Zune the iPod killer... yeah, not so much

[Peter3hg]

And I was talking about transporting stuff... not music, iTunes syncs everything so easily, I've never even thought about not using iTunes in the first place.

I've had two, a normal one and a HI-MD. Both just register as mass storage devices so you can drag and drop files onto them like any pen drive etc.

 

[Redliner]

I'm so sick of hearing about this mp3 player war. Fuck that shit. Buy one device that does it all.

I bought a Sony Ericsson w810i. It plays video, music, has a 2.0 megapixel camera, camcorder, full unlocked bluetooth...its incredible. Not to mention its a great phone. I got it a month ago, and every time I use it I'm just as excited as the first day I got it.

I would love to buy one of those, but USD700 is a little expensive for me. Someday maybe

 

[jeffy777]

Worst of all, no games? (A kid in my lab played Tetris on his iPod while we waited for a pointless chemistry lab experiment to finish, and it was sweet.)

That's one thing I love about my MP3 Player, my PSP: I can play high quality games such as TekkenDR and Tony HawkUG2, plus all the old school nintendo/genesis games thanks to emulators. Not to mention all the other features, such as controlling my PC remotely, streaming vids from my PC through wifi (no need to convert), browsing the web, PDA stuff, and the list goes on. And of course the widescreen rocks!

 

[Blind_Io]

i would buy one of those. it looks a lot nicer than an i-pod IMO, and it's doesn't need stupid i-tunes to use it. i don't have an i-pod anyway, i have a psp with a 512mb stick at the moment.

No, it uses Windows Media player and the DRM for the Zune is an order of magnitude worse than iPod. It's bigger, heavier, less refined, and many of the "cool" features about it will only work if you find someone with another Zune - an unlikely occurrence.

Even with all the hate about iTunes, you have to admit that Apple nailed the concept of the personal portable media player. There is no substitute. Sure you can gripe about DRM and you can whine about iTunes, but the iPod itself is damn near perfect and remains untouchable in the market.

I have thought about other media players, ones that do the same job as the iPod tend to be bigger and heavier so I can't use them at the gym, they also don't have all the accessories of iPod so I can't have a docking station in my car as I do now. I looked at a Creative player that was a different shape than iPod, but I thought equally cool, until I realized that it was the size or a regular iPod but only had 512 mb of memory! If someone comes up with an iPod killer that does the job better than iPod, has less DRM and an unbloated utility I would get it in a heartbeat. For right now, iPod, despite it's shortcomings, is still the best media player out there in terms of size, capability, storage, interface and accessories.

 

[Greatgraddage]

I've always been happy with my creative Muvo^2 4gb:

No fancy screen but was relatively cheap and is still going well with a fair bit of punishment! Had it a few years now.

 

[jeffy777]

but the iPod itself is damn near perfect and remains untouchable in the market.

I think the battery life sucks for vids and the screen scratches way to easily. If the PSP had a big harddrive like the 60GB iPod and a better music menu, it would be unbelievably good (The PSP screen is way more scratch resistant, bigger, and nicer all around, plus battery life is better for vids). At the same time, the solid state of the memory sticks that the PSP uses provide faster loading times and aren't prone to failure like a standard iPod hard drive is, so unless you have a gargantuan sized music library that you must have on hand at all times, there's no point in having 60GB. A 4GB memory stick is sufficient for me.

I have to admit that the menu is quite handy on the iPod for browsing your music....that's one thing that could be improved about the PSP. And the PSP is taller because of the larger screen, so not the best for jogging, etc, but it is quite light and slim.

So for all around media functionality and performance the PSP takes the cake IMO.

But if all you plan to do is listen to MP3s on the go, get an iPod of course However, I do think it could be improved in some ways.

 

[vRS]

Looks pretty big to me, the iPod is a good size but the Zune looks bigger than most in the market, ok the screen is 0.5" smaller on a iPod but its pretty thin.

I'm perfectly happy using iPods and my W800i (which as andoxviii said has everything you'll ever need)

 

[Blind_Io]

I think the battery life sucks for vids and the screen scratches way to easily. If the PSP had a big harddrive like the 60GB iPod and a better music menu, it would be unbelievably good (The PSP screen is way more scratch resistant, bigger, and nicer all around, plus battery life is better for vids). At the same time, the solid state of the memory sticks that the PSP uses provide faster loading times and aren't prone to failure like a standard iPod hard drive is, so unless you have a gargantuan sized music library that you must have on hand at all times, there's no point in having 60GB. A 4GB memory stick is sufficient for me.

I have to admit that the menu is quite handy on the iPod for browsing your music....that's one thing that could be improved about the PSP. And the PSP is taller because of the larger screen, so not the best for jogging, etc, but it is quite light and slim.

So for all around media functionality and performance the PSP takes the cake IMO.

But if all you plan to do is listen to MP3s on the go, get an iPod of course However, I do think it could be improved in some ways.

Aye, the PSP is an impressive bit of kit, but look at the size compared to an iPod. As for the iPod battery life, mine is getting to the point where the batteries are about shot, but it's also a 3rd generation iPod with thousands of hours of play time. Everything wears out eventually. As for the screen scratching. My iPod has been severely abused, it gets tossed in the center console of my car, it gets taken sailing and dumped in a duffel bag with keys and change. It's been dropped several times onto concrete, not only does it still work but the display is very hard to scratch. It has a few dings from abuse but the plastic that makes up the front of the unit seems really tough to me. They may have changed the material in later generations but the 3rd generation is very scratch resistant and any surface marks are easily polished away.

Back to the Zune for a moment, let's look at the X-Box. The first X-box was a big chunky thing and it weighed as much as a boat anchor. The 360 is smaller, sleeker and has a better menu system. If this is any indication of how Microsoft does things the next line of Zune players may be better competition to the iPod. The one thing they will have to work on is the interface and controls. Apple holds the patent on the circular scroll wheels, which was revolutionary at the time. Microsoft needs to stop thinking so conventionally and step outside anything that has been done before.

 

[jeffy777]

As for the screen scratching. My iPod has been severely abused, it gets tossed in the center console of my car, it gets taken sailing and dumped in a duffel bag with keys and change. It's been dropped several times onto concrete, not only does it still work but the display is very hard to scratch. It has a few dings from abuse but the plastic that makes up the front of the unit seems really tough to me. They may have changed the material in later generations but the 3rd generation is very scratch resistant and any surface marks are easily polished away.

It's good to hear that you've had good luck with yours

I bought a used 4th gen on ebay some time ago and it was scratched to hell.

I upgraded to a 5th gen video, but I thought the backlight settings sucked to. It was either on or off, no brightness setting. So that's a battery drainer there because it was so hard to see the screen in the daytime without the backlight on.

I think the 5th gen is an mp3 player that can play videos, but it's not really meant to be a full on video player. After about one movie, the battery is basically toast. And the screen is too dinky for my tastes.

So I sold it and got a PSP. I realized that I wanted more than just an mp3 player with medicocre video capabilities. Had it for a few months now and I'm way happier than I was with the iPod.

It is bigger than an iPod, but it fits nicely in my pocket (I wear baggy pants and I'm not a jogger )

The benefits of the PSP screen are well worth the increase in overall size, in my opinion:

The brightness can be adjusted on the PSP, so this image is a bit dark, but it shows the dramatic difference in screen size:

Anyway, back to the Zune....

Back to the Zune for a moment, let's look at the X-Box. The first X-box was a big chunky thing and it weighed as much as a boat anchor. The 360 is smaller, sleeker and has a better menu system. If this is any indication of how Microsoft does things the next line of Zune players may be better competition to the iPod. The one thing they will have to work on is the interface and controls. Apple holds the patent on the circular scroll wheels, which was revolutionary at the time. Microsoft needs to stop thinking so conventionally and step outside anything that has been done before.

Yeah, the XBox has always been good IMO, and it shows that MS can do some good things when they set their mind to it. So I agree that future Zunes could be quite good.

 

[hokiethang]

Anyway, back to the Zune....
Yeah, the XBox has always been good IMO, and it shows that MS can do some good things when they set their mind to it. So I agree that future Zunes could be quite good.

I subscribe to the rule of three for Microsoft products. In most cases their first products suck greatly, their second gen fixes some problems and their third gen is good. I won't be trading my iPod for a Zune any time soon, because no matter how good the hardware is, the software is crap, and it all seems rushed as a result of the software.

 

[Shawn]

We all know Steve Ballmer is a strange man, but watch him here talking to a strange man/woman hybrid:

[GVIDEO]1654578128439093878&q=zune[/GVIDEO]

Zune is terrible, it will never take off. Microsoft has gone crazy with these projects like Origami and Zune. I hate how they have to platformize everything like the PocketPC and stuff like that.

 

[mautzel]

I would've went for a Mobile with an integrated player as well if they hadn't such a limited storage space. I've been a happy Minidisc user until spring, and one big reason for swapping my Minidisc player for a MP3 Player was that I wouldn't have to carry a collection of multiple discs with me but have a wide selection of music in one device. I ended up with something a little bit more exotic than an Ipod:
http://img359.imageshack.**/img359/8297/samsungaw9.jpg

the Samsung YH-J 70, a 20GB HD Multi-Media Player. (Admittedly, the screen is not suitable for watching anything more than comic series, but the main focus is on playing music anyway). I can simply drag and drop tracks / files on it and play them, no limitation / copy control issues so far. From what I've heared about the Zune so far, I surely wouldn't even consider buying one.

 

[cvrefugee]

I upgraded to a 5th gen video, but I thought the backlight settings sucked to. It was either on or off, no brightness setting. So that's a battery drainer there because it was so hard to see the screen in the daytime without the backlight on.

I think the 5th gen is an mp3 player that can play videos, but it's not really meant to be a full on video player. After about one movie, the battery is basically toast. And the screen is too dinky for my tastes.

So I sold it and got a PSP. I realized that I wanted more than just an mp3 player with medicocre video capabilities. Had it for a few months now and I'm way happier than I was with the iPod.

Apple released a firmware update for the 5th gen iPod which gave you the ability to adjust brightness. I turned down the brightness to around 33% and now I can watch around 4+ hrs of video on a single charge (30GB model). It was way too bright at the default setting (100%).

 

[andyhui01]

Aye, the PSP is an impressive bit of kit, but look at the size compared to an iPod. As for the iPod battery life, mine is getting to the point where the batteries are about shot, but it's also a 3rd generation iPod with thousands of hours of play time. Everything wears out eventually. As for the screen scratching. My iPod has been severely abused, it gets tossed in the center console of my car, it gets taken sailing and dumped in a duffel bag with keys and change. It's been dropped several times onto concrete, not only does it still work but the display is very hard to scratch. It has a few dings from abuse but the plastic that makes up the front of the unit seems really tough to me. They may have changed the material in later generations but the 3rd generation is very scratch resistant and any surface marks are easily polished away.

word to that, my 3G iPod is still working right now, its abit scratched up, the iPod's been everywhere, even sailing Laser's, in my pockets with keys and change, running, mountain biking (mounted it on my handle bar, but the iPod starting skipping after 10-15mins or so, so I had to buy a Flashed based Mp3 player and mounted my iPod on the racing bike) and all... it still works perfectly, have to charge it every 2 days as I just kept going back to Apple and told them I needed a new one because something broke up till my last replacement which was 1 year ago (yes, I purchased Applecare)... mine even lasted longer than my girlfriends 4G U2 iPod, I think the 1G, 2G and 3G were very well built as they weren't built in mass quantities like the current one as they were not as popular back then and obviously we paid alot more for it.... so 3 years later, my iPod is still good as new

 

[jeffy777]

Apple released a firmware update for the 5th gen iPod which gave you the ability to adjust brightness. I turned down the brightness to around 33% and now I can watch around 4+ hrs of video on a single charge (30GB model). It was way too bright at the default setting (100%).

That's cool to hear. But what it really needs is a brightness button like the PSP so you can adjust it to like 3 different settings (and turn the screen off completely) on the fly instead going in to the menu and doing it. I'm lazy like that

 

[cvrefugee]

That's cool to hear. But what it really needs is a brightness button like the PSP so you can adjust it to like 3 different settings (and turn the screen off completely) on the fly instead going in to the menu and doing it. I'm lazy like that

You can adjust the brightness while playing a video, on the fly. Just press the center button and use the scroll wheel - done!

 

[jeffy777]

You can adjust the brightness while playing a video, on the fly. Just press the center button and use the scroll wheel - done!

That is a good thing Now if there was only a button to make the screen bigger.....

 

[Top Geek]

We all know Steve Ballmer is a strange man, but watch him here talking to a strange man/woman hybrid:

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