Zune Hd worth a look?
Zune HD
Microsoft has just unveiled its new MP3/Video player. But how does it stack up to the competition? With Apple making upgrades and updates on their iTouch can the Zune, or anything for that matter, be worth a comparison?
Features
There are a few new goodies Microsoft has put in this new version of the Zune. They upgraded to an OLED Display. This makes for a beautiful picture and smooth touch screen interface, definitely an upgrade from the older versions.
This unit features those two letters that make most grown men, and women, jump with joy, HD. Zune has found a way to incorporate an HD radio tuner for more clear stronger signals and HD output dock. You can plug the Zune into an HD TV and actually play videos in 720p.
The Zune also has new battery cell in that increases the battery life of the unit. It has 33 hours of audio playback but brags that it also can sustain 8 hours of video playback. That doubles the video playback life of the competition. The Zune also includes WiFi capabilities that allows for application downloads. Could this mean that the iTouch finally has some real competition?
One of the neatest features is the ability to rent and download movies which you can output in HD. It comes with the usual 8, 16, and 32 gigabyte hard drives.
Pros
The Zune has beautiful picture and the sound is good and very clear. The player is small and light but has a very solid feel to it. I found the touch screen to be very responsive and accurate. The interface was very user friendly, and you don't need a specific program to transfer files onto it, you can just plug and transfer giving it the feel as an external hard drive. I was really impressed with the overall look and feel of the player.
Cons
The player is still very new so the applications are few and not that great. There will be a few kinks to work out with the new player, there always are. We found none in the time we tested one out, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.
Competition
iTouch - the ever dominant player. It's ridiculously smooth and efficient, it hasn't had any real competition to speak of yet. Prices are slightly higher than the Zune though.
Samsung P3 - this is a fairly new player that's not advertised or really sold in the US yet. It's been marketed and sold in other countries though. It's a beautiful player and the price beats both the Zune and iTouch.
Conclusion
The Zune is easy to use, sounds great, and has great video quality. Up to this point that's been the conclusion for most MP3 players, but not this time. This has HD output, HD radio, WiFi, and you can rent movies on it! The external drive functionality of the player makes it easy to transfer movies, music, and files to the player. This player is really something. You should definitely give it a look and see what it can do for you.
Microsoft has just unveiled its new MP3/Video player. But how does it stack up to the competition? With Apple making upgrades and updates on their iTouch can the Zune, or anything for that matter, be worth a comparison?
Features
There are a few new goodies Microsoft has put in this new version of the Zune. They upgraded to an OLED Display. This makes for a beautiful picture and smooth touch screen interface, definitely an upgrade from the older versions.
This unit features those two letters that make most grown men, and women, jump with joy, HD. Zune has found a way to incorporate an HD radio tuner for more clear stronger signals and HD output dock. You can plug the Zune into an HD TV and actually play videos in 720p.
The Zune also has new battery cell in that increases the battery life of the unit. It has 33 hours of audio playback but brags that it also can sustain 8 hours of video playback. That doubles the video playback life of the competition. The Zune also includes WiFi capabilities that allows for application downloads. Could this mean that the iTouch finally has some real competition?
One of the neatest features is the ability to rent and download movies which you can output in HD. It comes with the usual 8, 16, and 32 gigabyte hard drives.
Pros
The Zune has beautiful picture and the sound is good and very clear. The player is small and light but has a very solid feel to it. I found the touch screen to be very responsive and accurate. The interface was very user friendly, and you don't need a specific program to transfer files onto it, you can just plug and transfer giving it the feel as an external hard drive. I was really impressed with the overall look and feel of the player.
Cons
The player is still very new so the applications are few and not that great. There will be a few kinks to work out with the new player, there always are. We found none in the time we tested one out, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.
Competition
iTouch - the ever dominant player. It's ridiculously smooth and efficient, it hasn't had any real competition to speak of yet. Prices are slightly higher than the Zune though.
Samsung P3 - this is a fairly new player that's not advertised or really sold in the US yet. It's been marketed and sold in other countries though. It's a beautiful player and the price beats both the Zune and iTouch.
Conclusion
The Zune is easy to use, sounds great, and has great video quality. Up to this point that's been the conclusion for most MP3 players, but not this time. This has HD output, HD radio, WiFi, and you can rent movies on it! The external drive functionality of the player makes it easy to transfer movies, music, and files to the player. This player is really something. You should definitely give it a look and see what it can do for you.