Official Zune HD Thread!

[TheStu]

I just got a used iphone from my friend and am really enjoying having the internet in my pocket again (Dell Axim x3 back in the day, that thing rocked) and I would consider getting the ZuneHD if the following terms are met:
1: The browser is at iPhone level. I don't care about flash, I want good navigation and zooming and all that.
2: The multitouch is iPhone/Pre level
3: The onscreen keyboard is at iPhone level
4: It works with a Mac

I have had my eyes on the Zune since it came out, and although I wasn't crazy about the design of the first one (too thick, a wheel that isn't a wheel and I wasn't crazy about the colors) the second gen Zune looked much, much better and the interface is something that I have always liked. Microsoft seems to be the only maker out there that realizes that there is this thing called the iPod that outsells everyone else. They looked at why that was (first off, insane marketing, secondly easy to use interface) and emulated that and built a great interface.

But, they don't have Mac support, which is surprising since the Microsoft Mac Business Unit is usually pretty competent and a big earner for them (lets face it, people need Office) and that turns me off since I am not either booting into Windows or running a VM every time I want to sync my MP3 player.

 

[slayer202]

is there a list of accessories this will come with? I can only see info on the optional stuff. The AV dock is sweet but I'm not sure I want to pay $90 for it...

 

[erwos]

From the Microsoft store:

* What's in the box
* Included Accessories:
Headphones
Zune Sync Cable
Three pairs of foam earpiece covers

Supposedly the "sync dock" for $50 is the same thing as the AV dock, just without the extra cables and AC adapter. I'll probably wind up buying one when/if we buy a bedroom TV - just can't justify it for the home theater when I can stream all my Zune media via the 360.

 

[Inspector Jihad]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: Fingolfin269
Anyone know if a single Zune pass will serve two devices? I've got a 120gb but want an hd as well. Also, due to the size differences of the devices, will there be a way to selective sync? (This may already exist)

If I'm recalling this correctly, a single Zune pass will work on three Zunes AND three computers. If you've got two people using Zunes in your house, this makes it an insanely great deal.

Now if only ms would come out with a zune hd phone that syncs with the zune pass...

I have _heard_ that you can actually load Zune music files, DRM-ed, onto Windows Mobile phones using Windows Media Player. Never tried it on my HTC Apache yet, but I'll give it a try one of these days...

There are also persistent rumors of a Zune software application for Windows Mobile being in development - I guess I'll believe it when I see it.

that would be awesome. my sister has a zune but i don't wanna buy one but it would be awesome to use the zune pass on my sisters zune and my WM phone.

 

[gorcorps]

Originally posted by: erwos
The only thing I'm concerned about are the constant refrains of "it's not finished yet" with regards to games and an app store, as well as the ten foot interface. The thing is coming out in less than a month, it's time to get stuff finalized.

Don't see how games and an app store have to be finished by launch. They're software additions and as such can be improved and implemented as their finished. I'd much rather have the hardware in hand and wait for the (extra) software than get a shitty rushed release of an app store and stuff.

 

[pm]

I agree with Gocorps. It took over a year from the iPod Touch for there to be a large apps store with games for the iPod Touch, and the software went through a lot of iterations as they improved it. And yet it was pretty solid the day they launched it.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: gorcorps

Originally posted by: erwos
The only thing I'm concerned about are the constant refrains of "it's not finished yet" with regards to games and an app store, as well as the ten foot interface. The thing is coming out in less than a month, it's time to get stuff finalized.

Don't see how games and an app store have to be finished by launch. They're software additions and as such can be improved and implemented as their finished. I'd much rather have the hardware in hand and wait for the (extra) software than get a shitty rushed release of an app store and stuff.

But it's more than that - I've not heard of a single public demo of the device where the WiFi and the HD radio actually worked. That is extremely worrisome to me.

 

[MrUniq]

I've seen the HD radio work in person. It did pick up in my area(where the Best Buy was). I was hoping to see the browser myself but the store didn't provide an open wifi to use. The touch keypad looked functional..the letters slightly enlarged as u pressed them. But it also took up most of the screen b/c of the device screen narrowness. I'm somewhat concerned about apps....because the HD REALLY needs apps to seperate itself from the previous zune functionality. I do have confidence Microsoft can deliver on first party apps because of the constant updates they supplied for the old zunes. The issue is how easy will they allow independent developers to provide apps...given what they have done on Xbox live with user games..I say the chances are pretty decent.

 

[slayer202]

Originally posted by: erwos
From the Microsoft store:

* What's in the box
* Included Accessories:
Headphones
Zune Sync Cable
Three pairs of foam earpiece covers

Supposedly the "sync dock" for $50 is the same thing as the AV dock, just without the extra cables and AC adapter. I'll probably wind up buying one when/if we buy a bedroom TV - just can't justify it for the home theater when I can stream all my Zune media via the 360.

you can stream through an xbox? if so, shit, I'll buy an xbox instead of a dock. unless someone cracks it to work through a ps3 lol

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: slayer202
you can stream through an xbox? if so, shit, I'll buy an xbox instead of a dock. unless someone cracks it to work through a ps3 lol

Yep. The Zune software has built-in support for streaming to the Xbox 360, and it works extremely well. No such luck for the PS3 - if it ever gets PlaysForSure support (unlikely!), it could work, I suppose. The only problem I have with the 360 streaming interface is that it doesn't have a terribly good interface for sequential video (eg, TV seasons). I have hope that they'll fix that someday, perhaps with the promised winter update.

Another advantage of using the 360 is that it'll upscale all your video to 1080p, which is not something the Zune HD seems to be capable of doing on its own. Not such a problem for a 720p bedroom TV, of course.

I'm very glad someone saw the HD radio work in person... it just doesn't make sense to me that like every other Best Buy somehow managed to not have radio reception. Maybe I'm just used to the ultra-crowded radio market in DC...

 

[KLin]

Bah, it doesn't have bluetooth. Sucks.

 

[erwos]

Well, it's out today. If I hadn't blown so much money on other stuff this month, I think I would buy one today - I very much like what I'm seeing on the Internets.

Hell, I still might get one. MUST BE STRONG!

 

[blurredvision]

I downloaded the Zune 4 software this morning, looks mostly the same but with a couple new features that I won't be able to try out until I get home. There is a new Apps tab in the Marketplace that currently holds 7 simple games and 2 "programs", MSN Weather and a calculator. They all appear to be free to download, as I see no pricing, just a simple "Download" button when not signed in. When viewing music and not signed it, it still shows you the price (in Microsoft pesos, of course).

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: peritusONE
I downloaded the Zune 4 software this morning, looks mostly the same but with a couple new features that I won't be able to try out until I get home. There is a new Apps tab in the Marketplace that currently holds 7 simple games and 2 "programs", MSN Weather and a calculator. They all appear to be free to download, as I see no pricing, just a simple "Download" button when not signed in. When viewing music and not signed it, it still shows you the price (in Microsoft pesos, of course).

IIRC, the apps are only for the Zune HD. Sucks for us legacy owners, but we knew it was coming...

Kinda hoping to see the Xbox Indies program move to the Zune HD.

 

[blurredvision]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: peritusONE
I downloaded the Zune 4 software this morning, looks mostly the same but with a couple new features that I won't be able to try out until I get home. There is a new Apps tab in the Marketplace that currently holds 7 simple games and 2 "programs", MSN Weather and a calculator. They all appear to be free to download, as I see no pricing, just a simple "Download" button when not signed in. When viewing music and not signed it, it still shows you the price (in Microsoft pesos, of course).

IIRC, the apps are only for the Zune HD. Sucks for us legacy owners, but we knew it was coming...

Kinda hoping to see the Xbox Indies program move to the Zune HD.

You are correct, it specifically says that all of the apps cannot be used on your PC or old Zunes, just the Zune HD only.

 

[Gooberlx2]

I'm still plenty happy with my Zune80. I love that I can now stream the zunepass library from zune.net. Definitely useful for at work when I forget my player.

 

[ZombieRitual]

Just read today that all other Zune models are discontinued now that the HD is out. This kinda sucks, I've been thinking about buying a new MP3 player and probably woulda gone with a Zune 120 since Creative hasn't released a replacement for my old Zen Vision M 30 gig.

 

[blurredvision]

Originally posted by: ZombieRitual
Just read today that all other Zune models are discontinued now that the HD is out. This kinda sucks, I've been thinking about buying a new MP3 player and probably woulda gone with a Zune 120 since Creative hasn't released a replacement for my old Zen Vision M 30 gig.

This just means you can probably find one for really cheap now. No big deal. There are plenty of them out in the wild still.

 

[Deeko]

posting this from a zune hd. its pretty nice.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: Deeko
posting this from a zune hd. its pretty nice.

So, what's the verdict on it? Not a whole lot of reviews floating around yet.

From what I've seen, it seems to be a better media player than the iPod Touch, but a worse "personal computer".

 

[HopJokey]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: Deeko
posting this from a zune hd. its pretty nice.

So, what's the verdict on it? Not a whole lot of reviews floating around yet.

From what I've seen, it seems to be a better media player than the iPod Touch, but a worse "personal computer".

Yea exactly, where's the flood of reviews/info?

I was expecting on September 15th at 12:00AM to be a flood of reviews from all the major tech sites, but I guess the software wasn't totally polished beforehand to distribute to the reviewers.

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: HopJokey
I was expecting on September 15th at 12:00AM to be a flood of reviews from all the major tech sites, but I guess the software wasn't totally polished beforehand to distribute to the reviewers.

That seems to be exactly the case. It should make for better, more accurate reviews, but it sucks to wait.

Even if the Zune HD, on the whole, isn't the equal of iPod Touch right now, I think it'll be fascinating to see how the ZHD software evolves. Apple and Microsoft have entirely different product portfolios and partnerships.

 

[Deeko]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: Deeko
posting this from a zune hd. its pretty nice.

So, what's the verdict on it? Not a whole lot of reviews floating around yet.

From what I've seen, it seems to be a better media player than the iPod Touch, but a worse "personal computer".

So far so good. My biggest concern was simple - the media controls. Most of the time I'm using my MP3 player, its not convenient to look at - driving, at the gym, running etc. So not having buttons I can use without looking was concerning, but they've actually done a decent job with that. There's a button on the side that will pop up media controls, even if the screen was locked/in screen saver mode. Then you just swipe up/down to change volume, touch the right/left side to change tracks. So that was a relief.

The screen itself is beautiful, very sharp, the interface getting around the player is pretty intuitive & very smooth. It connected to my wifi no problem, the web browsing is ok for a media player, but not great overall (granted I have a G1 so I'm used to solid mobile web browsing, and would likely never use the Zune for that).

 

[erwos]

Interesting. How is the marketplace experience on the device itself? Can it download podcasts on its own?

Oh, and can it still sync over WiFi? For whatever reason, my Zune 30 seems to be unable to connect to my home network, even if it's right next to the router. *shrugs*

 

[Deeko]

It has WIFI sync on it. I actually haven't tried the wifi sync yet (my initial sync was also my initial charge), and I didn't get around to trying the wifi marketplace. I'll give it a try later and let you know.

ps - wifi tethering on the G1 + wifi on Zune HD = internet everyhwere on Zune HD! Pretty sweet.