Funny Zune Software Setup Photos:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/-flx-/294929001/