Zune to hit Canada in May with a smaller lineup?
By Nilay Patel 
posted May 1st 2008 6:34AM
posted May 1st 2008 6:34AM
It might be in a slightly smaller posse, though: the crew over at ClicZune recently took a gander at Microsoft's Canadian Zune promo page and noticed that the Zune 30 and the green flash Zunes are conspicuously absent. (Also missing is the recently released red Zune 80, but that was announced after the pages in question were made.) It's hard to tell what this means -- do Canadians hate green things? Are the 30 and green on their way out in the US as well? -- but hopefully we'll get some answers in just a couple weeks.
[Via ClicZune, thx Penny]
Read - Craigslist ad
Read - Microsoft Canadian Zune promo page
Very old news.http://www.zuneboards.com/forums/zune-talk/21116-green-zune-4-8-dropped-lineup-rumor.html?highlight=green+canada
It was a very old "rumor" (2 weeks ago, before the beginning of time), now, however, it is very fresh "news".
Two weeks ago is ancient history in internets time.
:D
Whats a Zune?
Too bad I'm already hooked on my YP-P2 - that and I already know how bad MS's support is for their own hardware.
Thanks, I'd rather shoot myself in the foot with soup spoon.
Thank you for informing us about your opinion. We will work hardly to make sure that you don't shoot yourself in the foot with a soup spoon.
I love my Zune 80.
CNET Review of Samsung YP-P2: 7.7
http://reviews.cnet.com/mp3-players/samsung-yp-p2-8gb/4505-6490_7-32588459.html?tag=prod.txt.1
CNET Review of Zune 80: 8.3
http://reviews.cnet.com/portable-video-players-pvps/zune-second-generation-80gb/4505-6499_7-32638989.html?tag=prod.txt.1
Proud Zune 80 owner!
Microsoft FAILED with Zune.
As much as I hate Apple, you can't deny the huge market share controlled by iPods and iPhones. Microsoft should have been working on a Windows based smartphone instead of the Zune - released before the iPhone.
Now, they are playing catchup.
Microsofts only true success lately has been the 360's mulitplayer online experience.
If I were head of Microsoft right now, I'd be designing a portable XBOX system - PSP killer - with built in VoIP, GSM/ 3G running a chopped down version of the 360's OS.
I guarantee you I'd make billions with multiplayer versions of GTA4 and Halo on a portable system.
Why the hell is Microsoft playing catch up to Apple AND Sony? They are the larger company.
Exactly how did they fail with the Zune? From statistics I've seen, it's the 3rd best selling DAP in America and in May 2007 had 11.3% market share. They shipped 1 million Zune's quicker than expected and there are very few unsatisfied Zune owners I know of.
People are importing them all around the world, maybe not iPhone crazy, but still - it's a popular device.
Their inclusion of quality canalphones in the Zune 80 was very impressive, as is their continued support for the Zune 30 (upgrading it to the newest firmware and adding all the new features).
@Daza
First off all, are you really carting out statistics from a year ago? Not sure how relevant that is now.
Also, can you please post said statistics. Microsoft has an uncanny ability to inflate market share by defining the market so specifically. Like, was it 11.3% if hard drive based media players, flash media players, all media players, media players whose name starts with the letter "Z".
I seem to remember them playing catchup in the browser wars back in the day too. They started WAY too late, and now Netscape owns all your browsers!
wait a tick...
That is to say that it's never too late for a good product well placed.
@Neal
"I seem to remember them playing catchup in the browser wars back in the day too. They started WAY too late, and now Netscape owns all your browsers!
wait a tick...
That is to say that it's never too late for a good product well placed."
Talk about reality distortion field syndrome. You must have just crawled out from under a rock. IE destroyed Netscape from the desktop because it was a better product and well placed? The hilarity of a Zune lovers mind set continues.
You choose to hear what you want. During the timeframe that IE was competing with Netscape it was a far better solution. Part of the formula was that IE was/is free - if Netscape had it's way you would still have to buy a browser, that is how they got started.
Stop nit picking and look at the larger picture. What defines if something it better or successful is if people use it. Netscape was not better, even after they made it free, or it would still be around. Saying that IE was bundled with Windows is the reason is a crock, if it were true Firefox wouldn't exist either.
This has nothing to do with if IE is a better browser now, it has to do with what it competed against at the time - just like Zune is not competing with the iPod that is coming out 5 years from now, it's competing with what is on the market now. People have a right to choose, they do so with their money, and if they want to suppport one or the other they do it by buying that product.
It always amazes me that those who are the most rabid are who tend to point their zealous fingers at other first. I hear cries of support for the underdog products when they are competing against MS, and how the competition is good and drive innovation, but when it comes to a product competing with Apple, the shoe is always on the other foot.
"You choose to hear what you want. During the timeframe that IE was competing with Netscape it was a far better solution. Part of the formula was that IE was/is free - if Netscape had it's way you would still have to buy a browser, that is how they got started. "
You choose to ignore the facts. Illegal activities, bundling.... Your statements are absolutely ridiculous. IE crushed Netscape and you know exactly why...
haha! Amazing how Opera, Firefox, Mozilla, and others somehow happen to thrive in this oppressive, illegal, bundling environment. The facts that there was/is illegal activities that you are trying to tie into the failure of Netscape ignores that it died for many reasons, some of which are poor company management, and a poor product in that it stopped being innovative and prodiving customers what they wanted - if it had provided what people wanted it would still be around, much like the other browsers I mention above.
What's sad is that you actually believe this. If something is inferior, consumers will not use it. No matter if it's free or not.
i love my zune 80 and wouldnt replace it for the world
just felt like saying it :P
agreed.
/snore
Unless you're telling it'll be given free to anyone dumb enough to have bought Vista (me: guilty), what's this Zune thing got to offer anyway.
As a proud Canadian, I can confidently speak on behalf of my fellow countrymen (and women) when I say that the two most un-Canadian things are the colour green, and anything with 30 gigs of storage. A pox to both their houses.
yeah, I saw some info onthis a couple months back. I couldnt post about it as first, I know at that time only a few people knew about the Canadian lineup and secondily, who cares about Zunes? lol!! Canada, especially Toronto's Subway is iPod Nation!
They will probably sell 1, maybe 2.
My local Target liquidated their Zune stock with a 50% off clearance. The Canadians should've just crossed the border and gotten one in the US if they wanted one.
This is nothing new.
It's standard practice for American companies with Canadian subsidiaries to sell a smaller set of products up here than they do in the US, if they even sell the line at all.
Samsung Canada, for example, doesn't sell ANY of their laptops or UMPCs in Canada - while having an agreement with Samsung USA preventing the sale of American models in Canada (even though they're all approved by the DOC and Industry Canada).
Toshiba, like most computer companies, sells one or two preconfigured versions of their laptops and no BTO models, and charges a substantially higher price. My Tosh M700 would have cost me $600 more if I'd bought it in Canada - even though the CDN dollar is essentially at par with the US.
Stores like TigerDirect and Buy.com do the same thing. They find a Canadian reseller to use their name, and then offer a much smaller subset of products - while charging more - yet allow pretty much everyone else in the world to order from their US sites while preventing Canadians from doing so.
Apparently these businesses don't realise that Canadians can actually see their American websites and so can do comparative shopping.
The real irony? Toshiba Canada claims that their prices are higher because they buy their laptops from Toshiba Japan directly while Toshiba US builds their own. Ignoring the fact that this is simply not true, it's also stupid. If it IS true, then Tosh Canada should OEM the Tosh US products and add say $100 to the price. They'd make a nice profit (after all the companies in the US who sell Toshibas like CDW seem to), they could defer the shipping to the customer, the production to Tosh US and offer a complete product line.
Toshiba Canada doesn't even do their own warranty work - so they could easily handle that by doing what they do now - deferring to their authorised warranty dealers.
So, yeah, getting shafted by companies is pretty much the norm up here.
Do we get Zune Originals ?
Not to rag on you too much, Engadget, but this news is from a month and a half ago. Even I knew about it (from my Canadian brethren) and I don't own, nor can use a Zune. (I'm a Mac-user)
Look at the date on the post: March 13th!
A little late, ol' boys. :)
Reasons to not buy a Zune.
1. Fear of losing DRM tracks.
2. Way to slow to bring out new features.
3. Zune Marketplace Sucks.
4. Squirting my tunes to a friends sounds gay.
5. Not able to edit id3 tags.
6. Battery life not great.
Reasons to not buy an Ipod.
1. Apple builds them. Nuff Said.
Oh and people who get mad because the Zune market place on a Mac? DUH. I have an iceberg I would like to sell you.. Excellent terms.
This is old news
If you actually go to Zune.net/en-CA or select canada in the international list, the Red zune is indeed in the picture. However, no 30 or green zunes.