ACE of ZuneBoards posted a good commentary on the Zune’s upward swing in market share:

With the entire PDMP market relatively slow-going, one positive aspect (depending how you look at it) is Zune has still able to find ways to increase its market share. And not by minuscule amounts; Zune has been able to capitalize and generate 33% gains in its share of a highly competitive market. No one expected that…

That’s no small feat with the likes of the market-leader iPods being gobbled up by the millions per quarter. Sure, Zune’s 2 millionth device sold still doesn’t compare to the number of iPods or Sandisks sold, but when looking at the numbers more closely, a more accurate depiction of what’s happening will emerge.

Sandisk was only able squeak out a 10% gain as Creative lost ground by 50%. Even the mighty iPod is showing signs of losing relevance with a 1.4% slip. But that’s still not enough? What then do they expect?

Around the blogs, Zune is still given little if any respect. Tech writers drone about Zune’s flat sales when it’s apparent everyone’s sales are flat. Apparently gaining one-third of one’s market share is nothing worth noting. But that’s expected.

These days, over-priced iPods, with their smaller screens, less features, and pay-per-song model, are what pass as cool. No one likes the new kid on the block.

But heads are turning. The numbers show that. Even amidst economic hardships and a slowing of the PDMP market, Zune is still gaining ground and gaining relevance. With the new features and games on the way (officially), Zune is becoming more of a reckoning force that apparently no one wants to recognize. That’s Ok though.

What do you expect?…

Wow. This is just amazing. 1st off, let me tell you that 100% of my music and movies are legit, I think. I don’t do the file sharing thing, I don’t rip friends CDs, etc… Even though I don’t, I know that many folks out there do. I don’t think that its right, but who I am to tell them not to. Let them suffer the consequences if they are caught.

What does all this mean? Why are you talking about this nonsense Chris? Simple. According to NBC in an interview, Microsoft is working on working in a “Copyright Cop” into Zune software.

When asked why NBC left Apple and went with Microsoft…

Second, Apple refused to cooperate with NBC on building filters into its iPod player to remove pirated movies and videos.

Further down…

Similarly, the copyright filtering system is still in development and its exact form has not been set.

Mr. Perrette said the plan is to create “filtering technology that allows for playback of legitimately purchased content versus non-legitimately purchased content.�

So, I don’t support or agree with you guys that jack free movies and music, but I still do not think that it is the hardware company’s job (or business) to police what people play on their device. That is utter BS.

Link to the Article. Thanks Jaxim.

UPDATE : Cesar has posted a statement on this subject…

We have no plans or commitments to implement any new type of content filtering in the Zune devices as part of our content distribution deal with NBC. 

We think some folks in the industry were expressing hopes for how the entire industry, not just Microsoft, would come to look at content distribution, and some speculation has ensued.  Again, no plans are in place toward this end.

Whew, that makes me feel better.

Apparently someone got shafted on Ebay with a counterfeit Zune…

“Just received my 8GB Zune from Ebay. When I saw the box first I was kind of shocked. Text and Printing not aligned to the center of the packaging, no sticker with serial number and Barcode. As well there were no manuals and the earphones and synch cable were not in separate boxes. Then I thought “wonderful you’ve bought a fake Zune” but the Device looks fine (ok it looks like second quality, dented screw cover (or whatever the chrome cover covers Smiley and some errors in the laser engraving at the back) When I plugged it into my PC it started charging and a few minutes later it started up and shows correct firmware as well. So how can this be? Has someone embezzled second quality devices and made a new Packaging for them? Has anyone else the same experience?”

The post over at Zunerama details how he appears to have been juked. It’s quite possible that this “is” a Zune, but one that didn’t make it past QA to go to market and was snuck out of the plant under the shirt.

Source: Zune Thoughts

Dan over at Channel9 posted a video interview with Mike Klucher from XNA. He talks quite a bit about what we should expect to see with zune gaming, and how it will be delivered. Among many XNA-related things shown in this video, you also get a sneak peak at a game called “Alien Takeover” demonstrated using a zune 80. The good news is we should see an initial test version out within about 3 weeks, which will allow developers/users to get a taste of XNA on zune. Although they do emphasize the fact it is aimed more toward developers, anyone can download XNA studios 3.0 , and by getting your hands on .zip file of someone’s game, you can easily play it. All I can say is,  it’s about time we got some more info on XNA with zune!

Check it out over at Channel9

Edit: The video has been uploaded to youtube(Thanks to WetWorker of ZuneCards.net), so you can watch parts 1&2 after the break.

(more…)

This is a writer from Cnet’s Crave blog, or shall I say Craze blog. What do I mean. Read her rant over at Crave and take it with a grain of salt. The 1st item that had me laughing uncontrolably was item #4 of 5. Judging by the 70 comments over there, I am not the only one that laughed.

4. The headphones

The Zune’s headphones were, at first blush, one of the best things about it. They’re nice, in-ear headphones with really good quality sound. They look good and fit comfortably, and the ends of the earbuds are magnetic, so they can hang around your neck without falling off. But here’s the thing. The headphone cord is fabric, instead of the plastic-coated cable of iPod headphones or their ilk. And fabric, which is basically string, is one big knot waiting to happen. Combine the knotting tendencies of string with the magnetic ends of the earbuds, and the headphones are constantly in a state of tangle that you cannot even believe. It’s a 10-minute endeavor to untangle them every time I pull them out of my bag. My bus ride is only 25 minutes to 30 minutes long. It’s just not worth it.

Read “5 reasons my Zune is dead to me” over at crave.

Source : Crunchgear

THE ZUNE for audio….

She admits to being an iPhone user, but doesn’t seem all too happy about it in a recent Tekzilla episode. Check it out around the 4:39 mark for the duel.

I am a tad behind on my audio and video podcast listening so I haven’t gotten to this one, but Antonio was all over it. Thanks man!

when talking about lossless audio, Veronica mentions that she “prefers” Zune. But she is using the iPhone because all of her files are from itunes.

Check out TekZilla

Before we delve into the sharing of this review by Zunerama, let me share my feelings about the price. I will prelude this by saying that I have enough coin to splurge on my tech toys, but no way in hell I am going to spend $350 bones on a dock/speaker set up. Sorry Kicker. I know from experience that you guy have some great car audio products, but come now… $350 for this. Wow. (for the record, I prefer JL Audio for my auto audio needs)

So, anyhow… Thanks to Zune Boards for pointing me to a review at Zunerama…

We’re pleased to see Kicker enter the Zune stereo market with this compelling stereo system. We’re awarding the ZK500 our “Recommended by Zunerama” rating.

It looks like they have adapters for all the Zune models and they are reporting that the sound is not distorted at higher volumes. That’s good.

Well, to read the review, head over to Zunerama or head over to Kicker for more info.

If you can get through all the ads, Futurelooks has a good review up on the Zune 80.

Microsoft still has some work to do, but they’ve made huge strides with the Zune 80GB, especially when compared to the brown brick known as the Zune 30GB. For starters, they might want to offer the Zune 80GB in colors other than black (the red was discontinued after Valentines Day 2008).

Pros
* Much improved menu interface
* Zune Pad is a huge leap in the right direction
* Streamlined audio and video podcast support
* Wireless synchronization capability
* Great set of premium earphones

Cons
* Still too large for my tastes, Zune 4/8GB might be better
* Muted colors while watching videos, only QVGA resolution
* Crippled Wi-Fi capabilities; wheres web surfing and Internet radio?
* Less than stellar battery life
* No AC/DC power adapter included

Now, I can live with some of the cons. I have no true arguments with them, but what the heck is he smoking? Less than stellar battery life? Huh? No, it falls short to the iPod Classic by a few hours, but 20+ hours on a hard drive based player, especially with the huge screen, *is stellar. Less than stellar… LOL

Read the complete review at Futurelooks

Here ya go again…

I am guess that Steve Jobs is trying to get into the news since Microsoft and Mobile Phone makers are making all the headlines at CTIA this week. Anyhow, he’s got some really big slams for Zune in there….