Somewhere, in the wide-open plains to the North, there's a man who, unbeknownst to his family and perhaps even himself, is destined for something greater. Somewhere, there's a Canadian counterpart to our
Zune Guy who has yet to fulfill his fate ... but not for long. Microsoft announced today that the Zune won't be confined to the borders of the US any longer, as its forthcoming release in Canada is marking the infant music player's first big trip outside the US. Welcome to the Social, Canada -- unfortunately, we've no clue when you'll receive the official invite.
Update: Word on the street is that Canadians can get Zuned up this spring, so start saving your Loonies.
posted Jan 6th 2008 at 11:02PM
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Zuneboi @ Jan 23rd 2008 9:30PM
YAY! Something to replace the iPod I lost while clubbing baby seals...
Jeremy @ Jan 27th 2008 10:05PM
Dave,
I've read a bit of your comments and it is pretty typical of you to say such things. You Americans have no freedom and no good education. You guys try so hard to make yourselves look good again but it still isn't working buddy.
You're probably an other fat fuck from America who needs to stop eating a McD's and go to Subway or something...
It's too bad you don't have free health care and can own a gun when ever you want in America.. it's so sad..
phanyboy @ Feb 1st 2008 8:05PM
ARGH i live in canada and im reading all these posts and one rlly pissis me off, that is from the "big" Dave, heck the ipod is less attracting, and old, not to mention we need something NEW something you will get everyones attention with, something that is worth buying, something that well has nearly everything an ipod has +more. i cant wait till this thing comes to canada because it appears as though EVERYONE HAS A FICKEN IPOD THOSE THINGS ARE DULL AND BORING+THEY DONT EVEN WORK, (my bro got one its a peice of shit, battery charge thing doesnt work, FREEZES like every hour wich is gay and i just want this better object that is the "ipod killer" THAT WOULD BE THE ZUNE u LARD BOY DAVE go back to ur mcdonalds and have urself a supersizer again...........all ur comments mean nothing
jimmy @ Feb 1st 2008 8:09PM
when i said ubove that the zune has nearly everything a ipod has i meant EVERYTHING
jimmy @ Feb 1st 2008 8:09PM
jimmy WTF
jimmy @ Feb 1st 2008 8:12PM
....how come it displays jimmy IM NOT JIMMY. o well but u get the point why we need the zune eh
jimmy @ Feb 1st 2008 8:16PM
....how come it displays jimmy IM NOT JIMMY. o well but u get the point why we need the zune eh
rellik @ Feb 7th 2008 7:01PM
listen, big dave, dont comment until youve had good time with the zune$ipod. or about canada$us, cu theyere the same. other than the invisible lines that define their physical mass.
Irwin @ Jan 6th 2008 11:05PM
they said spring right? idk, aslong as its comming CAN't WAIT
tiuk @ Jan 7th 2008 12:24AM
Yeah, in the MS keynote they said spring.
Ten Dolla Bill @ Jan 7th 2008 9:21AM
I live in Canada and I've had my Zune2 since launch a few months ago. Gotta say, it blows my old iPod out of the water.
Josh @ Jan 6th 2008 11:05PM
who is that guy in the leaf? lol
Josh @ Jan 6th 2008 11:06PM
nevermind - that has to be the zune fanboy
Baba Booey @ Jan 6th 2008 11:07PM
I send my condolences. Have fun with marketshare. A lot of Canadians probably have it thanks to ebay though.
Jeff Lewis @ Jan 7th 2008 3:38AM
The marketshare thing isn't really relevent because if they're smart, Microsoft will sell to Canada out of their US inventory and Canadians are actually more into gadgets than Americans are - so it's a smaller market, but with a bigger penetration for these kind of things.
Flashpoint @ Jan 6th 2008 11:08PM
Eh?
Adrian @ Jan 6th 2008 11:12PM
Hahahahahahaha!
grant @ Jan 6th 2008 11:11PM
of course this would happen after years of waiting and getting an iPod .
Dylan @ Jan 6th 2008 11:13PM
What the hell are you talking about, i saw zunes at a half dozen stores on boxing day in toronto.
Phil @ Jan 6th 2008 11:31PM
you saw zunes in toronto, that just becuase little mom and pop computer shops are getting a few 30gb units from down south, as tiger direct has done in the past. The marketplace has never worked in canada, and still doenst. This is great news, although i orderd my zune original the day the 80's were avaibale and had it sent to my brohter in laws place then sent to me...and i love it.
richard @ Jan 7th 2008 3:30AM
I've seen them in toys are us's in Calgary even befor the new ipods came out.
Derwin @ Jan 6th 2008 11:13PM
hahaha, i laughed when i finally noticed the dude's face in the leaf.
boynamedsue @ Jan 7th 2008 1:01AM
nice icon. same idea, but i dig your execution more.
roole @ Jan 6th 2008 11:17PM
It's ab-oo-t time! Not zoon enough....
Wait........ what's a zoon?
kamandriat @ Jan 7th 2008 3:41AM
from working at toysrus, some have said these:
Zuhn
iZune
Zunie
iZunie
iZuhn
but ive heard iPoed lol
BigDave @ Jan 6th 2008 11:17PM
Why would anyone buy a zune? The ipod is superior in every way. What's the point of selling or buying inferior products that do exactly the same thing? Why would canada want it... Nevermind, canada sucks, they can have it.... but why would anyone else want it?
David @ Jan 6th 2008 11:25PM
Why don't you grab your shotgun and shove it up your sister's ass you american bitch, I heard they found terrorists there.
Reader @ Jan 6th 2008 11:34PM
alright man... I'm just gonna throw out a few features that the zune has which the iPod does not. Not going to say disputable things like which UI is better, or which one looks cooler, just the things that are obviously better than the iPod classic:
-WiFi sync
-FM Radio
-Bigger Screen
-Sharing songs, but people rarely use this I'm sure
Classic only wins in gb category, as it has a 160 variant while zune only has 80. So if you're going to troll at least stick to "the zune is so unstylish" and "I get off to Steve Jobs" as reasons to buy an iPod.
Kozzi @ Jan 6th 2008 11:35PM
You just failed at trolling, try harder next time.
BigDave @ Jan 7th 2008 12:04AM
Lol!! Cool a canadian tried to be tough :)
I don't even have either of them. I use my phone with an 8gb card..
If I was going to buy one, it would be an ipod. They work better, they have more support, and they look a hell of a lot better.
Wifi sync? How hard is it to drop something in a dock, or plug it in? Oooh, you still have to charge your zune don't you?
FM Radio? Have you listened to the radio lately? If you can find a station that isn't country or christian, it'll only play 5-10 songs repeatedly until you can't stand it anymore. Isn't that WHY mp3s became so big? So you could listen to what you want, when you want?
Bigger screen? You confuse me. there is that fancy ipod touch, isn't there?
And we all share songs every day... It's called downloading. That's how you got your music, right? Or you could do the right thing and share a song by telling someone else to buy it.
How am I a troll? I say what I feel, you say what you feel. Either we are ALL trolls, or none of us are. At least I can type. I suppose you could call all the POWNZ FIRST!!! posters trolls... but they are just stating the obvious.
Hey, Canada still sucks, no matter how hard you try to defend it.
Das @ Jan 7th 2008 12:09AM
The only case where you may have a point is with the zune 4,8 compared to the iPod nano since the nano is a little smaller and has a 0.2" larger screen. Whether or not the extra features of the zune make up for it is a matter of opinion (for instance, in my opinion the nano looks too much like a chiclet to take it seriously).
However, the zune 80 is quite frankly just a better product than the iPod classic 80gb, maybe only by a little bit, but it is better. Bigger screen, glass screen, and the wifi sharing gimmick is at the very least more useful than the coverflow gimmick I'd go on but I don't want to be too much of a fanboy.
Das @ Jan 7th 2008 12:17AM
Well if you're gonna go ahead and compare the iPod touch to the Zune 80 then how about the fact that zunes have either 5 or 10 times the storage space?
for some reason you're comparing the entire iPod line, to the entire zune line instead of comparing individual products. This is odd. Partly because it's unrealistic and partly because it's like you're faulting a Prius for not being able to hold as much as a bus, the two do not traditionally Compete.
Mike @ Jan 7th 2008 12:18AM
@bigdave
You sir, are an idiot. Did the absurdity of claiming that a country "sucks" not cross your mind? Okay, sorry, let me re-state that in terms you may understand more clearly. Dontcha think it's dumb to say a place sucks?? It's entirely moronic, ethnocentric and juvenile to make such a claim. Here are a few reasons why Canada does not suck. (I chose to reiterate "suck" because I think lowering myself to your level will further your understanding.)
Human Development Index - 4th in the world (2007)
Transparency International Corruption Index - 9th in the world (2007)
"Best Country to Live In" Awards - 8
Canadian's invented peacekeeping
I could go on.
Where does your country stand Dave? I suggest you relocate your head from your ass and attempt to gain some empirical knowledge rather than manage your life based on speculative fictions that you have created and maintain in order to hide your ignorance. It must be so fun being so fucking dumb. I bet everytime you and your peers discuss global politics (if ever, perhaps I should say rant about, not discuss) it ends in racial slurs and a tacit understanding amongst yourselves that you all ought not go any further because none of you has anything insightful to say.
kamandriat @ Jan 7th 2008 12:19AM
rather than repeat what everyone has slammed you about.. re-read what you stated.
The ipod is superior in every way. What's the point of selling or buying inferior products that do exactly the same thing?
so by your logic:
ipod = superior (in every way) zune = inferior product ipod = zune (do EXACTLY the same thing)
YOU ARE A GOOODDDD
BigDave @ Jan 7th 2008 12:27AM
It must be fun being so damn sensitive!!! Do you guys ever just have fun?? Is everything that anyone says this personally insulting to you? No matter what, do you have an urge to argue about everything on the internet? Do you have any friends in real life?
Are you even old enough to vote? Or drink? I hate canada because I went there once, and it was awful... So I can say I hate canada!! Get it? It's called freedom of speech... But little kids on the internet have a problem with that, and must argue about EVERYTHING!!
It's ok, it's fun to me, so I'll read all your insults and comments. Heck, I'll probably respond to them too!
Ask yourself, is it really that fun being "so fucking dumb" ?? Please let us know.
itsinthecave @ Jan 7th 2008 1:49AM
Woah. Either you're trying to be funny or you are the most ignorant hypocrite ive seen in a LONG time.
BigDave @ Jan 7th 2008 2:22AM
UH, that would be, trying to be funny... It's all lost on the rest of the ignorant hypocrits around here...
And the raving lunatics from canada..
Jeff Lewis @ Jan 7th 2008 4:10AM
Damn it - let's try that again...
"Why would anyone buy a zune? The ipod is superior in every way. What's the point of selling or buying inferior products that do exactly the same thing?"
Well, in truth, you're pretty much wrong all across on this one. The iPod definitely has some areas where it's superiour - but the Zune also has areas where it beats the pants off the iPod. The Zune's UI is simpler and more natural and in some ways more innovative (the 2D 'coverflow' for example).
"Why would canada want it... Nevermind, canada sucks, they can have it.... but why would anyone else want it?"
Ok.. Explain to me how this *isn't* an insult to Canadians? Even if it's true - it's still said in an insulting manner. I know as a Canadian I certainly took a small offense at it - well, until I considered where the insult was coming from: a Mac fanboy who has to piss on everyone else's parade to feel good about himself.
But yeah, some of us ARE kind of excited at the chance to have more choices and options.
Moron.
BigDave @ Jan 7th 2008 4:36AM
Everyone always draws the fanboy card!!! I'm running three XP machines and a vista laptop... No mac os in sight, haven't been a mac fanboy since the late 90s. I don't have an ipod, and I would never buy a zune. If I have to listen to music it's in my car or on my voyager. I'm glad you are insulted because I don't like canada.. That's good.
If you want choices and options, they have been out there for a long time, and not in MS Zune form. What is so exciting about the social to you?
None of my comments are to make myself feel better about myself... Nope. Just for pure entertainment value.
Jake @ Jan 7th 2008 12:53PM
Don't worry, guys, we'll just take our drinking water, oil, fresh air, good beer and go home...
computer.dude.28 @ Jan 23rd 2008 12:14AM
You'd think that bigdave over here could take a hint after every single one of his comments in the thread is lowest ranked..
Cale @ Feb 8th 2008 5:00PM
You are really stupid aren't you.
"I use my phone with an 8gb card.."
Why you can't afford anything better than a cheap 8GB card, no one with money would ever settle for just 8 gigs.
"and they look a hell of a lot better."
If you think they look better you have probably spent to much time looking at the inside of your McDonalds and thinking that it's beautiful compared to your piece of shite living conditions. The newest nanos look short and pudgy, probibly just like you
"Wifi sync? How hard is it to drop something in a dock, or plug it in?"
This could be used if you misplaced the dock or were at someone elses house. I'm pretty sure that the real use for this is for when Microsoft releases the Microsoft Surface.
"FM Radio? Have you listened to the radio lately? If you can find a station that isn't country or christian, it'll only play 5-10 songs repeatedly until you can't stand it anymore."
Well most people listen to the radio to find new music so they can then download more from that artist. As for the country and christian I know it isn't like that where I live (Ontario). The country and christian is probably playing because of where the broadcast is coming from (South USA). The 5-10 songs part is played so that radios can get listeners and actually make money from adds so they don't have to close.
"Isn't that WHY mp3s became so big? So you could listen to what you want, when you want?"
I believe in that statement you mean downloading music not mp3's because the reason mp3's are so big is just because it's a good form of audio compression when it comes to quality versus size.
"Bigger screen? You confuse me. there is that fancy ipod touch, isn't there?"
Bigger screen is one thing that the ipod touch has but thats just one of how many different styles of ipods that have existed. Also the ipod touch probably only has as much space for music as your crappy phone after you add in the space that the operating system takes up along with all the programs.
"And we all share songs every day... It's called downloading. That's how you got your music, right? Or you could do the right thing and share a song by telling someone else to buy it."
True but with the Zune you can share songs anywhere, even if there is no internet connection. I'd like to see you download songs on the bus or something(provided you don't live in a city thats one giant hot-spot).
"Hey, Canada still sucks, no matter how hard you try to defend it."
Although they don't teach this to you in your American history class you guys would have been screwed if it wasn't for us during WW2(we actually took a stand compared to the US who waited a couple of years until they were hit) and in the cold war(there were stations in northern Canada that were ready to destroy any bombs that were headed to the US) so don't say we suck or right now you could have been under a dictatorship (although bush is no different:P"
ARealOG @ Jan 6th 2008 11:18PM
The sad thing is that this is the only thing Engadget could report on from the Keynote. For someone who did so many keynotes at CES, what a disappointing finish Bill.
Salam Zebian @ Jan 6th 2008 11:20PM
http://www.cliczune.com/2008/01/zune-in-canada.html
Can't wait!!
(BTW, the zune tattoo guy works for the blog post I linked too, along with myself)
Markus @ Jan 6th 2008 11:21PM
The Zune 80 is about 78 Canadian at the current exchange rate.
marcman @ Jan 6th 2008 11:55PM
actually its even, the dollar has been down lately. not like the $1.10USD it was worth a month ago. sheesh get your economy in order america even i think parity is sad. oh btw, good for zune's first international foray being canada, not like apple who leaves us in the dust. i love macs, i'm just sayin' is all.
michael.dekmetzian @ Jan 6th 2008 11:27PM
I'm amazed they don't have it yet. The Zune isn't confined to the US though, we've had them in Australia for ages.
jimmyb @ Jan 7th 2008 12:17AM
WTF?? Dude get it right, in Australia we have had to order them off of Ebay, not one single store in Australia sells them...
grr ignorance spreads on the web so fast!!
Riine @ Jan 6th 2008 11:29PM
We don't want it. Ship it to North Korea.
And BigDave, how 'bout them World Juniors?
Derwin @ Jan 6th 2008 11:30PM
Canada is to US as Zune is to iPod. Maybe they've got something here...