Zune HD hacked, OpenZDK now available to developers
By Donald Melanson 
posted April 16th 2010 1:51PM
posted April 16th 2010 1:51PM
Well, it looks like the first 64GB Zune HDs landing in customers' hands may not be the biggest Zune news today after all. As proudly announced the ZuneBoards website, the Zune HD -- and all earlier Zunes, although the potential there is a tad more limited -- "have been hacked." While obviously not the first hack of any sort for the devices, this is described as the "first true hack," and it has made the concurrently-released OpenZDK possible. That effectively gives developers "access to everything XNA withheld before," which more or less opens to doors to any type of application that can run on the Zune hardware -- games, emulators, app stores, you name it. Of course, there's not a ton for average Zune users to play with at the moment, but developers can find all they need to get cracking at the source link below.
[Thanks, jhoeforth & Dilpickle1]
[Thanks, jhoeforth & Dilpickle1]
Without a way to charge, I don't see a ton of useful things coming out from this, but sounds like a good start.
@Evan
I wonder if it would be possible for someone to set up some sort of public zune app store where devs could put up their apps for free or sale. The site could take a cut for upkeep and stuff. I would find that very useful if I could just go to one spot to search for apps instead of having to pour through a bunch of pages.
@Evan This will most likely be the #1 reason for buying a Zune HD from now on.
It can essentially turn the Zune HD into a useful multimedia PDA of sorts (kinda like the iPod Touch), but much better than any Windows Mobile PDA.
@Evan would this hack allow users to put music on there zunes without the microsoft hardware so us apple and linux users can sync our zune players without windows.
Just buy a pc. Not a big deal.
-Steve
@Evan
I just wanted to say that the Zune homebew support was small because we were forced into using C# which is managed and slow. This appears to be native.
@saturnblackhole No, the OpenZDK won't have an effect on the loading of music. The hack that allows the loading of custom apps might, depending on just how it works.
The Zune HD hardware is very impressive - nVidia Tegra processor, OLED screen, HD/FM/AM/Weather radio tuner... MS should have set up a developer API when it launched instead of jealously keeping everything in-house.
@Evan
i no long mildly regret buying my zune hd. before it was just an awesome mp3 with so much potential, now that potential can be released. very excited for what is to come of this
@NYYstateofmind Because it's hardly breaking news. It's not industry-changing, a highly anticipated product announcement, or even industry-related. The iPhone OS 4 dev jailbreak wasn't breaking news, and this isn't either.
Quick, someone make it act as a normal USB harddrive!
@Evan
The Zune HD IS running Windows Phone 7 under the hood. I'm pretty sure it'll be fully compatible with WP7 apps when WP7 is in the market on real phones.
@saturnblackhole
the zune PC software is a selling point of the zune for me, what this will do is allow some nice new games that are in 3D and unrestricted by XNA, meaning that that Tegra can be pushed.
@MrGoodCat
I never regretted buying mines from the get-go but now I'm psyched even more to see the possibilities that will open up even more. The Zune HD is an awesome piece of work and hopefully this will open the doors to developers creating games, apps, and the like that can better capitalize off of its features.
Can't wait to see what's in store :)
This is good news! Since MS seems to be dragging their feet on putting any good Zune apps out there this will hopefully put some pressure on them.
@admlshake
or maybe someone can put the kin platform on it now.
@admlshake my zune hd is collecting dust from that stupid PGR game. I want apps on my zune hd. Interface is hot though.
@(Unverified) I'd really like some more apps on my ZHD as well, but you knew when you bought it that it was an mp3 player first, and that app support wasn't anywhere near what the ipod touch offers, so it really shouldn't be collecting dust.
While app support is lacking, there is no contest between the ZHD and itouch when it comes to the music experience. Zune wins hands down.
@admlshake Don't people understand why there is no international support and a real app store for the Zuneiverse at the moment? MS first will finish WP7, then update both Zune and Kin and then expand app support on them. It is obvious, IMHO.
@TN0
That is what I've been thinking the whole time. Push the flagship and then trickle it down to your other similar platforms. It makes more sense that way to me.
Hack is good consider why Apple saw it and making a appts store.
@techlord Apple sells apartments now? Hmmm and I thought the iPad was just a giant iPod touch...
@ashasaur you got it wrong, who said anything about selling?
Why isn't the fucking thing out in Europe? :(
@ChazClout. What the maul is Europe?
@ChazClout I think the better question is:
When will Mac users get Zune Market place!
Dear Mr. Ballmer,
I really want a Zune HD but a have a Mac...please do something.
Love,
The people that don't like iTunes.
@ChazClout
I honestly think it has to do with us Americans being guinea pigs. Microsoft lays this on us and we will ultimately provide feedback on it so they can take it back to the lab and drop the second gen Zune HD and WP7 at about the same time worldwide and they can both be smash hits, and we can all live happily ever after.
@ChazClout
Because it's considered indecent to take the fucking thing out in public in Europe, I presume.
@Lord Vader Europe = Your father...*
/could it be any more ironic...?
* unless you're native american ;)
@BigJayDogg3 i think EU and JP have far more advance and way ahead of us in mobile/comp tech than the likes of apple, microsoft, hp offers here in North America. For one, video conferencing via cellphones has been out in EU 5 years ago and we still don't have that here. An HTC I imported from EU has a camera in the front for conferencing and an "American" version of it was released without the camera in the front. We are behind when it comes to techs. Thats why I didnt buy into iphone because it was an outdated piece of shit compared to other phones out in Japan.
@NaeemTHM Just install Windows 7. Do it now.
-Steve Balmer
Sent from my Learjet
@NaeemTHM
While I feel bad for you I really think there is much much much more potential for the thing if they would release it outside the US...mac users represent a tiny fraction of the potential for this device...
@who said what
haha, well done sir, I applaud the reference!
@NaeemTHM
Zune Software isn't any better
@NaeemTHM Adding Mac support for the Zune is just not cost effective. When Apple released the iPod on Windows it was because they had to. The number of Windows users who wanted an iPod were huge (not really sure why, the iPod has never been that good of a device). The number of Mac users who want a Zune is pretty small because of the small market share of Mac owners.
So this is like jailbreaking the Zune HD, and with Tegra inside, this is infinitely more awesome than any other jailbreaking so far.
@Hellios
Wrong! The jailbreaking of the TI Nspire is infinitely more interesting! ;)
It would be, if these things had GPS.
This news reminds me of that old Geraldo Rivera show where he broke into Al Capone's safe. Nothingburgers for lunch.
@Ed T This also reminds me of the time Me and Jaws teamed up to get Bigger Jaws.......
@N900 There was nothing in Al Capone's vault, but it wasn't Geraldo's fault...
about damn time
I hope this means that the guys over at zuneboards start making some useful stuff for both and zune hd and older zunes
And all of a sudden he Zune looks more interesting to me. Still though, I'm perfectly happy with my COWON s9. If I were to get a Zune, I'd wait for the next generation. I do love having the power of a Tegra running in a PMP, but I don't want to buy it only to have a new revision come out a few months later.
Oh Zii Egg, where art thou? I would kill for a PMP to run off of a ZMS-08/05.
@Prevacator
Cowon S9
I now have a reason to buy a Zune HD
@Darkseider
I would do the same except that it's not up here in Canada. I mean wtf? What's Balmer and his kids thinking? Ughh
Perhaps we can finally get some UNICODE support on the 80/120.
I seem to remember that the Wp7 and Kin phone share basic elements with the zuneHD, does this mean a jail broken Wp7 before it is even released?
@Junyor Mynt .. Don't think so. It is supposed to be the Zune HD2 that is supposed to share code with WP7.
The Zune HD 64 GB would be my perfect iPod classic replacement if it wasn't for the lack of Linux support. Grrr.