Lots of new details are emerging about Zune, Microsoft’s new music/video device and related service.
The news about Zune broke last week in a Billboard article where Chris Stephenson, Microsoft’s new GM of marketing for MSN Entertainment Business, said Zune will be an umbrella brand for what he says is “a family of hardware and software products” targeting various digital entertainment services. The somewhat creepy-yet-strangely-soothing “comingzune” site launched as well, with no real information whatsoever.
On July 25 Microsft CEO Steve Ballmer spoke about Zune at a Retail Vision Summit in Seattle:
it’s all about how do multiple groups of people, friends, interact together in various entertainment experiences, whether it’s watching the British Open, whether it’s enjoying movies, and music, and other video entertainment, whether it is involved in an interactive gaming session, a lot of the IQ we’re putting into is how you view community and entertainment together.
On July 27, Robbie Bach, President, Entertainment & Devices Division at Microsoft gave a presentation to financial analysts. He says:
And then the third secret I’ll say is looking at Zune as part of our broader picture. You know, in the case of Apple, they have certainly an iMac business, they have their iPod business, and they’ve sold a few things in the home that compete with Media Center, although the numbers there are actually quite small. Look at our business: We have a burgeoning IPTV business that we think is going to grow and be successful in the home. We have Media Center in over 14 million units and growing around the world. We have Xbox 360 in place and growing around the world. We have Xbox Live, MSN, and our Windows Live initiatives expanding. Put all of those things together, and then take Zune and put it in the context of that. It enables us to complete the picture. It enables us to have the full entertainment and connected entertainment experience that we want to have. And so that’s why Zune is important, and it is a way we’re going to differentiate ourselves, because the experience of having Zune in that connected environment is going to be a dramatically better experience than you get just from having a portable music player.
And today more news broke on Engadget, which release specs for the product and announced a launch date of November 14, 2006. Zune will include a 30 GB hard drive (I expect a 60 GB version as well), multiple color options, an FM tuner, lots of accessories and a 3.75 inch screen, which is 50% bigger than the iPod video.
There are also rumors that the device will have built-in wifi and possibly also phone capabilities.
The picture is becoming clearer - Zune looks to be an iPod-type device that will show the full spectrum of audio and video content, as well as social networking (which Microsoft is doing an excellent job of with XBOX Live). Microsoft is clearly messaging that they see this as an integral part of the Xbox/Media Center consumer offering. The fact that it has wifi means it will be an independent device from a core computer, able to download files, streaming content and other data directly.
If they do this right, it will be one hell of a cool product.
A lot of the best news on Zune is coming from ZuneInsider, a blog set up specifically to cover the product. Om Malik and Engadget are also covering it closely.
When you listen to that Robbie Bach guy, you already know that it is not going to be “hell of a cool product.” It will be a typical Microsoft product with too many features: unusable, impracticable and annoying. Besides they will have serious battery problems.
My bet: The iPod will prevail.
Microsoft definately have a great network of products to leaverage with zune. The question is whether they will have the design and style savvy that Apple exudes. It might be a great product and ideas of “social media streaming” via wifi enabled devices may be hugely compelling but this one’s a wait and see. The Buzz machine is working though.
I agree with Moritz. Just looking at Ballmer’s comment, typical Microsoft. It will be bloated with respect to software and hardware (size and weight of a brick). I must say, that comingzune website is pretty creepy. The rabbit should hop away.
“We’re all friends here?”
Creepy. As. Hell.
That said, the friends element is clearly an important part of their strategy, and I think Microsoft probably have some interesting identity management applications up their sleeves. It’s certainly interesting that these devices are coming out at the same time (more or less) as Vista …
I think John Gruber makes a whole lot more sense about Zune and it’s a hoot to read.
http://daringfi...agic_8ball_zune
I think that if the Zune devices come with DVB-T support or if there is a hardware addon that provides DVB-T support then MS quickly gain massive market share, especially in europe.
“comingzune”
Reminds me of those old Zima commercials where a guy replaced all the “s” sounds with z’s.
Zounds like microsoft should come up with zomething different.
hopefully it supports rhapsody to-go subscriptions.
Remember when the news hit that Microsoft was making a gaming platform, and everyone expected it to be just another bloated user-unfriendly Microsoft product that would never have a chance at unseating Sony and its near monopoly in the gaming console market?
Replace “gaming console” with “media device” and “Sony” with “Apple”, and re-read that last sentence again and you’ll see where I’m going with this.
When you can’t keep up with a company who is dominant, you have to bring something new to the table that changes the market, and suddenly, you find that the other company is the one playing catch-up. It’s what Xbox Live did to Sony, and it’s what Zune Live (or whatever they decide to call it) will do to the iPod.
lets see if now microsoft comes up with something new
I think that at least Microsoft is offering a device that is substaintially in the realm of the IPOD. The ipod revolution is great, but it gets boring I am thinking. I have had a 4G ipod for about 12 months and had to get it replaced 4 times and repaired twice.
If Microsoft can offer the compatibility of a ipod with more services and wi-fi – Im all for it. Competition is what makes technology accelerate all the more faster. I hope Apple take a real look at themselves and revamp the IPOD some more. There domainance and there DRM in this arena is beginning to dull.
assuroca:
the main difference between xbox live and zune live is that xbox live made sense. people like to play games together. on the other hand. i have no interest what so ever to configure networking and security issues on a 3 inch screen.
ventureblogalist:
it is going to be a pure zuniverse. no support for any other platforms whatsoever.
Brian Delahunty:
what is that supposed to be and why do you think it will produce market share?
I think this sounds great! Im definitely holding of buying a new iPod till I see what zune is like.
I thought everybody would here like to see a “picture” of the thing.
http://www.bump...ticle.php?id=46
Nice article Michael, however, I still think there’s a whole slew of “iPod hype” that Microsoft must work against to give the Zune a fighting chance. I still hear people calling the Creative Zen a “ripoff”, despite it being out before the iPod.
Nice Article.
I completely agree with several points you made Michael. Most of the people don’t see the that the commerical is typical direction for west coast, but neverless it does convey a message effectively.
You cannot compare the direction of west coast advertising to east coast. Advertising companys in New York have different mindsets then their west coast counterparts.
Essentially what Microsoft will have to compete with, and they may very well are “4 main factors.” Size, Storage Capacity, Battery Life, & Easy Controls. These are the only factors Microsoft will have to overcome. Why not price? Because real avid music fans will not care about a product 300 + Look at the iPod and PSP. Both fantastic products AND not cheap!
I think Microsoft can definetly compete in graphic gui’s and intervention of video thus my thinking of why one of the lead guys from Xbox is involved. My Opinion on that. I think iPod just scratched the surface with podcasts and video for their iPods. I think Microsofts goal will be to excel in the video aspect while still maintaing a competitive audio side. This is the only other reason besides what Michael wrote that I think he may be involved in addition to his other responsibilites.
“If they do this right, it will be one hell of a cool product.”
Hi Michael.. Nice write-up of the week’s Zune info. I love your conclusion.
That’s alot of words to describe something, that if it was worth much Apple would have just shown you a picture of and you’d have bought it.
I think the problem with Microsoft, aside from being a genuinely evil company, is that they talk more than they think.
Vance – I don’t agree that MS is an evil company, although it was hard to love them in the 90s. I think the XBOX is an excellent product. If they do things the xbox way, this could turn out well.
It will be interesting to see the physical device. It sounds like it more suited to video than the ipod with video…but as for the rest I am not so sure.
Is there any word on the OS on the handheld and the style on the music store system?
A fall blitz is really going to crush Creative and Sandisk, there is only so much space for dap things in big box stores.
Many talk about zune as though all MS must do is improve on the *current* iPod. But it’s not as though Apple is standing still over there, basking in their glowing market share. My money’s on whatever Jobs shows us in January (if not sooner).
And is XBOX really the most appropriate example for what MS is capable of? Didn’t Microsoft *buy* it? (But they do, now, have those great folks working for them)
Frank: “Essentially what Microsoft will have to compete with, and they may very well are “4 main factors.” Size, Storage Capacity, Battery Life, & Easy Controls. These are the only factors Microsoft will have to overcome. ”
Where is Design as a factor?
Kathy, I agree with everything you say. And I want to stress that the design factor is extremely important.
Video capable and wi-fi, eh? Ship it with a bittorrent client and I’ll buy one. LOL
My favorite part of Ballmer’s presentation was when he jumped up and down flapping his arms and yelling: “Who wants DRM get your fresh hot DRM right here OOGAH OOGAH”.
I don’t think Microsoft sees design as a competitive factor in this area because they’re not going to compete with Apple with regards to design, they’re just going to knock off whatever Apple comes up with (cf. “Aero Glass”, MS Windows, etc).
Kathy,
Who did Microsoft buy XBOX from? AFAIK, that was built in-house. I expect you’re confusing the purchasing of a couple of game companies (e.g. Bungie who made Halo) with something else.
hmm, seems like a convergence lawsuit in the making. Isn’t Microsoft just leveraging it’s monopolistic power to infiltrate the home? Where’s the money for the attorneys and foreign governments?
Yeah, I bet it’ll be ugly too. And it probably won’t work with my TRS-80. If it doesn’t work with my clapper, I’m gonna cry. Damn M$.
So I went to the site, liked the song, and went iTMS and bought it. The score so far Apple 1 Zune 0.
-Jason
P.S.
Seriously the full song “Us”, by Regina Spektor is really good.
They did buy their way into the game market and they will buy their way into music. Who cares? How long are the supposed to sit on that lump of cash? The need to invest in future markets or die where they sit.
Microsoft has big plans for Zune and Xbox and their combined communities. Apple has no chance of making something like that happen. They may make a good looking device but they do not have the vision or capital to put together what Microsoft has planned.
A Zune and Xbox Live integrated community is powerful and if monetized properly can be a great source of income in the future. Match it up in a UMPC style device with communications capabilities and it would be too cool.
If they can make it all mesh that is.
Microsoft has fumbled on many things but most have been when they partnered with someone else. I think they are going to do better with Zune by managing it themselves. They have the marketing team from Xbox on this and they are strong. They’ll build a cool device and it will sell. Yes they will spend a billion buying their way into music but its a small price to pay for the potential it holds.
http://www.zunemax.com
Kathy and Michael design is essentially important but not highly. Intuitive controlling of the hardware is more beneficial. Afterall, iPod looks nice but isn’t far from a complicated design in comparision to other mp3 providers. I have no doubt Microsoft will produce something dazzling.
Kathy Xbox Is a inhouse development. Never bought out a company. What they did do was a massive advertising campaign. But it was nessecary in order to get up to the big boys.
The real zune will not look so bad as that photo on the web.
With features like Wi-Fi sharing, Xbox360 integration, Windows PC integration and more, zune will make inroads in to the digital media player market. What else even a research conducted by ABI reveals that 58% of iPod users may choose zune. With all these; zune has definitely created a lot of buzz and will take away a decent market share from Apple.
http://www.zunmp3player.com
Apple’s ipod has been long dominating the digital media player market. And why not; ipod has been far superior in performance and features when compared to its rivals. But Microsoft is set to change this by coming out with their own media player named zune, which will debut to the world on November 14, 2006. The product will be available for exactly the same price $249 as the 30GB ipod.
Here I’ll list a few key differences between zune and ipod. Below are the list of features supported by zune and not Ipod.
1. Preloaded Audio and video
2. Built in FM tuner
3. Zune to Zune sharing by Wi-Fi wireless (social networking)
4. Custom background
5. Landscape video
With all the exciting and promising features, Microsoft will definitely take a big chunk of media player market form apple, but how much only time will tell.
But the real question is which device is right for YOU? Let’s look at the specs of the system, the features and services we know about. We’re going to be comparing the 30GB iPod to the 30GB Zune, since they are closest in price, storage, and battery life.
OS Support – Winner: iPod
Zune only supports Windows. iPod, on the other hand, supports both Windows and Mac.
WiFi Connectivity – Winner: Zune
The current iPod features no Wi-fi connectivity whatsoever, Zune, however, is 802.11g Wifi enabled, and features a slew of sharing and broadcasting features.
Content – Winner: N/A
Right now the iPod, through iTunes, has thousands of songs, hundreds of TV shows, dozens of movies, and a handful of games to download for the device. As of this writing we still don’t know what all the Zune Marketplace will hold for Zune owners. But as we know, iPod has some preloaded music and videos.
Storage – Winner: iPod
iPod has 30GB, 60GB, 80GB, while at present Zune has only 30GB product.
Screen – Winner: Zune
iPod features a 2.5 inch diagonal screen, while the Zune has a slightly larger 3.0 inch diagonal screen.
FM Radio Capability – Winner: Zune
Zune comes with a built-in FM tuner. If you want to listen to radio on your iPod, you have to buy an accessory.
Music purchasing – Winner: Zune
With iTunes, if you want to buy music, it will cost you .99 cents per song, or you can purchase by the album. But with Zune Marketplace, You could subscribe to the marketplace for $14.99 a month with unlimited downloads for that month. You can also go for individual downloads. Purchase up to 50 songs (4000 Microsoft Points) with $50. Once you purchase Points, you can browse and purchase songs or albums through the Zune Marketplace for 79 Microsoft Points per track (roughly 99 cents). Microsoft Points, the coin for the Zune Marketplace realm, is a universal system that works across borders, including Xbox Live Marketplace and other Microsoft properties.
Does that mean the Zune is your best buy this holiday season?
That depends. If the Zune wireless music sharing is appealing to you, and you’re a Windows user, then Zune is probably your best choice. If you’re not interested in the Wifi and FM tuner, you will definetly want to look at the iPod.
More iPod and Zune comparison information:
http://www.dvdtozune.com
Very balanced and objective review of each device.
Gene from ZuneChannel.com
Here lists several solutions to get music, video, movies, audio books playable on Microsoft Zune player.
Transfer videos/music to Zune directly with Zune software
Zune software can import your existing files, including your music and video from iTunes and Windows Media
Player, and put them on Zune. Supports videos in MP4 (MPEG-4), WMV, H.264 up to 320×240 and audio files in
unprotected MP3, AAC, WMA up to 320Kbps, 48KHz.
Rip your CD to Zune
Zune software can not only manage and view your songs and movies, edit album and track information, but also
support ripping audio CDs. So, if you have many favorite music CDs, just rip them to WMA, MP3 or AAC file
formats, and transfer to your Zune.
Another, Zune software can help you burn music to CDs playable on your CD or DVD player.
Purchase songs and movies from Zune Marketplace
You could get a Zune pass, subscribe for $14.99 a month with unlimited downloads for that month. You can
also go for individual downloads.
1) Subscribe
* Sign up for a free Zune account.
* Download as many tracks or albums as you like, and sync to your Zune.
* 14-day free trial Zune pass subscription without needing credit card.
2) Individual download
* Sign up for a free Zune account.
* 79 Microsoft Points per track (roughly 99 cents), 4000 Microsoft Points’ price is $50.
* Microsoft Points is a universal system that works across borders, including Xbox Live Marketplace and
other Microsoft properties.
* Purchase Points from the Marketplace using a credit card or pick up Points cards at a participating retail
location.
Convert DVD to Zune, convert video files to Zune
If you have some DVD movies, music DVDs or video files in AVI, DivX, MPEG, MOV, XviD, 3GP, ASF, MPG, Dat,
DVR-MS, VOB, VRO, RM, MP4, RMVB, WMV which can not play on your Zune, you can convert to MP4, WMV or H.264
video files with Zune Video Converter software and sync the converted files to Zune player, enjoy them on
the go.
The converting process is very simple!
1) DVD to Zune Conversion
Insert your favourite DVD movie in your DVD drive, run the software, click “DVD” button to load your DVD
into the program. Then check the DVD title/chapter or set the video clip you’d like to rip, select the
output format from “Zune WMV”, “Zune MPEG-4″, or audio “MP3″, “AAC”, “WMA”. Then click “Encode” to start
ripping.
2) Video to Zune Conversion
Click “Add” button to open the movie file(s) you’d like to convert, then select the target Zune video or
Zune audio format, then convert in a batch.
Audio books in M4b file format
M4b is an audio file wrapped within MPEG-4 container format. Zune software can recognize .m4b audiobook and
put onto Zune.
Hints: Since Zune can only support pictures in JPEG, you need to convert image files in BMP, GIF, TIFF, PNG,
etc. formats to JPEG first in order to enjoy on your Zune.
Download Zune Video Converter software from http://www.zune...eoconverter.com
both ipod and zune are so nice as media plays. Still there are some limits. I tried to download some songs from my friend’s computer, but failed. Only if I could download anywhere anytime!!
Later, my friends introduced me the software: PQdvd to Zune Video Converter, I now would like to take it anywhere!
here is more: http://www.pqdv...-converter.html
these sites are da bomb! free zune music!