Zune 'Social' Still Hard to Find
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The Microsoft music player's much-ballyhooed wireless sharing feature only makes sense if you can locate other users. But the gadget's earliest adopters can't seem to find each other. In Listening Post.
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The software maker won't replace tracks bought on iTunes as rumors suggested, but the Zune will come in a unique color.
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Tune for tune Microsoft is to retail Zune, its first digital music player, at the same price as feature-equivalent iPods.â¦
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Microsoft's official unveiling of the Zune Thursday received mixed reviews from the tech faithful. While many seemed to generally give a positive nod to Zune's feature set, the Redmond company's odd choice of brown as a launch color seemed to grab the most attention.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft's Zune digital media player will ship in the U.S. on Nov. 14 for $249.99, the company said Thursday, in line with the price of video iPods already available from Apple Computer. MicrosoftÂ announced its Zune playerÂ and the accompanying music store, called Zune Marketplace, earlier this month, but it did not provide pricing at the time. Some industry insiders believe Microsoft had to rethink the pricing after it learned that Apple was about to lower the price of its video iPods, which it recently did. Like the video iPods, the first Zune players will come with 30GB of storage. Microsoft also unveiled pricing for Zune Marketplace. Unlike Apple's iTunes, which lets users buy individual songs or entire albums but does not offer a subscription service, Microsoft will offer a monthly subscription called Zune Pass. For $14.99 a month, users will have access to millions of songs, Microsoft said. However, they won't actually own those songs and will only be able to access them while they have a subscription. Users will also be able to purchase songs individually using Microsoft's points system, which works a bit like a prepaid phone card. One track will cost 79 points -- or about $0.99, which is what iTunes charges per song. At retail, consumers can purchase 1,200 points for $15, 2,000 points for $25, 4,000 points for $50, or pay $44.97 for a three-month Zune Pass. Zune accessories will range in price from $19.99 to $99.99. They include the Zune Car Pack, which offers a built-in FM tuner with AutoSeek and the Zune Car Charger, and The Zune Home A/V Pack, which includes five products that integrate Zune with a television and music speakers. More information isÂ available here.Â  Microsoft is differentiating its Zune player from the iPod in several ways. In addition to allowing users to play music, videos and photos on a screen, the Zune player will include wireless technology and a built-in FM radio tuner. So far, iPods lack both of those. Zune devices also will come preloaded with media content, which iPods don't have. Songs the players will include out of the box are: âWicked Gilâ by Band of Horses, "The Mating Game" by Bitter Sweet, "Alala" by CSS, "At the End of the Sky" by Darkel, "Signs of Life" by Every Move a Picture, "Stay" by Small Sins, "Tell Me Tell Me" by The Adored, "Open Book" by The Rakes, and "A Pillar of Salt" by The Thermals. The music videos included with the Zune player are from several artists on Seattle's Sub Pop Records label, such as Chad VanGaalen, Kinski and the Fruit Bats. The players also will include film shorts on skateboarding, mountain biking and snowboarding. Microsoft didn't provide any availability information for outside of the U.S.
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Microsoft said its Zune music player will include wireless technology that will allow owners to share songs and playlists easily.
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New licensing language would put Zune owners in violation of Creative Commons licenses if they distribute CC-licensed songs with the devices. In Listening Post.
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Microsoft's answer to the iPod, the Zune player, will cost $249.99 and is slated to ship Nov. 14.
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Microsoft Corp  cut the price  of its Zune digital music player on Wednesday by $50 to $199 in  an attempt to rev up sales of the device competing against  Apple Inc's  iPod.
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Tycho:  1:25 - When we say "This shit about the Zune," the revelation that caused all the hubbub was from Zunester - one of these MS  insider blogs (like Zune Insider or Gamerscore).  David Caulton, the man who runs the Zunester blog, wades into the comments and is as frank as he can possibly be with the people who comment there.  I recognize that people are working hard on it.  In the future, I hope that their hard work and my requirements for a device of this kind will converge.
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I saw an ad in yesterday's NY Times that offered the complete New Yorker magazine archive, including all the cartoons and ads, going back to 1920-something for a bit more than the hard disk would cost. The ad was from J&R, the company that makes the product is Pexagon. $149. Sounds like there might be DRM. I asked for something like this from the music business. A hundred gigs of popular music for $500, all pre-installed on the disk without DRM.  Someone at the New Yorker had this idea too? It's a good one. Bulk content for collector types. Another source of revenue. I want to run my own personal radio station, so having every song of a certain genre or from a certain period makes the diff.
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Microsoft says its Zune music player will cost $249.99 in the US when it goes on sale on 14 November.
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Company hasn't said when the device will be available.
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InfoWorld - Microsoft has beaten its&#160;goal of shipping over a million Zune digital music players by June, according to a newspaper report.
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By Benjamin J. Romano, The Seattle Times  Sep. 14--Microsoft this morning officially unveiled Zune, its entry in  the portable digital music and entertainment market dominated by Apple  Computer's iPod and iTunes.
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Microst says its Zune music player will cost $249.99 in the US when it goes on sale on 14 November.
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Microsoft's iPod rival Zune will be on store shelves in time for the holiday shopping season.