Zune HD and AV Dock Review

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The Zune HD has been available for a while now. Tweaktown has published a review of the Zune HD and AV Dock today.
Quote from the review: "If you were to ask someone to describe an MP3/Video player they would probably begin to describe to you your average iPod. If you went a little further you would probably find them talking about the iPhone or the iPod Touch. Read more

Posted on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:00:00 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

The Zune HD: Selling Out?

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The Zune HD is up against some tough competition. Microsoft hasn't exactly succeeded in building a massive global user base for the Zune series, and Apple just released a whole new line of iPods. Considering how badly the deck is stacked against the HD, it's a bit of a surprise to say that it appears to be selling out across the board. Electronista reports that the Zune HD is selling like OLED-flavored hotcakes all across the country.

At Best Buy all sizes of the Zune HD are back ordered for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, Fry's is out of the 16 GB model, while over at Amazon the 32 GB model is facing 1-3 week delays. All of that is good news for Microsoft; it looks like their new Zune is really finding an audience.

Posted on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:36:57 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD Not Sold Outside Of US; Microsoft Not Convinced Of Zune HD?

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The new Microsoft Zune HD is an interesting portable media player that is a valid alternative to the iPod touch 3G for many in the United States. Microsoft announced plans to bring the Zune video service to Xbox users around the globe, but there are still no plans to actually make the Zune HD a global product.

What is up with that? It is of course expensive to localize and market a gadget like the Zune along with the Zune service in Europe, Asia and other markets. But we are talking about Microsoft here. Microsoft is a huge global player with their operating systems, application software and of course their Xbox console and Xbox Live service. Read more

Posted on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 09:00:00 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

New Zune HD Apps Have Ads

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If you've got a Zune HD, you should know that Microsoft has made a whole bunch of new apps and games available for you. Ars Technica states that a total of nine apps are available;

Sudoku, Calculator, Weather, Texas hold 'em, Shell Game, Space Battle 3, Of the Future, Hexic, Goo Splat, and Chess. Just swing over to the Marketplace on your Zune HD and click on the new apps menu to locate your new programs.

Posted on Thu, 17 Sep 2009 10:47:48 CDT | by Robert Evans

RapidRepair Tears Down the Zune HD

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With the new Microsoft Zune HD PMP now officially available, it will only be a matter of time until someone drops one and breaks it. The team at RapidRepair has already torn their new Zune HD down to show us what is inside.

Inside the attractive aluminum case, the device has surprisingly few parts, most of which are replaceable in case you drop the device. Obviously, if you choose to tear your own Zune down you will void the warranty. Inside the case are three cables for the digitizer, OLED screen, and the home button. Read more

Posted on Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:00:00 CDT | by Shane McGlaun

Zune HD 32GB Review

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The new Microsoft Zune HD started to ship yesterday. Our review partner Digital Trends tested the new Zune HD 32GB and published this review.
Quote from the review: "Almost two years to the day after Apple reimagined the personal media player as a mobile computer with the iPod Touch, Microsoft has outed its own take on the pocket entertainment machine: the Zune HD. Like the Touch before it, the Zune HD uses a high-resolution touch screen to add a new degree of ease and color to mobile listening, and to serve as a portable theater for video. But since "like Apple" has never been enough to outsell the Cupertino thinktank that always seems to be one step ahead, Microsoft's Redmond engineers have also gone the extra mile with a retina-scorching OLED display, lighter design, and 720p HD video output, to name a few features that best Apple's Touch. Read more

Posted on Wed, 16 Sep 2009 08:00:00 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Zune HD: Apps, Movies, and Games En Route

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Microsoft doesn't want to be Apple, but they want oh-so-badly to beat them in a few key areas. One of those areas is consumer media player technology. Apple has the edge (and 2/3rds of the market) with the iPod line. While the Zune HD is a solid piece of gadgetry, it doesn't come close to having the name recognition or market share of the iPod.

That's why Microsoft decided to look very closely at the business model for the iPod touch before getting to work on their Zune HD. Boy Genius reports that Redmond has admitted they have a big slew of games and apps on the horizon for the HD. New apps coming down the pipe include Twitter and Facebook for Zune, while new games include Project Gotham Racing: Ferrari Edition, Vans Sk8: Pool Service, and Audiosurf Tilt.

Posted on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 09:53:54 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD Ships Today; New iPod touch 3G Cheaper On Amazon

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The Microsoft Zune HD ships today. The 32GB Zune HD sells for $289.97 on Amazon.com. Apple has unveiled a new generation of iPod touch players last week. The new iPod touch players have a faster processor (iPhone 3GS CPU) and there is now a 64GB version.
If you are not into apps then the Zune HD is actually a nice portable media player sporting an OLED touchscreen, cool UI and the NVIDIA Tegra CPU. Though the new Apple iPod touch is selling for less money on Amazon at least. The iPod touch 32GB 3rd Generation sells for only $279.99 on Amazon.com. Read more

Posted on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 08:32:47 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Zune HD: 15% Discount From Dell

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Why pay full price when you can pay...well, anything less? If you aren't a pre-order customer, but still fancy some Zune HD goodness, you might want to pay attention to this offer. According to Engadget there's a 15% off coupon for the Zune HD floating 'round the Internet, thanks to Dell.

Posted on Mon, 14 Sep 2009 10:14:38 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD: U.S. Only?

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Bad news, people everywhere-but-the-United-States, you can't get the Zune HD. If you've had your hearts set on some OLED-packin' media player goodness, you're going to have to come over here to get it. According to Ars Technica Microsoft's last-best hope for the Zune line won't be available anywhere outside of the 50 states.

And why is that? Apparently, because Microsoft isn't very optimistic about their new product. Redmond has already cancelled all other Zune models, the HD is their final try to make the line work. The U.S. is going to act as a testing ground for the Zune HD. If it sells well, they'll continue to support the line and expand overseas. If it doesn't justify its existence soon though, we'll probably see Microsoft pull the plug before too long.

Posted on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 11:28:22 CDT | by Robert Evans

Current Zunes Discontinued, Zune HD is the Future

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Microsoft has a real bad case of "eggs in one basket" syndrome. SuperSite's Paul Thurrott interviewed the Zune team yesterday and learned a few interesting facts. For one thing, the Zune HD will be the only Zune device on the market going forward.

That means that every other model of Zune is going to be discontinued. If you want to pick one up while you still have the option, do so now. By the time the Zune HD goes on sale on September 15th most of the older models will be out of stock, and unavailable forever more. I think resting everything on the Zune HD's success or failure is actually a pretty clever move by Microsoft. If this device succeeds, the Zune has a future. If it doesn't, at least Microsoft can cut their losses without dumping more devices.

Posted on Wed, 2 Sep 2009 11:45:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD: Mysterious 'Apps'+SDK?

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This weekend saw the first (limited) unveilings of the Zune HD media player. In addition to getting a bunch of photos and videos of this hot new filly in action, some clever consumers managed to ferret out a few interesting pieces of info. Engadget reports that someone named Mathew Arkin on Qik got a photo of the 'apps' section of this new gadget. There were no apps available as of yet, but Microsoft's choice of wording has raised a lot of questions.

As far as has been officially stated, those 'apps' are meant to be a variety of downloadable games for the Zune HD. Microsoft wants this new player to be able to compete with the iPod Touch in terms of gaming ability. If that section were just for games, though, why would it be titled 'apps'?

Posted on Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:47:30 CDT | by Robert Evans

Check Out the Zune HD This Weekend

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Cool news from Nvidia today. Engadget reports that the maker of the new Zune's internal Tegra chip has published a list of locations where the Zune HD will be previewed this weekend.

Posted on Fri, 21 Aug 2009 18:00:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

NVIDIA Touts That Tegra Is Powering The Zune HD

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Today NVIDIA officially announced that their Tegra chip is inside the Zune HD. A thing we already know actually.
"Tegra provides the multimedia muscle in Zune HD," said Michael Rayfield, general manager of NVIDIA’s mobile business. "Users will love the device’s new design, amazing multimedia features and HD video out capability. Zune HD is a must-have for anyone looking for the best portable digital media player on the market."
Read more

Posted on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 09:07:32 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Zune HD TV Interface Video Out, Spec Sheet Out

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Having just watched this Gizmodo video of the Zune HD plugged into an HDTV has given me an understanding of just what the big selling point for this bad boy is. By docking it with any HD television or monitor you create a high-quality media center wherever you go. The Zune's TV interface is incredibly streamlined, everything looks very intuitive and it appears to work very smoothly.

In essence, having a Zune HD is like carrying your media box around with you in your pocket. I'd go so far as to say that hooking a Zune up to your TV beats a traditional media box set-up. It drains less power, it takes up less space, you can move it from TV to TV, and it looks just as easy to use. Kudos to Microsoft for finding a great feature that Apple didn't manage to beat you to the punch on. This interface is one ace the Zune has up its sleeve when it comes to dealing with this next generation of iPods.

Posted on Fri, 14 Aug 2009 11:50:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

Microsoft Poaching App Developers for Zune HD?

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The Zune HD is a pretty hot little piece of gadgetry. A 3.3” OLED touchscreen combined with the ability to play high-definition video and music, plus a solid browser and a low price tag make it a very enticing buy. That said, it still has a while to go to be able to compete well with Apple's iPod touch. The new line of touches, although much more expensive, will come with cameras and an app store full-to-bursting with useful things.

The Zune HD, on the other hand, will have a relatively anemic selection of apps. Unless, of course, John Gruber of Daring Fireball fame is right about Microsoft trying to poach independent App Store developers for its Zune HD. After a story about the Zune HD yesterday he received an email from the developer of an iPhone Twitter client. The dev said he had been courted by Microsoft and offered “a bucket of money” to port his app.

Posted on Fri, 14 Aug 2009 10:35:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD Pre-Order Sales Off To A Good Start On Amazon

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The new Zune HD has been available for pre-order since yesterday and already improved over 1,000% in the Amazon sales ranking to currently place 31st.
Microsoft's new OLED touch-screen media player is shipping on September 15th in 16GB ($219.99) and 32GB ($289.99) versions. A lot of Zune HD buyers also pick-up the Zune HD AV Dock ($89.99), which currently ranks at place 135. More details about the Zune HD AV Dock

If the new rumor about an Apple event in early September will stifle the momentum for the Zune HD is not clear yet. Read more

Posted on Fri, 14 Aug 2009 08:06:43 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Zune HD: A Prelude To The Multi-Core Future

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Dual-core processors were a major jump forward for desktops and notebooks. When they first hit, they allowed an unparalleled level of graphics processing capability and lead to a substantial boost in overall processing power. Smartphones and other handheld media devices have had to deal with single core processors up until now, which has greatly limited the sorts of programs they can handle. With the Zune HD, that all changes.

CNET news reports that the new HD will be the first portable media player to use multiple cores to enable superior graphics processing. The main processor, an ARM11, will run the operating system itself. The Zune also has an additional Nvidia graphics chip that will power Flash rendering, HD video, and web page rendering. This Tegra chip actually integrates eight separate processors, which should make the Zune HD the most powerful handheld device on the market.

Posted on Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:20:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD Dock, Power Pack for Sale Now

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Right on the heels of the Zune HD coming available for pre-order is the announcement that two of its peripherals have gone on sale over at the Amazon. The first of these products is the Zune HD AV dock, which allows the Zune HD to charge, sync, and play 720p videos over your HDTV. It will also let you send your music or HD radio over your home audio system, and control it using a wireless remote. The package comes with everything you need to hook your Zune up, and it costs $89.99.

The next product is the Zune HD AV and Power Pack. This product just comes with an AV output cable, HDMI cable, and AC adapter. It lacks the wireless remote and dock from the previous pack, but it only costs $49.99 as a result.

Posted on Thu, 13 Aug 2009 09:35:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

Zune HD Pre-order Sale Started

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Microsoft's hot new iPod contender, the Zune HD, is shipping on September 15th. The leaked Zune HD shipping date from last week got confirmed today as Microsoft updated its Zune HD page with pre-order links to retailers carrying the Zune HD.

The top of the line 32GB Zune HD sells for $289.99 and the 16GB Zune HD has a price-tag of $219.99.
Read more

Posted on Thu, 13 Aug 2009 02:24:57 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Zune HD: Out September 15th

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Update:
Zune HD on Sale, ships September 15th.

And now we get to the absolute best news I've heard all day. Gizmodo has managed to get a hold of several leaked shots of the Zune HD in its package, along with confirmation on the release date. We now know with relative certainty that the Zune HD will be out in stores on September 15th.

Posted on Wed, 12 Aug 2009 00:00:00 CDT | by Robert Evans