Zune Reviews Trickling In

[nikster]

http://www.suntimes.com/technology/ihnatko...-Andy23.article

This article basically blasts the Zune as a worthless piece of crap.... but there are some interesting points made that make me think this guy is dead on, and also makes me wonder about the sanity of Microsoft strategy department:

- Zune is not compatible with Windows Media Player. Say what?? Yep, it's true!

- Zune is not compatible with PlaysForSure. Oh, so the name was just a joke, then? PlaysForSure is an initiative by Microsoft to standardize the media format for digital rights infested media files. Or, rather, was.

- The zune installer failed - which the author admits may be Windows fault, but nevermind that Windows is also a Microsoft product, what was worse than that was the cure: The author had to manually install a DLL file in his system directory. Following troubleshooting instructions on the Microsoft website.

So in order to legally purchase music for the Zune, you have to buy it in the Zune shop. But first, you have to purchase "Zune Points" because you cant just pay with money, you have to buy zune points with you money and then songs with your Zune points. Easy, no?

I would feel perfectly safe with this investment, after all, Microsoft guarantees it and just as they have guaranteed PlaysForSure for the last five years... oh, wait, nevermind.

The wireless sharing feature is also unique - I already knew that it was sort of useless as it would allow songs to be shared only to it can be played back 3 times before self-destructing. But I didn't know that it will do that to mp3s as well - it wraps them in a special DRM layer so the mp3 which was free to share becomes a DRM-infected file and can only be played back 3 times after which it turns into a link where you can buy the song from Zune marketplace - if they have it.

[kayo]

Source: Crap

Criticism

* Many industry pundits [14][15][16][17] have criticized the Zune for its features and functions (see below) based on a side-by-side comparison with the iPod. Meanwhile, others[18][19][20] have criticized its DRM and the market's potential responses, especially given that it will compete with Microsoft's own early-adopters of the PlaysForSure DRM scheme. Technology reviewer Leo Laporte (formerly of TechTV) said in his Nov. 12th 2006 radio show that Zune may be the "beginning of the end" for DRM as a business tactic.[21]

* Though the Zune is a Microsoft product, it is not compatible with players and online music stores using Microsoft's PlaysForSure technology. This includes music purchased from Microsoft's MSN Music store.[22]

* The Zune is not compatible with Windows Vista and is not expected to be compatible until the consumer launch at the end of January 2007, significantly later than the OEM, volume licensing, and developer launches.[23][24][25]

* While the Zune has built-in Wi-Fi capabilities, it can only connect to other Zune devices; it can't wirelessly sync with its host PC, nor can it wirelessly connect to the internet and download new music via a Wi-Fi hotspot.[26][27]

* Songs wirelessly transferred from one Zune to another can only be played three times. After three days, the song expires – regardless of whether or not it has been played. Just playing half the song (or one minute, whichever comes first) counts as one "play." You can never resend a song to the same friend, nor can a song received from someone else be passed on to a third person. These limitations apply to all songs, whether they are copyright free and self-recorded or protected with DRM. [28][29][30][31]

* Not all songs purchased from the Zune Marketplace can be shared via Wi-Fi with other Zunes (see [32] note 1).

* The software that supports the Zune seems to be very unstable on some Microsoft Windows configurations (including Windows XP). [33] [34] A resolution to this problem has been found [35]

* Unlike many hard-drive based music players, the Zune cannot officially be used as an external hard drive.[36] A hack was recently found that allows Zune this functionality with slight altering of the Windows registry by the user.

[37]

* Microsoft has entered into a deal with Universal Music Group whereby UMG will receive $1 per Zune sold, paid by Microsoft. UMG’s logic is because the users of the devices have infringed the copyrights for the music, similar to the deals where CD-R manufacturers pay the RIAA. This could set a dangerous precedent where hardware makers are strong-armed by big record labels. [38]

They didn't get me with Minidiscs, they didn't get me with whatever came after that, they didn't get me with ipod, and they won't get me with this.

I've got my 15,000 songs and growing, and I can play it all as much as I want, when I want, wherever I want, and nothing will be "removed". No playlists deleted. Pardon my french but screw all these things man! I gave up after the first discmans.

(Oh! and if i wanna be mobile, I can listen to my 1GB mp3 portable. Music simply copied from my laptop. Psh... New playlist whenever I want, and no deletion...)

I'm surprised knowledgable people still buy these players. I suppose it makes them "look good" in other peoples eyes..

[cdnvic]

I'm still using my reliable unkillable Rio. When I upgrade it will be to a Creative Zen, complete with widescreen which even the vaunted iPod is yet to feature.

Zune will be ok in future generations if MS undoes the stupider points, like the incompatibility with WMP and putting drm on non drm's tracks.

[bubba]

Here is a review from a San Francisco Chronicle blog entitled "Zune Reinforces Microsoft's Dorky Image" An excerpt:

"Either the Micro-guys are clueless dorks -- Zune is as expensive as iPod, bulkier, and is neither as easy to work as iPod nor as cool. Or, worse yet, the boys up north are malicious bullies. According to at least one review, the music system only works with the Microsoft Explorer browser, not Firefox, which many others and I prefer."

I have not seen a Zune yet, and not sure I want to, but it seems that Microsoft was even less successful copying Apple's iPod than they were in copying Apple's OSX for use in their new Vista OS.

Here is the link:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate...;entry_id=11298

[cclub75]

So in order to legally purchase music for the Zune, you have to buy it in the Zune shop. But first, you have to purchase "Zune Points" because you cant just pay with money, you have to buy zune points with you money and then songs with your Zune points. Easy, no?

The wireless sharing feature is also unique - I already knew that it was sort of useless as it would allow songs to be shared only to it can be played back 3 times before self-destructing. But I didn't know that it will do that to mp3s as well - it wraps them in a special DRM layer so the mp3 which was free to share becomes a DRM-infected file and can only be played back 3 times after which it turns into a link where you can buy the song from Zune marketplace - if they have it.

Crap, crap, crap. They are still dreaming of a controled market. More $$$$.

Viva open source, and MP3 ! Dead to proprietary formats, protocols, and other DRM !

You want to see what people should do with Microsoft's products ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CTy7Nx0oPI

[bubba]

Zune part of a controlled market? Well:

- it only works with Microsoft Internet Explorer

- it only works with Microsoft Windows

- the only legal source for audio or video files is from the Microsoft Zune store, where you must use Microsoft Zune points. Not even music purchased from Microsoft's PlaysForSure scheme can be played, such as from Napster, Yahoo Music, AOL Music Now, MusicMatch, or even Microsoft's MSN Music or MTV-partnered Urge. Shudder the thought that you could play music you might have purchased from the iTunes store.

- it does have wireless, but you can only trade songs another Microsoft Zune, and then the recipient can only have the file for three days. They cannot receive the file again from you, ever. By the way, Microsoft calls sending a file to another Zune "squirting". So MS has innovated a squirting MP3 player. That's supposed to be either hip or funny, right?

And for all that, Zune is 60% larger, 17% heavier and the battery doesn't last as long as an ipod. Zune costs the same as an iPod, but it has no games, alarm clock, stopwatch, world clock, password-protected volume limiter, equalizer, calendar, address book or notes module, as does the iPod. You cannot use it as an external hard drive, as you can with an iPod. But the Zune does come in brown. Brown?

So there you go...Microsoft's "iPod killer".

[Simmo]

Viva open source, and MP3 ! Dead to proprietary formats, protocols, and other DRM !

LOL, there's a delicious irony in that statement. MP3 isn't an open format, it's patented by the Fraunhofer Institute. It's free to decode (ie write a player) but you have to pay a license fee to write an encoder.

OGG is the open source format but not many players support it. Sounds better for the same bit rate but uses more CPU.

[bendix]

I agree with the comments about the wisdom of MS's strategy department. What on earth are they thinking? Ipod appeared around 4 years ago and has become more than an mp3 player . . it's iconic. Putting aside its technical excellence, design and quality, it is one of the defining inventions of the last 10-20 years.

And what do the dorks in Redmond do? Try to beat it with a technically inferior, multi-flawed product.

I bought the new model Ipod nano in the US a couple of weeks ago. I'm delighted with it.

[cdnvic]

Putting aside its technical excellence, design and quality, it is one of the defining inventions of the last 10-20 years.

Product yes...invention...no. There were many mp3 player before the iPod.

iPod was a copy of the Diamond Rio

Edited November 29, 2006 by cdnvic