By now you’ve already heard the big news everyone is talking about. That’s right, Microsoft just lowered the price of the Zune. Pretty exciting, huh?
Apple’s response to this earth shattering news? A revamped lineup of iPods, including the all new iPod Touch. The Touch is essentially an iPhone without the phone (or the two year AT&T contract for that matter). It’s pretty much exactly the device I speculated about in July. The iPod Touch is also everything Microsoft’s Zune should have been when it was launched late last year.
It wasn’t all that long ago that Microsoft partisans were crowing about how the Zune would ultimately beat the iPod, because of it’s larger screen and built-in WiFi. The WiFi, in particular, was going to be a killer app. In retrospect, the Zune’s WiFi was a killer app alright — it was the manner in which Microsoft chose to implement the WiFi that ultimately killed the Zune.
When they write the story of how Microsoft let Apple win the digital media war they’ll devote a whole volume to the failure of the Zune. In theory, the Zune could have done nearly everything the iPod Touch does. Aside from the iPod Touch’s touch screen, the Zune had all of the other major features in place: larger screen, built-in WiFi, slick user interface.
Somehow Microsoft was never able to put the pieces together in way that actually met consumer expectations. Prior to the Zune’s release everyone assumed the device would have some sort of Internet access. If nothing else we all learned a valuable lesson from the Zune: WiFi-enabled does not always mean Internet access.
As we all eventually learned, Zune’s WiFi couldn’t actually be used to connect to the internet, let alone buy songs online. The only apparent use for Zune’s wireless connectivity was to share crippled songs with other Zune users, provided you could find another Zune user.
The iPod Touch, by contrast, does everything you would expect it to do. The built-in Safari browser allows you to surf the web just as you would on an iPhone, and the new wireless iTunes store allows you to buy songs online directly from your iPod. The only thing missing is peer-to-peer song sharing with a three days or three plays limitation — although something tells me consumers aren’t actually clamoring for that feature.
The iPod touch goes on sale later this month and will be available in 8GB and 16GB capacities. I’ve already heard some grumbling about the Touch’s limited capacity, but I’m not complaining. If you want more storage you can grab one of the newly rechristened iPod Classics. Same old iPod, lots more storage. The entry level is now 80GB for a mere $249 (that’s only $50 more than the newly repriced 30GB Zune). A 160GB will set you back $349 (less than the 80GB was selling for yesterday).
Then there’s the whole new line of extra-slim, but curiously wide, video enabled iPod Nanos. I keep hearing that Microsoft is planning to release a flash based Zune later this year. At this point there’s no reason to believe it will be a Nano killer.
Oh well, there’s always the Zune phone. I can hardly wait for that one.
Microsoft also decided to treat its customers like criminals, and crippled what limited use the Zune’s WiFi had by limiting shared songs to three plays or three days.
It was stupid, and it deserves to fail.
With it’s built in browser (let’s call it Safar for lack of feature completeness), can the iPod touch download an MP3 from the web?
I mean, it has 16GB of storage. This is no problem, right? PLEEENNTY of room.
I bought the iPhone and learned the hard way about this.
The iPhone doesn’t support downloads. Sure it will stream an MP3, so it knows what one is and it knows how to play it from a website. You cannot save the mp3, even though you are holding an mp3 player in your hands.
To add salt to the wound, my friend emailed me an MP3 as an attachment. I had a POP email account setup on the iPod, and it SEES the MP3 attachment.
Here is where it gets stinky. The iPhone WON’T ACKNOWLEDGE it. This has to be a choice by apple to disable this feature since the device knows how to play MP3s when it feels like it.
Nobody seems to want to talk about this crippled feature of Apples new products so I am here to let everybody know.
Can anybody confirm this is still the case with the new iPod before I go and pick one up?
I’m bummed out about the broken web browser on the new apple phones/ipods.
Wargpath, that’s annoying.
My guess would be that the iPod will have the same restriction, if for no other reason because the iPod Touch looks like it will have less functionality than the iPhone. As far as anyone knows it won’t even ship with a mail application installed. And now we’re hearing reports that you won’t even be able to add a calendar date.
I sort of wonder if they’ve made it difficult to play downloaded mp3 files because they want to tie the device to the new wireless iTunes store. That would, of course, be pointless and unnecessarily annoying (not to mention being almost Zune-like).
I have used an ipod since 2001 when they cost $400 for just a 5 gig model, but it was truly incredible and worth every dollar.
MS tried to break into the market and dominate it as they have time and time again, but plucky apple has fought them off.
Anyone using a zune or even, god forbid, thinking of buying a new one is a dinosaur – give it up and retire from the game.
It is not the hardware that let’s the zune down, it is the lack of imagination from the behemoth that is ms.
Apple has it’s iphones and the iTouch covered with patents so unless ms can come up with new ways of doing things (unlikely) then they have no chance of competing…
Best advice, sell your zune and get a new ipod – and do not moan about the itouch being only 16 gig, you can get a lot on that…
You have been spanked ms [zune], retire gracefully
ps, what warpath says is complete bs, obvious that he just has sour grapes – the iphone does not allow you to get at ANY attachments not just mp3, so don’t be such an idiot & pay for at least some of your music – and download the email to your pc dimwit…
Hey Wadefu – Your claim that the phone doesn’t support ANY attachments is incorrect. The iPhone supports Word and PDF attachments.
Also, from the tone of your comment it’s pretty obvious that you have a case of Zune-envy.
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If you read the comment I said it did not allow you to get at any attachments, I did not say you could not handle documents on the player itself. In other words it just not allow you to get at any attachments to your email.
At the end of the day no matter what you buy, as long as you are satisfied with it that is the whole point of getting it.
As soon as you get a computer you know there will be another better along soon but you get the use out of the one you have. If you have a zune and are satisfied then that is gr8, if you have an ipond the same goes.
However if ms can up the ante and come out with a better zune it is good for us all zune users and ipod users, it keeps everyone on their toes.
Problem is that apple keeps innovating with their ipods and there is now one foreveryone, while ms seems to be dragging along, pity…
btw, do not know what zune-envy is, is it a virus you catch from a zune ??
I have a Zune, and I’m satisfied with it, yet people continue to ridicule me online because it’s not an iPod. Maybe some should be more forgiving when trying to wrap their minds around something as meaningless as the brand on their music player.
It may be the final nail in the coffin, but as long as my Zune continues to play music, it’s alive and kicking.
To be clear Ed, this isn’t intended to be a personal attack on Zune owners. I’ve owned several off-brand media players myself, and as long as they do what I need them to do, I’m OK with that.
This was actually a commentary on how Microsoft missed a perfect opportunity to counter the iPod juggernaut. The Zune could have included many of the features the iPod Touch has — most notably, a better implementation of WiFi. Instead, Microsoft dumbed the device down in order to placate the music industry.
And finally… Microsoft released its new Zune. 2 months ago, when the iPod Touch arrived, everyone though that MS was done in the MP3 market. Looking at that now, it is not that clear. Sure, the iPod Touch has some functionnalities the Zune doesn’t have but if we compare the iPod Classic and the Zune 2, they are similar products; the Zune may already have won some battles against the iPod Classic.
A great battle is about to begin.
Fascinating, Spock. While there is no doubt that Zune 2.0 is a vast improvement over the original, insisting that a “great battle is about to begin” is like saying that Apple is going to overtake Windows as the most popular OS just because they’ve made some recent inroads in market share.
I find your comment to be highly illogical.
I have heard great things about the up and coming Zune HD, I was wondering if you had anything to say on the matter that the Zune HD (HD only being the High Def radio) but the graphics capability and it being able to play high quality games. let me know Zune Clan and all about the Zune HD Cheers
I just purchased a $400.00 iPod Touch 32G, my first iPod. I was astonished to find that Safari wouldn’t download an mp3 file from the publicly available Jazz at Lincoln Center archives. So now I have to wait until I have access to a computer with the right version of iTunes before I can add one of these files to my iPod touch, provided I have the correct cable with me at the time.
Having an mp3 player that has internet access and a web browser, but refuses to download an mp3 file and play it is about as braindead a design as you can get. So far I’m pretty disappointed.
Ok, just saying; I tried the Zune. I tried the IPod. I have to go with the iPod. Honestly Zune’s actually a faint cry going “You will not win this time!”. And, whoopsie-doodles, too late. I honestly think that people who are obsessed with microsoft are the ones yelling that out. And , guess what, Apple has actually beaten microsoft in the market! Read the stocks lately? Turns out Apple is now, officially, better than Microsoft.
Well, I think that Microsoft is not concentrating on building technology anymore.. I think Bill Gates is opting more on his foundation with his wife.. Well, I guess they have different priorities now..