What is a Zune good for?

[Maledicte]

Some people have found the perfect hiding place for their oft-stolen iPods or other valuables...in those ugly, poo-brown brick-sized Zunes.

http://hideapod.com/

I doubt many of the "testimonials" are actually true, but it's one of the funniest things I've ever read. One of my favorites:

"I have a complaint! I left my “zunedâ€

[Okami]

*looks lovingly at her 30gig iPod*

My stepbrother, however, owns a Zune and treasures it like a baby. I swear I don't understand.

[Shinja]

i love the brown zune, too bad i dont have one-_-

someone buy me one and hide it in one of those cases^^

[Ingemar]

Got a 60 gig Creative Zen Vision W. You all fail.

[RubyJewelStone]

Got a 60 gig Creative Zen Vision W. You all fail.

Creative Zen FTW!

iPods are good, but over-hyped. Therefore, iDon't.

[Alexander]

Creative Zen FTW!

iPods are good, but over-hyped. Therefore, iDon't.

Well, they are one of the few products I feel met my own hype.

*hugs 80GB iPod Classic*

Poor Zune. The buy now page doesn't help very much...

[Okami]

Got a 60 gig Creative Zen Vision W. You all fail.

I would die if I had over 30gig XD (I wanted 80...) I'm using maybe 8 gig on all near 3k songs and videos and everything. It's insane.

[Sheenar]

Is it really worth the expenditure to buy an ipod? I like music a lot, but I don't want to have to spend a whole lot of money, either. Is an ipod a good investment? (I know my digital camera was --it was $200, but it's saved me a lot of money--no more disposable cameras or getting film developed.)

[Kkun]

If anyone ever tried to wrest my iPod from my hands, I would punch them in their sternum and they would die. Just sayin'.

[Godly Paladin]

Basically, the Zune does what the iPod does for cheaper. Right now you can get the 30GB brown version at Buy.com and Amazon for $99 with free shipping. In a lot of ways the main thing the iPod has going for it is its popularity and the way it's culturally iconic. I believe that most of the die-hard defense of the iPod's superiority stems from that.

If you forget the hype and the fads for a minute, I don't think anyone can say a hundred bucks for a 30 gig Zune is a bad purchase.

Better yet, the first-generation Zune can be upgraded to the Zune 2 firmware this November, which will presumably mean more file support, wireless tweaks, etc.

[Radical Dreamer]

Is it really worth the expenditure to buy an ipod? I like music a lot, but I don't want to have to spend a whole lot of money, either. Is an ipod a good investment? (I know my digital camera was --it was $200, but it's saved me a lot of money--no more disposable cameras or getting film developed.)

I guess that depends on you as an individual. It was definitely worth it for me, because I listen to a lot of music much of the time, and my 30 gig is nearly full--I should upgrade to an 80 or 160 one of these days. XD Things you should consider before buying one are how important your music is to you, how often you listen to it, how much of it you have (i.e., do you need a 30 gig or an 80 gig to fit all of your songs), and of course, whether or not you can afford it. XD My view of my iPod is more like Kkun's, though I probably wouldn't punch anyone in the sternum. I'd just use my can of mace. XD

Basically, the Zune does what the iPod does for cheaper. Right now you can get the 30GB brown version at Buy.com and Amazon for $99 with free shipping. In a lot of ways the main thing the iPod has going for it is its popularity and the way it's culturally iconic. I believe that most of the die-hard defense of the iPod's superiority stems from that.

This, I have to disagree with. The iPod certainly has the upper hand on the Zune in more than a few ways. For instance, the Zune can only be used with certain Windows-based operating systems. In other words, a Zune will not work on a Mac, but an iPod will work on both a Mac and a PC.

Aside from that, there's the whole DRM issue. The "three days or three plays" rule that the Zune used was ridiculous, and even now it's still "three plays" for songs that you've traded with another Zune. Additionally, around 40% of some of the more popular downloads from the Zune store won't transfer at all, due to DRM [see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zune#Criticism ].

Also, this is just me, but I think the colors are terribly ugly. XD

[Okami]

I actually got my ipod for Christmas last year, after I'd been saving for a few months and had another $20 to go....best investment ever XD All that other money went towards other things...

[Nate]

In a lot of ways the main thing the iPod has going for it is its popularity and the way it's culturally iconic. I believe that most of the die-hard defense of the iPod's superiority stems from that.

No, it's that the Zune was a piece of crap when it launched and inferior to the iPod in every way. When the Zune was launched it could NOT:

Connect to the internet.
Sync with a computer via wifi.
Download songs from the Zune store.

All things which the iPod COULD do. And Corrie already covered the DRM stuff.

If you forget the hype and the fads for a minute, I don't think anyone can say a hundred bucks for a 30 gig Zune is a bad purchase.

I can, for the reasons I listed that have nothing to do with "hype" or "fads."

Is the Zune getting better? Yes, it is. It's finally going to get the ability to sync with computers, apparently it learned its lesson from Apple's superiority, and hey, it'll be able to FINALLY play MP4 files, which other handheld media devices have been able to do for ages! They're also toning down the DRM crap, which is good news.

I would say in a few months, a hundred bucks for a 30 gig Zune would be a DECENT purchase. Not a good purchase, but a decent one.

[Alexander]

And I just prefer to get things that work the first time I buy them. XD

DRM is also the largest reason I bought an iPod in the first place. I have 99% DRM free music that stretches across sixteen different file names. The iPod could accept them all, and Zune couldn't.

Not to mention the fact that the Zune was hard-wired into Microsoft's music store. That's no good for me as 90% of my music comes from eMusic.

As for the investment, more then worth it. For the quality, easy of installation, and sound quality without an amp was second to none.

[Nate]

Not to mention the fact that the Zune was hard-wired into Microsoft's music store. That's no good for me as 90% of my music comes from eMusic.

Right, and I think that's the biggest hit the Zune has against it, as well as the limited consumer base...as was already pointed out, a Zune is worthless to Mac users, but an iPod can work on Windows based systems just fine.

[Mr. SmartyPants]

I was going to make a post that contained absolutely nothing, but then I saw that the Zune does have a use.

Nice find, ST2M. XD

[Shao Feng-Li]

I like my vid iPod. Now... if they'd stop beings turds and make it so you could get your music off the friggin' thing without downloading someone's homemade software...

No, it's that the Zune was a piece of crap when it launched and inferior to the iPod in every way. When the Zune was launched it could NOT:

Connect to the internet.
Sync with a computer via wifi.
Download songs from the Zune store.

My iPod can't do that... and it's a 5th gen...?

[SnoringFrog]

Got a 60 gig Creative Zen Vision W. You all fail.

Oh yes, awesoemness. I've only got a 30gb M, but I love it all the same. CZ > Ipod > Zune.

[Nate]

My iPod can't do that... and it's a 5th gen...?

Yeah, sorry. I knew I shouldn't have posted on only five hours sleep. XP I got my facts mixed up, and I was wrong, I freely admit it. SEE I ADMIT WHEN I'M WRONG. However, the iPod Touch CAN do all that. Except...it can't download songs from the Zune store. Only iTunes. XP

Still, in my mistake, I still had a (somewhat) valid point buried beneath my wrongness. The Zune when it came out had wifi capabilities. For...well, no reason. Other than to trade songs with other Zune users in your vicinity. For people who don't use public transportation or hang out at schools/sporting events/whatever, this is a useless feature. So it really didn't DO anything. Basically Microsoft released a freaking beta...which shouldn't surprise me, really, that's what they do with all their products.

What's really embarrassing is the iPod Touch came out AFTER the Zune did, in fact, almost a YEAR after the Zune launched, and was able to do everything the Zune SHOULD have been able to do but couldn't.

[minutz3]

I'll probably get one when they launch it over here in Europe :-D.
Have a iPod Shuffle right now, but the software is very buggy, and I only have it since iPods are the only players able to log and send my played tracks to last.fm, but I've heard that there's a plug-in making Zune do that too ;-)

[Shinja]

"its time to step into the square circle"

[ilikegir33]

I hate Zunes. Sure, there's a Halo 3 special edition but who cares. I've got a new ipod nano vid and it's OK.