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Zune's last days: Microsoft pulling Zune HD apps, select features on August 31st
Microsoft's oddly named music service put its official resignation in earlier this summer, but the Zune brand isn't in its coffin just yet -- although Redmond is certainly driving in the nails. Zune Pass subscribers, for instance, are now receiving word that the service's Mixview playback and channel playlist features will be discontinued on August 31st, along with music video streaming from the Zune desktop software. User licenses to previously purchased music videos are being reworked as well, cutting off user access to old content on new machines. The service's once heavily touted social aspect seems to be making way for Xbox Music as well: users will no longer be able to send or receive messages, invite friends or share songs, playlists, and play history. Last, but not least, the company is dealing its old hardware one final blow by discontinuing Zune HD apps -- not that there were many to kill off. Microsoft has little else to say in the brief email, but promises to share more information about Xbox Music soon. Check it out for yourself after the break.
Microsoft downplays Metro design name, might face a lawsuit over all that street lingo
If you've seen most of Microsoft's design language for nearly three years, there's only one word that sums it up: Metro. In spite of that urban look being the underpinning of Windows Phone, Windows 8 and even the Zune HD, Microsoft now claims to ZDNet and others that it's no longer fond of the Metro badge. Instead, it's supposedly phasing out the name as part of a "transition from industry dialog to a broad consumer dialog" while it starts shipping related products -- a funny statement for a company that's been shipping some of those products for quite awhile. Digging a little deeper, there's murmurs that the shift might not be voluntary. Both Ars Technica and The Verge hear from unverified sources that German retailer Metro AG might waving its legal guns and forcing Microsoft to quiet down over a potential (if questionable) trademark dispute. Metro AG itself won't comment other than to say that these are "market rumors," which doesn't exactly calm any frayed nerves over in Redmond. Should there be any truth to the story, we hope Microsoft chooses an equally catchy name for those tiles later on; Windows Street Sign Interface Windows 8-style UI just wouldn't have the same ring to it.
Zune is dead, long live Zune
Like Zune's own Business Development Manager once said, all consumer electronics products have a lifespan, and today the (not so long) lineage of dedicated Zune hardware expires not with a roar, but with a promise to honor its warranties. Tucked away in the inner chambers of the Zune support site lies a page spelling out Microsoft's final words on the device, "Windows Phone will be the focus of our mobile music and video strategy," it says, "we will no longer be producing Zune players." The Zune HD is survived by the Zune music service, which will continue to function with straggling standalone media players, as well as the Windows desktop, Windows Phone and Xbox platforms.
Windows Phone 7 Connector 2.0 arrives in the Mac App Store
Good news, users of Windows Phone 7 mobile phones and Apple Mac computers. Microsoft has just released the latest iteration of its Windows Phone Connector software -- version 2.0. And it's available for download now in the Mac App Store. Windows Phone Connector is developed by Microsoft to allow the syncing of files, photos, videos and music between Mac computers and mobile phones running the Windows Phone 7 OS. And this update brings with it a whole host of new features, and fixes to previous bugs. All the juicy details are on the Mac App Store, but suffice to say, it's a good step forward in the right direction from version 1.0. The update is compatible with Mac OS X 10.6.6 and above, and is applicable to all Windows Phone 7 device and users of the now defunct Zune HD. [Via Pocket-lint]
Zune Originals shut down, humans revert to being average and uncreative
Hard to believe that Microsoft's been offering consumers the ability to customize their Zune purchases for the better part of four years now, but as they say, all unbelievable things must one day face reality. Er, something to that effect. Without so much as a heads-up, the designers in Redmond have apparently decided to shutter the Zune Originals storefront. As of this weekend, no new orders for highly personalized Zunes are being taken, with interested Earthlings encouraged to throw creativity to the wind and opt for a mass produced alternative within Best Buy or Walmart. So, you're looking at two tidbits of import: if you placed your Originals order at 5PM PT on July 1st, you likely have quite the coveted device headed your way, and if you ever needed evidence that Microsoft was making WP7 its next Zune, well... you're welcome. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
16GB Zune HD drops to $169, edging closer to EOL?
With Windows Phone 7 offering full Zune functionality and then some, the new mobile OS has clearly created a surplus of lower-capacity Zune HD devices, causing Microsoft to respond with a rather significant price drop. Typically, a discount would indicate an imminent refresh, but we doubt that's the case here. The 16GB Zune HD has shaved off $30, to $169.99, and you can now grab the 32GB version for $199.99 -- the same price you would have paid for the 16 gig before the drop, and nearly $100 less than the $299 you'll spend on a 32GB iPod touch. The 64GB model is holding fast at $349.99, but with a $70 plunge on the mid-capacity model, you might have just enough cash left over for that tattoo you've always dreamed of. [Thanks, Daniel]
Zune HD finally gets an e-mail application, still waiting on a future
The future of the Zune as a standalone media player is still a little in doubt, but its future of being able to send crucially important e-mails and, in return, get a boatload of spam is now fully assured. A free e-mail app has been added to the Zune Marketplace supporting Gmail, Windows Live Mail, and of course good 'ol POP3 accounts. Unfortunately all we have to gaze upon is that tiny screenshot over on the right, but it certainly looks familiar enough to fit right into the Zune ecosphere without making any waves. Just make sure you don't go looking for your Steely Dan collection inside the unread folder. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
iPod's mission accomplished: Zune is declared dead
After a four and a half year run, Microsoft may be retiring its Zune media player. A report from Bloomberg claims the Redmond company has stopped producing new models of the Zune player due to weak sales and even weaker demand. The company will abandon its hardware efforts and focus on the software side of the media player. The Zune launched in November 2006, and the media players never caught on with consumers. Even the flashy Zune HD, which launched in 2009 with sleek styling and a nice set of specs, never gained the retail interest that is garnered by the iPod touch. Microsoft's branded media player was always in the shadow of the iPod family juggernaut, which grabbed 77 percent of unit sales in 2010. In that same period, the Zune did not even break into the top five. Despite the hardware's less than positive welcome, both the Zune user interface and the all-you-can-eat subscription service were popular among those using the platform. Microsoft recognized this and wisely ported the best of the Zune features to the media portion of Windows Phone 7. Windows Phone is a newcomer to the smartphone market and is currently trailing the market leaders: Apple's iPhone, flavors of Android and RIM's BlackBerry. [Via Business Insider]
Microsoft reportedly kills off Zune hardware, will focus on software instead
Details are still emerging on this one, but it looks like Microsoft has finally killed off the Zune -- or the hardware side of things, anyway. According to Bloomberg, a "person familiar with the decision" has confirmed that Microsoft won't be producing any new Zune media players, and that the company will instead focus solely on the Zune software that already has a foothold on the Xbox 360 and Windows Phone devices (it's not clear if the name will stick around). Microsoft will apparently continue to sell its existing Zunes as long as it has stock of them. More as we get it.
Zune Insider reminds that Zune isn't dead, announces Zune HD launch in Canada
We still have only an official non-denial from Microsoft about the continued livelihood of the name "Zune" as a brand, but now we have Zune Insider saying "Zune is not dead." Indeed we already knew that, but the question is what's coming in the future with Windows Phone seemingly getting all the company's attention of late. The future we still don't know about, but we do have some news about the present for Canadians: the Zune HD! Yes, our friendly neighbors to the north need no longer look south to purchase Microsoft's latest entry to the Zune series -- though "latest" is a somewhat sad designation for hardware that was released in 2009. However, there's still no Marketplace available: it'll strictly be a BYO tunage affair for now.
Zune HD Mac support secretly hidden in Windows Phone 7 Connector software
We've been begging Microsoft to somehow add Mac compatibility to the Zune for years, and it looks like there's a tiny little ray of hope buried in Redmond's Windows Phone 7 Connector for OS X: a simple plist modification will let it sync the Zune HD as well. That really shouldn't be any big surprise, since WP7's media interface is built on top of Zune, but at least it's something -- although we're still hoping and wishing for the full Zune suite (and Zune Pass) to make its way to the Mac someday.
'Liberate' for the Zune HD unlocks hidden Windows CE potential
Sure, we just spent the last four or five years chiding Microsoft for its anachronistic Windows CE interface, a UI which was holding Windows Mobile back in a post-stylus world, but now that Windows Phone 7 is here we get to start feeling all nostalgic, right? The ongoing Liberate project for the Zune HD, which just hit version 1.5.1, strips away that flashy Zune veneer and boots the device to Microsoft's stock CE 6.0 copy of explorer.exe. Notably, the latest version adds an onscreen keyboard and better right click support. Folks are using the freedom of CE to run applications like Foxit Reader, Opera Mini and Pocket Word, and with support for GDI, DirectDraw, and OpenGL ES 2.0 there's hope of gaming ports as well. [Thanks, David R.]
Microsoft rolls out Windows Live Messenger for Zune HD
The Zune HD may not have seen quite the explosion of apps that many had hoped for, but it's just gotten a pretty big one: Windows Live Messenger. That will naturally give you much of the same functionality of its desktop counterpart (also receiving an update today), including the ability to keep watch on updates from various social networking sites, and even use Facebook Chat. It'll also display the music you have playing right in the app and, just like the desktop version, it's free. Look for it in the Zune Marketplace right now.
Microsoft job posting hints at another Zune, or perhaps an internally-developed phone
We'd heard rumors that a new Zune was on the way, but here's a spot of evidence that something's actually up: Microsoft's adding a senior mechanical engineer to help build "the next generation of portable entertainment and communication devices." While the job listing in question is technically for Microsoft's Mobile Communications Business, which oversees Windows Phone, it's clear that some things have changed since the Entertainment & Devices shakeup: "We are the team that shipped the Zune HD," the post reads. It appears that there's a new group within Microsoft called the Portable Entertainment Group which isn't afraid to design its own hardware and includes the Zune team, though whether that hardware be Zune, phone or something more obscure still remains to be seen.
Zune HD taking to the skies with United Airlines in-flight entertainment trial
Microsoft and United hooked up back in June for a hardware-less Zune partnership, which seems to have turned out pretty sweetly for both parties. Dave McLauchlan, chief Zune HD evangelist, has dished the news that the two companies are stepping up their relationship with a set of 500 Zunes being provided for long-haul flights to Hong Kong and Australia. Before you cry foul and say you never get on a flying tin can without your own media, Microsoft's angle here will be to preload those OLED-sporting babies with exclusive content, including flicks that haven't yet made it to a DVD release. Dave himself has been running around movie studios and closing deals, while the Zune HDs in question have now been encased in rubber, had their screens protected, and batteries charged. See them in a group shot after the break.
Zune HD could have all-new model in the works
The Zune HD continues to rank among our all-time favorites in terms of industrial design, so it's good to hear that Microsoft isn't entirely abandoning the PMP sector for its new Windows Phone 7 hotness. Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet has consulted her tea leaves (and in-the-know tipsters) and emerged with the strong feeling that some new Zune hardware is brewing up in Redmond. Little specificity is available, beyond the obvious postulation that a new ZHD would probably be driven by an ARM CPU and take some software pointers from WP7, but we're told to look toward the early 2011 horizon and see if we can't spot any sexy new media players emerging. A mirage is as likely as the real deal right now, but it's always fun to look to that horizon, no?
Zune Pass for UK gets briefly teased, priced?
If the above picture is to be believed, it looks like Microsoft's Zune Pass is gearing up to make its UK debut. An across-the-pond tipster via LiveSide apparently stumbled upon (and was able to successfully score the 14-day trial) a Subscription page with pricing tiers. In addition to the tryout period, there were also options for a £8.99 (about $13.74) one-month pass and £26.97 / $41.23 for three. Further details are just barely hinted at in the sidebar, but if it's anything like the US progenitor, we're looking at an all-you-can download music service and ten DRM-free MP3s each month, playable on Windows, Xbox 360 (soon), Zune devices (still not available outside US), and Windows Phone 7. We know Microsoft is planning to move its "challenging" music service into every country its phones will venture, but that little tidbit doesn't absolve this image of scrutiny. Try as we might, our UK editors are unable to find this screen anywhere. According to the original tipster, even though he has access to the trial, he still can't use it. We'll keep digging and will let you know what we find. [Thanks, Ian]
The iPhone's display blows away every other display we've ever seen
In resolution and detail that is -- there has been a lot of fuss about the iPhone 4's new so called retina display and now that we've had some time to check it out ourselves we have to say, there hasn't been enough fuss about it. As videophiles we understand that resolution isn't everything, but boy is it a lot. Now we realize that all the talking in the world can't convey how awesome the screen displays text and video, so instead we crunched a few numbers to put things into perspective. The advertised pixels per inch (PPI) of the iPhone's display is 326, but what does that really mean? Well the calculated PPI of our 1080p 60-inch Kuro: it's a meager 36 -- luckily we don't sit 12 inches away from it. In fact a 1080p TV could only be 7-inches if it wanted to match that PPI. A 60-inch HDTV would have to have a resolution of 16815x9500 to match it -- gasp -- which is four times the horizontal resolution of 4k! Speaking of which, a 4K display could only be 14-inches. But the iPhone isn't like an HDTV; its main purpose is to display text, not video. So what about a 20-inch PC display, how many pixels would it need to match the PPI of the iPhone? Try 5600x3500, which is about double the horizontal resolution of WQXGA at 2560x1600. But like we said at the start, resolution isn't everything and a Blu-ray Disc on our 60-inch HDTV is still more enjoyable than watching video on a phone no matter what the resolution. This is mostly due to the size of the display, but also because of the distance we sit from it. And in addition to the small size there is the lower contrast, and the lack of surround sound. But that doesn't change the fact that once you spend some time using the iPhone 4, all of a sudden everything else does seem to lack detail and other screens we used to love, like the older iPhone and the Zune HD, look down right fuzzy -- can you tell which image above is the Zune HD and which is the iPhone 4? Sadly the iPhone isn't the perfect HD fanatic's companion though, because it still requires us to convert our 1080p content to 720p, and although the video looks great on the display, there's no way to get HD on to our bigger screen -- we're keeping an eye out for a HDMI to iPhone dock. One thing is for sure though, when it comes to detail and flat out resolution per inch, the iPhone is the new boss.
Visual Boy Zune brings Game Boy emulation to Zune HD (video)
Once hacked, the Zune HD's rabid fanbase wasted no time in ensuring the device could play Doom. Now, the ZuneBoards want to give it Zelda, too. User BackAtIt has taken the wrappings off the first working emulator for Zune, which is currently capable of playing Game Boy and Game Boy Color ROMs, but little else -- though this "Visual Boy Zune" app is ported from the same VisualBoyAdvance code that's enabled handheld emulation since 2004, it's in early alpha with quite a bit of work left to do. A recent update enabled state save emulation and a ROM selector, but there's no audio output, let alone Game Boy Advance support; BackAtIt says he'll need to rewrite much of the codebase to take advantage of the Zune HD's Tegra architecture. Still, it's never too early for a proof of concept video, and you'll find two blurry ones after the break -- unless you'd rather try it out for yourself at the source link. [Thanks, MK1000]
Zune HD: yes, it plays Doom
No matter how weak or powerful the gadget, one brave soul will always broach the all-important question: can it play Doom? Just four days after hacking the Zune HD and unleashing the OpenZDK, the Zune community has received its answer. ZuneBoards forumgoer Netrix has opened the portal to the familiar alien hell, where gamers will writhe in agony as they struggle with tilt and touchscreen controls. Those who persevere regardless will find the app runs any of the original Doom WAD files. Full installer available at the source link; see OpenZDK's power in action after the break. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]