We'll be taking zune.net down at 10 p.m. tonight for a bit. When we return, we'll have some new features on the web – including "follow an artist," where you can explicitly state that you like a particular artist and get news and updates from that artist. We'll do RSS feed aggregation on artist pages – which means that from the one artist page on zune.net, you can see your favorite artist's latest Twitter posts, blogs, and so on (and if your favorite artist doesn't have this data already, you will be able to add the links yourself). We're adding more content, including concert dates, to the web, and we've redesigned our home page to showcase more of our social data. And finally, we made a bunch of improvements to the site performance.
Our friends at insidethecircle.net and zuneluv.com are already talking about the update – head over there and take part, or leave us some comments here.
When did Microsoft start gaining sympathy from users? It seems to have taken us by surprise but Microsoft just is not up to the standards it used to be. Microsoft’s search engine is not producing well, they do not have a strong hold in the market share regarding operating systems or browsers and even Microsoft Office has intense competition with applications from Google and Zoho.
Microsoft may be taking yet another hit with the release of the ZuneHD because we are approaching the 2 year anniversary of the iPod Touch. Today Microsoft finally released their version, a product meant to measure up to the iPod Touch.
Oh yeah baby, the third podcast with Matt and me is live, and it contains some tidbits of news, an interview with electronic DJ and producer DJ Dan, an interview with the hip-hop star Wale, and more of your Twitter questions answered.
Listen online here, or get it from the Zune software here.
The Zune HD portable media player, announced last week, will feature an HD Radio tuner and an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) touch screen. It will use flash memory and a version of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer browser. It will feature an HDMI connection for streaming video to HDTVs, Wi-Fi connectivity, HD video support, and a built-in accelerometer.
I think that Microsoft’s Zune HD, if as advertised, could supply some real competition for my iPod Touch.
The iPod Touch is no slouch. It sports up to 32GB of flash memory, a beautiful touch screen, Wi-Fi connectivity, a Web browser, direct access to the iTunes Store, and much more. It’s a great device, but in some respects, the Zune HD may be just a little better.
Zune advantages Some might scoff at the Zune HD’s high-definition radio. But when we consider the fact that a major selling point of the current Zune is its FM radio, it might not seem like such a bad idea to bring in HD. And having the option of listening to a high-quality transmission of songs ranging from Britney Spears to Frank Sinatra for free isn’t so bad, either. Granted, you can’t pick those songs, and you’ll need to listen to commercials, but I think that’s a small price to pay.
Touch advantages The iPod Touch, of course, has some advantages of its own.
Apple’s iTunes Store is one of the most important reasons behind the iPod’s success. It offers a simple, end-to-end experience that’s unparalleled in the business. And as the largest music retailer in the United States, it carries some clout.
The Zune HD is out and about, strutting its stuff in the wild already, and the first video of the iPod touch toppler is already here. Come take a look!
Microsoft’s OLED PMP, the Zune HD, has been rumoured for a while, but Redmond finally pulled the trigger and made it official earlier this week. Now though it’s broke free of the labs and made it in to the open. Eyeing it up close, it’s surprising how much the Zune HD looks like a HTC Touch Diamond2, although it’s definitely thinner.
Amazon.com has put up the Zune HD on their website but you cannot purchase it, only “Sign up to be notified when this item becomes available.”
Here are the amazon technical details:
Bright 3.3-inch OLED touch screen with (480 x 272 resolution) 16:9 widescreen format display
Integration with the Xbox LIVE network gives you access to millions of videos, TV shows, and games from Xbox LIVE720p HD video output to your HDTV with optional docking station
720p HD video output to your HDTV with optional docking station
Full-screen Internet browser with multitouch functionality
Built-in HD Radio receiver; Wi-Fi enabled so you can instantly stream millions of music tracks from the Zune music store
It’s not available for pre-order yet. But the product page offers a nice round-up of the ZuneHD’s unique capabilities.
Note: there iswas some mangled language in the product page about Xbox gaming. Don’t get too excited about that; my understanding from the Zune team is that the gaming language is a butchered reference to the Zune integration with Xbox LIVE.
Microsoft is to launch the Zune HD this autumn and the device will have access to TV, movies and games through the Xbox Live Video Marketplace.
Essentially being lined up as a rival to Apple’s iPod Touch, the new PMP will have a built-in HD Radio receiver, an OLED touch screen interface, wi-fi, a multi-touch UI for Internet Explorer.
The new Zune will feature a 16:9 widescreen format display (480 x 272 resolution) and have HD video output to allow video to be played on an HDTV.
While the new features are certainly an improvement on the original Zune, it will be interesting to see whether consumers like the fact a Zune dock has also to be bought for outputting HD video.
Moments ago, Microsoft lifted the covers on its plans to integrate Zune Video Marketplace with Xbox.
High-definition movies and TV shows from Zune Marketplace are being made available to 17 million Xbox LIVE subscribers. The previous Xbox video store is being merged into the Zune Marketplace video store. This is a significant extension of the Zune brand to the powerful Xbox platform.
Zune video on Xbox LIVE will show “instant on, smooth-streaming content”, in 1080p HD with 5.1 surround sound. Some details from today’s Microsoft keynote at the E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) conference in Los Angeles:
Video startup is as close to instantaneous as possible by seamlessly transitioning between many different bitrates and resolutions of video
Video playback will start at a low bitrate for fast download time and then ramp up to a higher bitrate and quality
This process enables delivery of up to 1080p with 5.1 surround sound
Enhanced search functions within Zune video on Xbox LIVE helps you easily find your favorite film or TV show
The service will be available in eighteen countries: US, Canada, Austria, Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
Whether you are looking for music, movies, videos, TV shows, games or software for your Zune player, you will find them here. Read about the top sites in the entertainment industry for Zune downloads today. More
