Zune to launch November 14th?

Alright everybody, we've all had a few days to cool down on the Zune stuff -- hope you've been well rested. So with no further delay here's the latest from from the inside: a trusted source has given us a little more to go by on the hardware end, including a few specs we more or less expected or heard, such as that the Zune should have a 30GB drive, black, brown, and cotton color options, FM tuner, 13 first party accerrories available at launch (and who knows how many 3rd party accessories), and a 50% larger screen than the iPod with video (making it 3.75-inches if you're talking diagonal, and not areal). The jucier bits, however, are that we can all expect to find out some hard information from Microsoft in August, and that the player is slated to launch on November 14th, right in time for the holiday buying season (what a huge surprise). As always, more to come.

[Smoke_Dawg_187 @ Jul 31st 2006 12:15PM]

I can't wait for this thing to come out!

[khamel @ Jul 31st 2006 12:16PM]

what, no 60 gig version? i was all ready to sell my 40 gig ipod and make the switch back to the evil empire.

[Jon Himself @ Jul 31st 2006 12:17PM]

I can't say I'd ever actually buy this, I enjoy my iPod and it's integration with iTunes etc but it definitely is different to see SOMETHING being released that has actually tempted me. I can't wait to hear more about the actual specs and how it'll work (definite information, not speculation)

[Mike @ Jul 31st 2006 12:18PM]

Now the competition begins, and the consumers will win! I just found out about puretracks.com and think that will be a great combo...

[anta @ Jul 31st 2006 12:20PM]

is that what they are using to take away attention from the PS3? lol thats pretty funny.

[Mack Swift @ Jul 31st 2006 12:25PM]

I have a feeling we'll get full specs, a release date, pricing, and all that at the time WWDC starts when Apple announces all it's lateest iTunes, iPod, and iPhone stuff.

[dave95 @ Jul 31st 2006 12:28PM]

Black, Brown & Cotton? lol

Cause you know that other (not mentioned) company is already associated with White, so we can't just White!

Black, Brown & Cotton baby!

[djphatjive @ Jul 31st 2006 12:31PM]

Should have a internal speaker. So i can watch a movie without headphones.

[Jeff @ Jul 31st 2006 12:34PM]

"black, brown, and cotton color options"

Nice to see that they're going for that oft-neglected Southern plantation crowd.

I mean, are they serious?

[Jerry @ Jul 31st 2006 12:35PM]

I think the colors are racist because black and brown people used to pick cotton. :(

[AUA @ Jul 31st 2006 12:36PM]

I believe that only maintaining a 30 gig, hard-drive based player is going to be a massive impediment.

Power-hungry, impact-sensitive, corrupt data . . . I think they're already missing the mark, straight from the Gate.

[Sean @ Jul 31st 2006 12:37PM]

Okay so let's analyse these "awesome" features:

30GB drive: for the price of a 60GB iPod? No thanks

black, brown, and cotton color options: Black is fine but shit brown and dirty white, bleh! I hope that image is an early prototype cause that player is fugly.

FM tuner: I have an MP3 player so I don't have to listen to crappy corporate radio

13 first party accerrories available at launch: I'm sure they are including subscription cards and Pre-paid cards in this. I mean other than a case, car adapter and FM transmitter, what else could you need?

Including and a 50% larger screen than the iPod with video (making it 3.75-inches: that is 50% larger than last year's iPod as Apple will undoubtedly make some major changes this time around.

I feel like I'm alone in thinking that this Zune looks like an overhyped, subpar product with no future. Just another iPod/MP3 clone.

[diulei @ Jul 31st 2006 12:37PM]

@djphatjive

I agree that it should have internal speakers, but just so you can preview some things without having to plug in speakers or headphones.

But there's no way the speakers will be any good - or even very loud. Would you really want to spend 2+ hours listening to that (not to mention staring at that small scren).

[Stephen @ Jul 31st 2006 12:48PM]

so looking at that prototype. you turn the thing in it's side to watch a video in "widescreen" mode and then the control placement gets messed up. hmm not alot of thought put into that it seems. this is the reason apple didn't go this path with the video ipod and why they are going to innovate right past this with the full screen ipod and none-touch interface. ms will be out before they even begin.

[Nathan Ronchetti @ Jul 31st 2006 12:52PM]

November should also be right around the time that PS3 could launch. Huge marketing blitz put on by M$ would be beneficial to counter both the iPod attention of consumers as well as the attention of the PS3. It's a possibility.

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 12:55PM]

"13 first party accerrories available at launch"

There goes the notion that MS made it more attractive than Apple for third parties, doesn't it? I mean: yes the iPod program can be expensive BUT it's optional AND yes, Apple makes accesories but much fewer than half of this count and that's after 4 years...

What incentive does a third party accessory maker have to make products for a device with 0% marketshare (and only 15-20% in the next five years if optimistic) when that party is already covering all the bases?

And why would they be covering all the bases if they had attracted any (if not some) of the third parties to the game?

[Tiger @ Jul 31st 2006 12:57PM]

Puretrack's encoding is 192 so that would have far better sounding tracks than any of the other sites that I'm aware of.

[Alex @ Jul 31st 2006 12:59PM]

Well, I think its still early to judge this product as all the Apple fanboys are doing. I think it has potential, as long as MS doesn't make the same errors with the OS usability they have made on a lot of thier products (lagging response of PPC for example) I think it could be alright...

[macproguide.com @ Jul 31st 2006 1:01PM]

Someone will come out with a converter that will allow iPod accesories to work with the Zune...

I think the Zune will be a great seller this holiday season.

[apeguero @ Jul 31st 2006 1:05PM]

Will it resist scratches better then the iPod? Will the battery last for more than 2 hours on video mode? Will it come with a wall charger? Here's the real kicker: will one be able to use it in OS X? I mean, will this only use Media Player 10/11? If so then this thing will only be usable in a Windows environment. I think if Microsoft really wants to stick it to Apple then develop a Media Player that works in OS X, right?

Also, will this thing look like a Toshiba Gigabeat but with a circular controller instead of a cross controller? If so then what is the big deal here?

[Brielle @ Nov 5th 2006 1:53PM]

yes to all of that i printed out all the info

[Brielle @ Nov 7th 2006 4:23PM]

yes 2 all og that i printed out all the info

[zorg @ Jul 31st 2006 1:28PM]

I wasn't excited until I read that Microsoft expects it to take 5 years to defeat iPod. This makes my participation really exciting! I'll be part of a major struggle! I'll play a part in deciding choices consumers will have for years to come!

I can buy crappy Microsoft iPods for about five years and defend them in arguments with iPod losers, yelling "You take that back! You just wait! We're gonna kick your *ss!"

Then, after upgrading about every 1.5 years because ... well ... because they're going to be crappy, I'll be able to swagger and hold my head high by my third or fourth Microsoft iPod, knowing I'm somehow connected to the world's richest man! I'll have done my part to help create a desert where there used to be a confusing market with choice and stuff! I'll have eliminated one more threat to MIcrosoft ecosystem! And what will it have cost me? Hmmm .... Wait a minute!

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 1:29PM]

"Someone will come out with a converter that will allow iPod accesories to work with the Zune..."

Ha, ha, ha. It's a proprietary interface that Apple can control the licensing of... not going to happen.

[Leo Efstathiou @ Jul 31st 2006 1:29PM]

i cant say i am too impressed with features compared to iPod. i always thought that in order to have a successful alternative product, you need to be at least 30% better than the competition. microsoft thus far is virtually mimicing them.

is the fm tuner, shared music with buddies, and greater versatility with mp3 market choice that big of a selling point?

if microsoft really wants to hurt apple, i would build the zune on an open platform to allow user generated plugins. with its wifi capability, you could be able to view your email (doubt you could respond with a wheel), use all of your little widgets, play games, and who knows what millions of things the world will create for it. that is something Apple could/would/hasnt ever replicated....

[The1 @ Jul 31st 2006 1:33PM]

I hope they have a 60 Gig for the $399 price. You will need a 60G device to have a nice collections of videos. A 30G device will not steal the show from Apple.

[macproguide.com @ Jul 31st 2006 1:36PM]

"Ha, ha, ha. It's a proprietary interface that Apple can control the licensing of... not going to happen."

You are an idiot. What does this have to do with someone coming out with a converter that will allow iPod accesories to work with the Zune. It would be a device which converts Zune to iPod standards to work on pre-existing devices.

You saw it here first (I know someone working on it)

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 1:41PM]

"What does this have to do with someone coming out with a converter that will allow iPod accesories to work with the Zune."

Apple owns the male and female end if the connector, dumbass. The interface is not just the female end.

[Kyle @ Jul 31st 2006 1:44PM]

wow november is gonna be a big month, with this possibly, the ps3, and the wii, i better start saving up

[macproguide.com @ Jul 31st 2006 1:46PM]

"Apple owns the male and female end if the connector. The interface is not just the female end."

The device goes between the apple connector and 3rd party product! Game over pal

[Edelweiss @ Jul 31st 2006 1:49PM]

"What does this have to do with someone coming out with a converter that will allow iPod accesories to work with the Zune."

good luck with your lawsuit.

[joe @ Jul 31st 2006 1:51PM]

And @ the end of the year Apple will introduce the new Video Ipod!!! much larger screen with an integrated touch screen menu...sweet!

[Blueshirt80 @ Jul 31st 2006 1:52PM]

You can tell who the apple fan boys are. We still know very little about what this Microsoft player will include. It's mostly all spectulation. Why don't you wait until the specs are official, the player is released and you get some hands on time with it before making your stupid comments?

Like everything else the iPod has flaws which have gone uncorrected with every revision. For example, lets talk about battery life which is always horrible, $299+ with no AC adapter, and scratch prone. Bluetooth should have been added during the last ungrade for wireless headphone connections.

I have an iPod 60GB Video and while I do love the way it looks, the easy intigration with iTunes, and ease of use. I will continue to keep an eye on what Microsoft has to offer. I don't expect them to beat apple right out of the gate or ever for that matter. What I do expect is that we will see a new innovation with the iPod driven by the features rumored/implemented in Zune. Beleive it or not even the iPod and Apple probably wouldn't win a war of attrition with Microsoft.

The next couple months will be very interesting.

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 1:52PM]

Uh, macproguide, any use of the Apple connector requires licensing from Apple. Apple can pick and choose who licenses it. A 3rd party cannot make this device without Apple's expressed consent. I don't know why you keep repeating the same thing; it doesn't get the need to license from Apple out of the picture.

Game over, pal.

[Chris @ Jul 31st 2006 1:54PM]

LOL God im so sick of people with iPods...

"cant say i am too impressed with features compared to iPod"

WTF are you talking about? What features does the iPod have exactly? Beyond the clickwheel... it plays mp3's and videos and is locked into itunes... umm ... ya... ummm... i'm not seeing any "features" here buddy.

They even said they have no intentions to add wifi or add features like the store from the device purchasing... so while i can walk around and buy songs or via subscriptions just grab songs while im on the road via wifi you have to go home.. load up your crappy itunes and download songs ...

The fact is the ipod is one of the least feature rich devices EVER.. the device has 0 features, i mean give me a break their are a thousand devices out their that are better than the ipod... what the ipod does hve is IMAGE, its an ipod after all people like saying they have an ipod... but when a big name like Microsoft gets involved no one knows whats going to happen look at the 360... they expected them to take maybe 5-10% marketshare in the last generation and they ended up beating out nintendo... and then analysts all said they would drop out ... but nope their back with the 360... microsoft's hardware division is awesome and people neglect to understand that.

As for the guy saying that they will be crap and have to buy one every 1.5 years... no thats the ipod... last i knew microsoft hardware hasnt had issues like that... i've had a keyboard and mouse from them for 5 years without a glitch.

You can bitch about windows being buggy or whatever but when it comes to hardware stop being arrogant, thats one thing microsoft is inherintly good at... the problem is they try to stay out of hardware and just provide frameworks so other manufacturers can make cash. But that hasnt worked in the past because no one seems to be able to crack apple, so microsoft has had to step in.


I DO HOPE HOWEVER< that they follow the color conventions that they provided in the Vista Hardware pack for companys... Obsidian and Ice would be wicked combo for a player like this.

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 2:03PM]

"The next couple months will be very interesting."

The next couple of months will only see more rumors and leaks from Microsoft. Don't blame iPod fans for responding to Microsoft's game.

[Whiplash @ Jul 31st 2006 2:14PM]

Jeff, you're killing me man... "...Southern plantation crowd"... that's classic.

You hit the nail on the head though. So far, the image they are going for is "corporate stiff" or "office stodgy". This can hardly compete with Apple's projected image of hipness. I mean they might as well just use the "PC" guy from Apple's latest ad campaign. He's a perfect fit for a brown MP3 player.

Regardless of technical specs, kids and young adults (the biggest market for these things), will buy what's cool, and what's elegant. I highly doubt Microsoft's device will be either.

[Leo Efstathiou @ Jul 31st 2006 2:24PM]

Chris,

i agree with a lot of what you say. the ipod doesnt have that many features, but at this point i am not really interested in the stupid ones touted by microsoft with the zune (then again, who actually watches movies on their ipod). i dont want to be harassed by some stranger on the subway who is interested in hearing what i am listening to....

nonetheless, microsoft is a great company. i prefer windows to mac osx any day. its cheaper, has just as many features, more efficient (i have yet to see any mac pro use a mac as efficiently and productively as pc pro (my best friend is a geek at a mac store), but then again, i dont see macs being used in a corporate setting).

but the ipod is still a good product, as is its integration with itunes. microsoft's domination of the video game industry was systematic. i have no doubt that they could do the same with music player. as for pcs, you can read in tons of places how microsoft is now setting its sights on makeing them more elegant for users instead of relying on pc manufacturers to do it.

either way, dont take shit so personal. this is all just a game.

[GG @ Jul 31st 2006 2:25PM]

"WTF are you talking about? What features does the iPod have exactly?"

Umm, hello?!? Snake...

[Justin @ Jul 31st 2006 2:27PM]

i think both sides of the coin need to ingest a sedative.

this is going to be the most impressive launch for an mp3 player in quite some time. for a first gen device, microsoft has a very, very good idea of what consumers want, besides the color choices (brown? cotton?).

i also think that apple is waiting for people to go nuts over the Zune so they can say "wait. can your zune do this?"

the Zune would be great if it came out a year ago, but the fact is, they're going to suffer the same fate as creative, sandisk, toshiba and sony because they can't innovate. wifi is not innovation.

the Zune will be great once they include video gameplay.

[potato @ Jul 31st 2006 2:28PM]

We'll see about Zune. The current news isn't too awe-inspiring, but then again nobody expected the original Xbox to be a smash either. I expect great things from the guys that brought us the Xbox, and I hope they have enough sense to not screw this up.

[mike @ Jul 31st 2006 2:31PM]

"The next couple months will be very interesting."

Yeah, we get to see Leopard next month.

Other than that.. who cares.. nothing interesting on the WIndows front, and the iPod will just keep kicking ass and taking names..

[Zadillo @ Jul 31st 2006 2:32PM]

Chris, honestly I think you might be missing the point in terms of this whole feature discussion. As you said, there are many players out there that have more features, but consumers haven't been buying them. The reality is that just packing as many features as possible into a music-playing device isn't really selling products. I think MS has finally realized that with the Zune, and you can see that they are emphasizing a similar focus on the core experience.

The "image" of the iPod is certainly a factor too, but that only gets you so far. If the iPod were a piece of crap that no-one liked, it would have died out a while ago - you might get people buying iPods for a generation or two based just on image, but if the product didn't work for them, they would not continue buying them.

Image gets people in the door, but the way the product works is vital too. I think the mistake that iPod competitors have made in the past is thinking that the iPod can be beaten just by sticking a ton of features in their music players. With the Zune, MS has realized that the experience in general is really vital to the player's success.

[Zadillo @ Jul 31st 2006 2:35PM]

Leo, just out of curiosity, could you provide some more details on this one? "more efficient (i have yet to see any mac pro use a mac as efficiently and productively as pc pro (my best friend is a geek at a mac store), but then again, i dont see macs being used in a corporate setting)." I'm sort of curious about what sort of use of Macs you've seen that you've never seen a "Mac Pro" (I assume that means a professional Mac user) use a Mac as efficiently and productively as a "PC Pro".

[Tiger @ Jul 31st 2006 2:49PM]

The fanboys will cry later, remember: we are not the ones that had to celebrate becuase our PC company finally made a mouse with 2 buttons!

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 2:49PM]

"more efficient (i have yet to see any mac pro use a mac as efficiently and productively as pc pro (my best friend is a geek at a mac store)"

Yeah, because kids working at retail are clearly pros... Why have a real job when you can work part-time making near minimum wage at a retail store... That's who I think of as a "pro user."

[Leo Efstathiou @ Jul 31st 2006 2:54PM]

Zadillo, on quick thought two examples come to mind....

up until recently, the fact that there wasnt a two button mouse (and applications to go with it) forced mac users to manually click on the % button or scroll to the top. you may see this as a minor detail, but for excel monkeys like myself, this was limiting...

this may be out of ignorance, but i havent seen people be able to hook up multiple monitor displays, which is really useful in cad applications and running bloomberg.

but in all fairness, my experience with mac is limited to that of my close friend, who works in a mac store but is not a hard core computer user by any means, and my girlfriend, who uses macs for artistic applications (like photoshop) for which speed of program and mouse navigation is unneccessary.

[Leo Efstathiou @ Jul 31st 2006 2:57PM]

tf ,

the kids working the retail mac stores undergo a considerable amount of training in order to service the world's mac needs (which are considerable despite what apple would lead you to believe). just like anyone who specializes in servicing a pc is probably more familiar with certain nuances that non-specialist would never take the time to figure out.

[tf @ Jul 31st 2006 2:58PM]

"this may be out of ignorance, but i havent seen people be able to hook up multiple monitor displays, which is really useful in cad applications and running bloomberg. "

I can testify that I can do so quite easily and that OS X makes it much easier than Windows.

"who uses macs for artistic applications (like photoshop) for which speed of program and mouse navigation is unneccessary."

Huh? Speed and mousing is necessary. But moreover, your complaint centered on lack of keyboard shortcuts in which any pro Mac Photoshopper should be very efficient and know them all.

[korey @ Jul 31st 2006 3:01PM]

BLACK BROWN and COTTON

as in "bill gates probably could get several black men with the last name of brown to pick his cotton" wow this is as good as PSP Netherlands campaign lol this is great