Zune vs iPod

It’s getting boring by now. Hardly a month goes by without some gadget coming out, ready to hammer iPod. Whether it’s produced by Sony, or Samsung, or any other producer for that matter, the target is clear: iPod.
Of all the competitors this year and from years past, the most significant is Zune. Why is that? First of all because it’s made by Microsoft and when it comes to the Redmond company, ambitions are never low.

What is Zune? It’s a decent MP3 player with a 3 inch display screen, a 30 GB hard disk, an FM tuner, available in three colors. So far, the only notable thing is the 3 inch display screen which is indeed more than the market offers at the moment. Let’s move on because the rest of its features are rather ordinary.

Zune also promises wireless connection, meaning that two people, who possess those kinds of players, will be able to exchange among themselves images, music or play lists without having to use any other equipment. But there’s of course a limitation, the transferred songs from your classmate, your friend or the stranger you met at the subway, will only be able to be played for three times during the next three days. Alright, it’s an interesting facility in a world where social networking plays a very important part. Let’s keep in mind the wireless connection and move on.

But move on where? Yeah, there are also several accessories worth mentioning, which allow Zune to be connected to a TV, be used as an MP3 player for automobiles, a wireless remote control and an AC adapter. That’s all! Wait, there’s a just a little something else, called Zune Marketplace, from where one can buy pretty much any song he or she can imagine (that’s what the marketing team behind Zune promises).

I think I have already said everything there is to know about Zune. Once again, let’s forget Zune is signed by Microsoft and Toshiba (the Japanese company will manufacture the first model of the series and after that, it seems like Microsoft will assume the product entirely). And now let’s talk honestly: is there any facility that would determine you to run down to the first store and buy a Zune player? Or open a new browser window and order it from your favorite online store? Personally, I don’t think so.

A single search on websites such as PriceGrabber.com or Bizrate.com will convince you that there are dozens of models which have a better hard drive capacity, 2.2 inch display screens, a large scale of accessories and many other facilities.

Long story short, Zune is an interesting MP3 player, which brings something new and could probably become an interesting choice from a list consisting of models belonging to Philips, Creative, Samsung, Toshiba or iRiver. But Zune is produced by Microsoft, and its ambitions are not reduced to being part of the “Other MP3 Players” list. Microsoft aims for a brighter future for Zune, and sees this player as The Only One, a direct competitor for the almighty iPod, the nightmare of all MP3 players producers.

Nevertheless, Microsoft’s entrance on the market has been important enough to attract some comments from Steve Jobs, which is unprecedented. Until now. Do you remember Jobs ever discussing another MP3 player in any of his interviews?

In an interview with Newsweek which could very well make the magazine famous, Apple's CEO Steve Jobs said he is unconcerned that iPod might lose its cache because it’s too popular. "That's like saying you don't want to kiss your lover's lips because everyone has lips. It doesn't make any sense," he told senior editor Steven Levy. "We don't strive to appear cool. We just try to make the best products we can. And if they are cool, well, that's great." Jobs talked to Levy on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of Apple's iPod, and cooperated with Levy's upcoming book about the iPod, "The Perfect Thing,"

Jobs also said he is unimpressed with Zune, Microsoft's answer to the iPod, which allows users to exchange songs. "It takes forever," says Jobs. "By the time you've gone through all that, the girl's got up and left!" Jobs added that while iPod and iTunes will evolve, music will always be the core. "It's hard to imagine that music is not the epicenter of the iPod, for a long, long, long, long, long time ... Music is so deep within all of us, but it's easy to go for a day or a week or a month or a year without really listening to music. And the iPod has changed that for tens of millions of people, and that makes me really happy, because I think music is good for the soul."

In the end, why does Microsoft need Zune? Is Zune the result of Microsoft’s need to assert itself in yet another segment of the entertainment market, which already the company is covering pretty well with Xbox and Xbox 360? Or is simply that Microsoft couldn’t stand the thought of iPod, a product of its longtime rival Apple?

Microsoft has indeed reason to be upset, especially since a large portion of Apple’s player succes is based on Windows. Those who can still remember the first versions of iPod have probably not forgotten that they were compatible only with Macs. Maybe a Microsoft MP3 player would have stood a chance back then.

But now, nearly five years later, Zune is rather a project based on ambition, quite hopeless, another product to fill the list of iPod wannabees.Microsoft has blown the chance of turning 2006 into Windows Vista Year and it will certainly not make it Zune Year. --playfuls.com