Microsoft building a Zune factory
By Nilay Patel 
posted May 14th 2007 7:23PM
posted May 14th 2007 7:23PM
The fact that you all voted the Zune "Worst Gadget of the Year" in the recent Engadget Awards doesn't seem to be causing any hand-wringing in Redmond, as Microsoft confirmed today that they're building a dedicated Zune factory in China with an unnamed partner to crank out the oft-rumored next-gen Zune. It looks like Toshiba's not going to be involved this time around, as Zune marketing director Jason Reindorp has been quoted as saying that the rush to get the original Zune to market "forced us to take a look around at what was on the shelf...and get it out there," while this time they're interested in "the flexibility and control we have in creating a device from scratch." Ouch. Sorry, Tosh. Reindorp mentioned that the new manufacturing partner is someone MS is "very familiar with," and the new plant is located in the same city as the Flextronics plant that builds the Xbox 360 for Bill and Co., although nothing's been confirmed. For what it's worth, Reindorp also said that building a dedicated plant isn't going to bring "changes for the sake of changes" to the Zune (which is pretty funny given how many promo Zunes keep popping up) but here's hoping that it brings changes for the sake of actually making the thing better.[Thanks, Mike]
I got meh zune 2 months ago and haven't looked back. I work for a major electronics retailer and I can say that I see 4x as many ipods come back as zunes. I understand that there are a gazillion times more ipods out there than zunes but I find my player to be rock solid. I also really like the subscription based service that zune music offers. For $15 a month I can dl about anything I want and experience new bands. I laugh my ass of at peeps that say things like "The Zune's a pile of crap, who cares!" and have never touched/used one. They are fueled by pure MS hatorade.
when apple releases the a cellphone-less version of the iphone and calls it the 6th gen ipod the zune will NEVER be able to compete...it hasn't been able to compete in the past with the 5th gen and it won't be able to compete with the 6th gen in the future. Apple is ahead of the curve...you all know I'm right.
Even more screen to scratch until it's useless =)
Rod Munch wrote:
"Either way lets all just forget the zune and ipod and agree the Zen Vision M/W is the best choice."
Way more sound argument than anything about the Zune.
I mean, just look at the Gigbeat S:
http://reviews.cnet.com/Toshiba_Gigabeat_MES30VW_30GB_white/4505-6499_7-31660763.html
Aside from battery life, the features are just KILLER. Automatically compatible with Windows Media player recorded content, etc.
Zune is not that bad. I actually like them. I, myself, own an ipod but I convinced my girlfriend to get a Zune (so I can see how it is) and we both like it, hehe. It's a good gadget.
Ok so because you personnaly haven't had your ipod break on you you're an expert on them breaking? please. I worked at best buy for about a year and saw more ipods returned cause they were broken than any other device we sold. Hell, even our display ipod broke for no reason. And did you actually say the ipod doesn't scratch easily? I mean seriously, come on. You take it out of the box and it scratches. My zune didn't get scratched for about 2 months until I put it in my pocket with my keys in it. Oh and go ahead and wait for the iphone, we'll see how many movies(and in what quality) you store on 4 gigs. 1? maybe? ooo or if you pay like $700(with which you can buy almost 3 zunes) you can get the 8GB version and store 2(DISCLAIMER: movies must be in ipod format). So you go ahead and wait for the iphone to watch your movie on and I'll keep my 4 movies and tons of music on my zune.
P.S. In all those returned ipods I never saw a zune break.
wow first time I read engadget and it will also be my last. bias pos they are.
This isn't true. Microsoft is NOT building a new factory for Zune, they're using an existing factory. So says Cesar (a MS employee) at ZuneInsider.com. Check your sources, Engadget.
Frank, iPod is dominate (in sales, not quality or reliability) only because of, like anonymous said, the icon they carry. Other than that, they're nothing. I know there are better PMPs than BOTH the iPod and Zune, like the Archos players.
You are just another ignorant fanboy among a sea of ignorance.
You can argue this and that, and how many sales Apple has, but when it comes down to features, reliability, and ease of use, it's the Zune all the way. I have had 3 different iPods in the past 4 years, all of them built terribly. Not only do the face-plates scratch easily, but after about 200-300 charges, the battery might lose it's charge capacity, or not charge at all (happened on 2 of the 3 iPods). Finally, on my 3rd iPod, the touch wheel just got desensitized. Why? I have no idea. The touch sensitive wheel is worthless! My friend went through 5 black 5.5G iPods in one week, all with the same problem. The iPod failed to recognize his PC, or even the fact that it was charging.
Now, since I have had my Zune, I have not had a SINGLE similar problem, or any problems at all! The Zune is so much more reliable, especially when you count how many times I've dropped this thing, and still, not a scratch (well, maybe 2 on the back, but nothing major).
About your comment with the radio tuner and WiFi receiver being minuscule in size... My ass, those are the sole reasons why the Zune is thicker and heavier.
Stop sucking on Apple's **** and realize that their products suck. Their PCs are alright, but really, they don't have the know how to build a good product. They would be better off leaving that job to someone else.
TO ENGADGET:
Here's an idea, how about posting a number/code using a deterministic algorithm generated using the IP address of the person making the post? (well perhaps don't use the last digits of IP) Or how about posting the physical location determined by the IP? I really want to see some sites taking action about these paid commenter's.
C'MON ENGADGET, TAKE THE LEAD!!
Wow... it's too much "effort" to push a button? Please, in a lot of ways the scrollwheel takes much more effort since you have to actually move your finger around in a circle. When scrolling through a big list how is holding a button down more effort than trying to move your finger around in a circle as fast as you can? Also, let's compare menu items. The ipod has like 40 on each screen(before anyone attacks me for saying that; no, I do not literally mean 40). So while you're scrolling through all your menu items to get down to "Now playing" so you can change the volume, I'll just press the back button.
I purchased a Zune because I like going against the grain.
Everybody (not literally) owns an iPod.
I personally don't like to listen MP3's all the time.
The FM radio is the main feature that sold me on the Zune (that and the way album art is displayed)
I also own an iPod (my car radio features iPod integration).
Upon my 2nd day of owning my iPod, the PC would give me the message that my iPod was corrupted and that I had to wipe the device clean and resync everything.
To add 3 new songs (just an exanple) I would have to wipe the whole device and resync my whole library to add 3 freaking songs.
With my Zune all I do is plug it in to my PC and it auto syncs everything that I have recently added. Simple as 1-2-3.
nice
Microsoft has a tendency to more or less screw up their first or second attempt at entering the market, but they also have a tendency (and the resources) to listen to criticism and eventually create a project that is extremely good. Although I agree that the current generation Zune is not really competitive with the iPod or even the Zen Vision, I wouldn't write off the next generation Zune quite yet.