Descrption:
To Zune or not to Zune? Microsoft's new Zune media player, which goes on sale today, is aimed directly at Apple's wildly successful, music industry-changing iPod. But how does it stack up?
The main innovation is WiFi-based sharing of songs and digital photos wirelessly between two or more nearby Zunes. There's also an integrated FM radio tuner, something the iPod lacks. The display of the Zune is bigger, and the screen automatically shifts to a wide, horizontal view for videos and pictures.
Battery life of the Zune is about the same as the video iPod, as is the cost (the Zune costs $250. A comparable 30GB iPod with video costs $249) The Zune Marketplace uses a point system in which most songs cost 79 Microsoft Points each - the equivalent of 99 cents - the same that iTunes charges for most songs.
Microsoft explains that this Zune is just the first of what will be an entire family of media devices. Will the Zune eventually become a Voice Over IP phone? Will it be able to download music wirelessly from the Zune Marketplace? Will smaller, flash memory-based Zunes -or Zunes with larger storage capacity emerge any time soon? Only Microsoft knows. For now, though, the questions are: Should you buy a Zune? Should you switch from an iPod?
You want a bigger screen: Zune .
You need an all-you-can-eat subscription service: Zune .
You want a store with a larger music library: iPod .
You want a movie and TV store: iPod .
You want contacts, calendar, notes, stopwatch, and iPod Games: iPod .
You want to be different/want something new: Zune .
Xbox 360 owners who purchase music and want streaming: Zune .
Xbox 360 owners who purchase music and don't want streaming: iPod .
You want a scratch resistant player: Zune .
You want a built-in FM tuner: Zune .
You want a touch-sensitive scroll wheel: iPod . |