Chris Lanier's Blog

Two issues:

1.  I think I'm the only one that feels that MS should only have one media player.  Why have a specific one for the zune and then WMP 11 for everybody else.  Keep it simple (KISS), only have one media player....kind of like...itunes.  It seems like MS's strategy is to create WMP11, and then forget about it.  There's been no enhancements or updates since it went out of beta like what, a year ago.

2.  From what I've read, it seems like Media Center based syncing is only for Vista Media Center...if that's the case, that stinks.  There are many more folks with Media Center 2005 than with vista.

They did relax the music sharing restrictions.  There is still a three play limit, but no time limit and music that you received can be passed on.

Of course, there should be no restrictions on non-DMA audio files.  Why can't I share a podcast with no restrictions?

My take on this and MP3 players in general:

1. No Ebook, you get none of my money...

I still have a PDA, I know, so 1990's, but it will play music, handle ebooks. The drawback, size and it has terrible battery life. On the upside, I can swap in charged batteries when they get low. I have 3 backup batteries so I can usually get through about 15 hours of travel without charging. Zune or Ipod, the first to have a reader will be the first to get my money.

Where is the UK availability? In fact where is Internet TV and Extenders ;)

Ha, I read about the new Zune and thought the exact same thing: wow, impressive, but this is what Zune 1 should have been.  It's to the point where I'll actually consider buying it now, though.  When it came out I was in the market for a portable media player, and went with one of the last Portable Media Centers (the Gigabeat).  It's a shame MS wasted time reinventing the wheel - not using WMP11 (and flipping off PlaysForSure - what a stupid move) and just now maybe catching up with their own existing software.  Still, we'll see.

I agree there should be only one software media player, but you can thank the US government for forcing there to be multiple.

If MS listened to Chris, I'd go out and buy two Zunes as soon as they are released.  I can count at least a dozen friends that would do the same.

I also want MS to make me look stupid for purchasing a TiVo S3.

I mean, they made me look stupid for purchasing a 1st gen instead of an iPod.

The 3 play restriction on shared audio really cripples the trememdous potential of tis feature and turns it into a bad joke. It would be better if they never included this feature. That was they would never have created the expectation of more seamless sharing and not created such a huge disappointment with this restriction. If they allow the sharing of non-DRM content without restrictions, this could really be the run away social device they are hoping for.

Chris, I think you need to give them some credit for relaxing the music sharing restrictions. The three day limit is gone, just still three plays, which is somewhat reasonable. Maybe they can work on bumping it to 5-10 plays.

It's close to being what it needs, but MS really needs to match every feature Apple offers and then some to compete. I would consider buying one now though. Why couldn't they have done this five years ago before Apple got so big? Here's the things I think they need to do to actually knock Apple off in no particular order:

1. It would be better to use WMP11. WMP is on 90+ percent of computers out there already. It's already better than iTunes. I don't want another piece of music software on my computer. But since MS seems intent on keeping the Zune software, how about give people a choice of which program to use.

2. I don't think a 10 foot sync is essential, nice, but not essential. Most people will go to there desktop or laptop to sync.

3. A full extender in the Zune would be awesome.

4. Clock, calculator, basic games etc. Just to to match Apple.

5. Wireless download store essential.

6. Larger capacities than Apple or at least the same as Apple's current offerings.

7. The price point is good, but to really compete, they need all the features of v2 plus these that I list at $199 to $225 to really steal Apple customers.

8. Consistently market it, market it, market it on TV, Internet and in print.

9. Mac OSX support, just to add another feature on the sheet, though it's doubtful many Mac OSX users will really switch, they are pretty rabid.

The sad thing is, like I said, is that MS should have been in the game five years ago. Unfortunately, the new Zunes will be competing this Christmas against the iPhone. Even though it's got a larger capacity, people will look  their limited dollars, the feature os both and then choose.

The reason MS released the Zune Player software is to be MORE like Apple. They want a media player that is completely tied together with their hardware. The Zune and Zune Player is Microsoft changing their open PlaysForSure and Windows Media Player architecture to match the closed (albeit much more successful) iTunes and iPod architecture. It would be great if MS allowed the Zune to sync with WMP instead of only their Zune Software, but you can blame Apple for leading the way with this.

As is, I'm seriously thinking of replacing my Gigabeat S60 with a Zune 80, mainly due to my Gigabeat beginning to look a little ragged, but also for the larger capacity and screen. One feature I would seriously miss is being able to connect up my device to just about any Windows computer and dump some music to it. Reverse sync in WMP11 was a great invention. I'm not sure if Zune Player has it, but even if it does, I'd hate to have to install the Zune player to someone's computer if they don't have a Zune to accomplish the same feat.

I also think you can blame the damn European Union as well as the U.S. government for MS not using WMP11 in the first place.

MS didn't need to develop their own software. WMP11 is better than iTunes. Plays for Sure was good and recognizable with the public. Apple's closed system was only successful because of the hardware and marketing. All MS needed was a great piece of hardware with features and some marketing, not reinvent the wheel with the Zune software. A lot of people are now beginning to realize how restrictive iTunes is.

I'm not saying they needed to create a new piece of software, just that the reason they did it is to create a closed architecture. You can see what they were trying to do with Portable Media Center in the history of Windows Mobile.

Windows Mobile, as PocketPC, was introduced when Palm was by far the dominate PDA platform. Microsoft released their PDA software as a platform that OEMs could use on their own hardware. It took a while for OEMs to move to Windows Mobile; it didn't really happen successfully until the first Compaq iPAQ devices. Now, Windows Mobile dominates the PDA market and does quite well in the smart phone arena as well.

In comparison, MS released the Portable Media Center format in hopes that OEMs would release hardware using it. The problem was that the early PMC devices didn’t sell because they were not very good, cost an arm and a leg, had no marketing. By the time a good and relatively inexpensive device finally arrived, the Gigabeat S, along with good software to go with it, WMP11, Microsoft had already drank the Apple Kool-Aid of closed architecture to fuel hardware sales. They rebadged the Gigabeat S as Zune and locked it down to their rebadged WMP11 as Zune Player and closed it all up tighter than a nun’s you-know-what.

I wish MS had continued down the path supplying a software platform for OEMs, like what they have done in the PDA, smart phone, and desktop OS market. It’s what they do best.

I think this is a big step in the right direction.  In fact, it's kind of hard to justify buying the iPod 80gig over the Zune, unless you're deeply concerned with the extra 2mm in thickness.

I suppose there's still a lot to be figured out with build quality, screen display quality and such, but it sounds promising.

I'm personally waiting for a larger capacity iPod Touch.  It's more my style.  But for people still looking at the "classic" iPod, I think this would be a pretty good contender.

Though, I am tempted by the recorded TV MCE integration and wireless.  The idea of stepping into the house and loading my recent shows wirelessly is kinda nice.

PS:  I agree it's absolutely ridiculous that MSFT couldn't get the Zune working in WMP.  I'm kind of shocked actually.

Microsoft, seriously, forget about this crap. Just let Apple have this one. You guys don't have to be in every single market there is with every possible product.

How about concentrating more on things like Media Center which are way better than anything Apple has come up with, instead of trying to release 3 million medocre products just to be in every market.

I think the Zune updates are great as well as being a lot more practical.  We must listen to music in completely different ways for you to be so against the Zune.

A WiFi Store may work nicely on a Touch, something with easy input, but with just a d-pad?  Just entering WEP passwords would be a pain in the ***.  People focus on a store because it's flashy but I doubt people will be falling all over themselves to buy songs.  Just look at the reality of it, how often are you away from your computer when you feel the need to buy new music and also happen to be in a location with open wifi?

Automatic wireless syncing on the other hand is awesome considering I sync new podcasts and song ratings every day.  This is a feature I'll actually use.

Syncing/transcoding of dvr-ms is great, I hate having to use a slew of third-party tools just to get South Park onto my Zune.  New software, DRM-free tracks, a social site, new backend?  All very cool, very good additions.

Could they do more?  Sure, and I hope they do, but these are some really great new additions that make me excited about the Zune again.

I wonder what happened to the WMP team?  I've actually always disliked WMP but I'm sure with some (OK, *a lot of*) work it could be brought up to snuff.  My guess is that there is a legal issue here and that when you're attempting to build a tightly integrated vertical experience, from software to hardware to server, that you need as much control as possible to gain any momentum.

@Chris...

Curious, exactly how *do* you listen to music?  What is a typical portable music device experience for you and why does an iPod suit your music needs better than a Zune?  I'm not talking about what you'd like or what you want but how you used your iPod or Zune or Zen or Muvo or whatever device yesterday or last weekend or how it gets used on a daily basis.

So far I see how the Zune has failed your ideal but I don't quite see how it fails your reality nor which product you use that works better.

Regarding WMP11 or Zune; I'm with Chris, I've spent a lot of time in WMP11 making sure my music database plays nice with MCE2005 and I don't want to chance it with the zune software.

But my main point is that MS should of revamped WMP11, give it a new name, and have that be THE MS media player that works well with or without Zune. I hate to say it, kind of like iTunes.  You can use itunes to manage you music AND for syncing your ipod.

Now MS has two different media players each with their own stores and DRM/lack of DRM requirements...how confusing!

According to Ars Technica, the new Zune won't sync with MCE2005, only Vista...bad move MS:

arstechnica.com/.../20071003-an-in-depth-look-at-the-new-zune-lineup.html

Shawn: Can you give me any reason why the general public should pick the Zune over an iPod?  I'm not talking about basic features of the Zune that the iPod doesn't why, instead why should people who only know the iPod consider Zune when they are both the same price?  What does it really give me as an advantage.

"According to Ars Technica, the new Zune won't sync with MCE2005, only Vista...bad move MS:"

You beat me to the punch on that one.

I do think it's nice in a world of planned obsolescence that MS is porting the changes and features back to Zune 1. I still think having a separate media player instead of just using WMP11 is retarded.

"Shawn: Can you give me any reason why the general public should pick the Zune over an iPod?  I'm not talking about basic features of the Zune that the iPod doesn't why, instead why should people who only know the iPod consider Zune when they are both the same price?  What does it really give me as an advantage."

I'm confused by this question.  Are you asking why people should pick the Zune over the iPod, but without comparing the features??  

Anyone performing a comparison between Zune 2 and iPod 80gig, would realize that the Zune has more features.  Wireless Sync, FM radio, better and more responsive user interface.  

Judging by what we know at the moment, the only thing the iPod has going for it is that it's 2mm thinner and has more accessories.

Does this mean the Zune 2 will outsell the iPod?  Heck no, but it definitely has advantages.

Chris,

Overall I think you are a little too negative (jaded?) regarding the Zune.  I am an Xbox 360 owner who deliberately did not buy Zune 1 but waited for Zune 2.  I am glad I waited.  And one more thing, I know you are a Media Center fan, but the REAL victory for MS is if they could link the Zune Marketplace to the Xbox marketplace.  Get a song/video/game trailer through Marketplace and have it work on both the 360 and the Zune.  THAT is what would sell Zune's in my opinion.  Your thoughts?

Im a little upset...

I liked the first zune, to be totally honest. It was basic, yes there were a few updated here and there, but it made sense.

I dont like the touch wheel, that is why I bought the Zune and not the iPod...

Though I do like some of the arty additions, you can now customize these new Zunes...

Like you can put art work on them...

I dont know I feel as a customer of the first Zune, a little jipped.