Zune was the laughing stock a couple of years ago when Microsoft released the "brick" 1st-gen Zune. A joke went around about Microsoft's pathetic attempt to enter the "iPod market." So a year passed, and Zune remained a joke in the consumer electronics world and had to endure the jeers and torment of the Apple crowd. When the 2nd Gen Zunes came out, the Zune brand slowly started to see redemption. The Zune 80gb was deemed the first decent competitor to the iPod, but the brand was still in recovery from its hazing.
But for the first time, Microsoft has developed a Zune player that can finally use the words "downright sexy" to describe it. The Zune brand image is building up quickly with the release of the Zune HD, XBOX Live integration, and much-needed marketing.
With the rapid rise of the iPod Touch and iPhone, it's no surprise Microsoft came up with a touchscreen portable media player of its own. However, this is not a copy of the iPod touch at all. Sure the Zune HD features a touchscreen, accelerometer, app support, a strong web browser and other features that made the iPod Touch so popular.
However, the Zune HD has what the iPod Touch lacks, such as...
-ZunePass (Download all the music you want for $15/month, keep 10 songs per month DRM-Free)
-720p HDMI output
-An aesthetically nice software (Zune 4.0 interface is very pretty to look at, not a dull spreadsheet like iTunes)
-An aesthetically nice device OS (Artist pictures and info float around while playing a song, it's cool)
-OLED screen (brighter, more vibrant than LCD)
-Free HD radio
-Radio "tagging" (If you like a song you hear on the radio, "tag" it to add it to your cart for download)
-A feature called "Smart DJ" that functions identically to the online radio service "Pandora" but has no limitations on skips and allows you to rate/download songs you like. Requires a ZunePass though.
-XBOX Live integration
-An advanced nVidia Tegra Chip (A couple of graphically-intense 3D games are coming out this fall, like Burnout: Ferrari Edition)
-On-demand music (play music online with your Zune HD, don't need to download it to your hard drive)
Again, the Zune HD is just simply amazing. With the Nvidia Tegra chip and highly capable processor, the potential for this device is endless. The Zune HD is supposed to be a portable gaming platform to compete head-to-head with the Nintendo DS and PSP brands. I'm excited to see Burnout: Ferrari Edition on it this fall. I'm also looking forward to see more apps as well.
Could this device take significant market share from Apple's iPod Touch? With the right marketing to increase public awareness of this product, yes it definitely can. Every large monopolizing entity like Kmart, GM, and even Apple will dominate a market completely for some period of time. However, times change and something better always comes along. Is this Zune HD the better alternative to the iPod? With some more releases in the app store and updates, it clearly will be. The question is will Apple change and copy the Zune's features including the Zune Pass? I don't know, we'll see. The Zune Pass will clearly become the new standard of digital music services and the $1-per-song marketplace model will not be competitive much longer.
***UPDATE***
I've been getting a lot of comments on my review saying that the Zune's HD radio does not compensate for the lack of online radio services found on the iPod Touch (such as Pandora). I believe I already said in my review that with some more app development the Zune HD will be a strong competitor to the iPod Touch. However, who in the world needs Pandora if you have a Zune Pass? Your Zune will learn your musical tastes and give you recommendations. You can download/stream all the music you want without limits. But if you like Pandora, I suggest playing with the Zune's "Smart DJ". It will create a streaming playlist of songs based on your overall musical tastes or play specifically based on a certain artist.
I also forgot to add the Zune HD does not have an external speaker. If that's a super-important feature to you, the iPod Touch may suit you for now. However you can always get headphone couplers or battery-powered mini-speakers to remedy this.
***UPDATE***
The new apps on the Zune released this fall include some amazing 3D games. They look just as good (if not better) than what you would find on a PSP or Nintendo DS. Among these games are Van's Sk8, Burnout: Ferrari Edition, Audiosurf Tilt, and many others. Twitter has been released as well and Facebook should follow soon. I have no complaints about the Zune after owning it for a few months. I'm convinced the Zune brand provides the best music experience service ever created.
Zune HD 16 GB Video MP3 Player (Black)
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