Gizmodo
The new Zune firmware is bringing new functionality to even old Zunes (which we covered in detail here), but is the new hardware special enough to be worth your purchase? Here's a rundown of our tests on how easy it is to fit a Zune in your pocket (video above), the paint job, and the new touch sensitive directional Zune pad. Video of Zune Flash enduring the pressure and friction of jeans too tight, after the jump, followed by everything you need to know about the hardware.
•The Zune's blockish body is thin, but not as thin as the iPod's rounded body. Height causes the Zune to not be as pocketable. (Zune: 1.6 x 3.6 x 0.33-inches, iPod: 2.74x2.05x.25 inches.)
•The Zune's candy red beats the crap out of the iPod's anodized finish. The pink looks terrible, and I reserve judgment on the green. The Zunepad has a textured surface, but the bodies of these things are aluminum and the slickest paint you've ever seen on a gadget.
•The headphone jack is on the bottom, as is the dock connector (same as big Zune connector). There's a lock on top.
•The D-pad's raised profile is a blessing when it comes to track changing while the Zune is in pocket. but it does cause a bit of friction when sliding into the denims. Man, I need to exercise.
•The Zune's aluminum back looks gray, and is dull in comparison to the mirrored finish on the nano. Good news, it won't scratch as easily.
•Twisting the chassis shows some flex.
•It's very similar in size to the last gen nano, but has the same size screen as the current gen nano, in a much more efficient layout.
•More or less - the Zune has a 1.8-inch screen vs the 2-inches on the pod. Don't be fooled by the black border around the Zune's screen, which makes it look bigger than it is, but to Microsoft's credit, the black border helps the screen pop nicely.
•Oh, one more thing we can't forget. These little flash players by Microsoft have Wi-Fi inside for song/photo sharing and wireless sync. Pretty impressive in such a small package.
•The new touch sensor, the Zune pad, is actually terrific. There's a bit of lag, and drifting causes the flicking to be less precise than say, an iPod touch, but I prefer the Zunepad to the too small wheel on the iPod nano for quickly browsing lists. Clicking the D-pad for select is not that precise; often I'd want to click down and would hit "select" instead. That point aside, this is possibly the biggest reason to upgrade from a Zune 1 to a Zune Flash or 80GB. It is a lot better than the dumb directional pad of the original Zune, and scrolling through large lists of songs is much better this way.
•The screen has the same res as a full Zune 80, at 320 x 240 pixels, same as the nano, but is slightly less bright. Nonetheless, it's sharp and it's a great screen.
•The Zune pad's texture feels like your finger is on a zipline as you scroll. Whee!
•Here's a comparo of the Flash Zune to the nano and 30GB generation one zune.
Comments
Wow, thanks so much, that is exactly what I always worry about when I go to buy a new media player.
The software guide is on top of the main page. This was primarily a hardware look.
Why not just post that you didnt have anything worthwhile to say so instead you fill up two paragraphs with utter rubbish and then proceed to point out the devices short comings and how you still love it.
Have you recently taken a blow to the head? Fallen down some stairs or started/stopped some medication?
Just wondering. The best point you had in the whole article was you liked the red better on the Zune. Cause everybody knows its the color of your music player that matters (NOT!!!)
Whatever...maybe MS can sell 10 of these.
Cool Jeans Dude
@zippyZ: Dude Chill Out
WTF?I'm sure Brian was high when he made this video! Still waiting for a real review that people with senses expect!
i do believe i saw a muffin top...
@Terminator12139: It's got more features and a better touch control.
@Brian Lam: Wow the nano is only 2.5 inches thick?! Impossibly skinny. Check the decimal point guys lol.
I really like the new software for the Zune from what I've seen, but I reserve judgement on the hardware till I get to play with one in person.
From the looks of it, though, I think I'll still prefer the fat nano. I can't resist its chubbiness!
I think a flash player's ability to be stashed in a pocket is actually a main concern. Especially when the old zune is getting the same features as the new one. What makes the Flash zune worthwhile? Size, form factor, vs storage. Colors do matter, for sales, actually. That's why the majority of popular MP3 players have color choices, especially the mid range players like these.
Chen is doing the software review as we speak. Should be front page. The headline on this post says hardware. Everything checks out, and it's a lot nicer than I thought it would be.
@Mless: Yes you did. I'm proud.
@teexcue: Fixed, thx.
@Terminator12139: Seriously. I wish I could meet some commenters in person some days. Just give them a hug and say, "It's going to be ok, it's going to be ok."
Hello, disco. Where's your roller skates to go with them fine jeans?
That looks pretty nice. I still would rather have an iPod though but the Zune is definitely more of a competitor now.
The Nano looks a lot nicer than the zune. The Nano looks more elegant too i think.
@aboriginal: Nice.
as much as i hate to admit it, the ipod nano beats zune any day of the week. i don't think i can fit that bulky pos in my pockets.
jeans that tight are bad for the boys downstairs, time to bump up the waist size. perhaps those should be retired and only brought out for the tight pants test. you should run the tight pants test for all portable electronics, employees get a little uptight when you try it in the store.
Good thing I wear my pants baggy - that way I won't miss out on functionality due to a mm or two! ;-)
That video is amazing!!!
@Brian Lam:
yeah or punch them! I mean hug, sorry, anger management course is only in its first week..
Huh, wasn't there something about using the pad on the Zune in the circle-y iPod fashion?
@Brian Lam: Oh, B.Lam. You make me laugh.
I eagerly clicked the front page link expecting Addy to show us how skin tight jeans are meant to be worn with next gen media players. I are so turned off.
Wait a minute... this isn't the redtube color scheme... doh! ...I mixed my fetishes again. Sorry Giz.
@phuzzy: yeah, my nuts were screaming at me. The things I do for you readers.
On another note- in a year or two, when my 5.5 iPod inevitably becomes useless in terms of portableness (due to battery death), I hope that the Zune will have progressed even farther. Then I shall switch. And the world shall rejoice. Or the part of the world that matters to me, at least.
Time for some new fitter pants shopping @ Brian Lam.
OR
Plunk some change down to your local gym membership.
@Brian Lam: Yeah, but if you offered them a hug they would begin to bitch at how you said you liked the hug in words but the video of the hug showed just how much you hated it.
@Brian Lam: From the look of his commenter history, he's just one little bundle of hate in the name of iPhone.
BUT IS IT PANTS WORTHY?
(Even if you don't like how it fits in the pants pockets...)
Not really, the Zune has a 1.8" screen and the nano has a 2" screen.
Tight pants FTW.
WTF is with the black border on the Zune Flash. I hope they get rid of that on the Zune 3.0, the trilogy.
Flick, flick, flick, flick to scroll through lists? That's the only option?
There's a reason the iPod's pad is circular.
@someToast:
Hold it down and it will progressively scroll faster.
What's with the big ass gap between the edge of the display and the device? Negative points for that Microsoft. I hate it when device manufacturers try to fool us into thinking the screen is nice and big only to see the big gap.
\@apeguero: Excellent call. Adding to the post.
Brian, you are my hero.
wonderful comparison. Thank you very much.
@zippyZ:
Why not just post that you didnt have anything worthwhile to say so instead you fill up two paragraphs with utter rubbish and then proceed to point out the devices short comings and how you still love it.
See, I used your own line and turned it up against yourself. How neat is that?
About the Zune... looks like a nice option. I'd test both and take the one that plays more media types I guess...
When did this site become emodo?
@sisedi:
LOL, that was perfect. Yeah some of these commenters need a life.
The review as I read it:
Zune 2.0 = candy-red higher capacity 1.0.
Software = iTunes with fewer features, but can be combined with precise and excellent PC software (EAC, Tag Assistant, foobar etc.).
New firmware = full WiFi support, which is something the iPod Classic lacks.
Translation: Most of the benefits of iPod/iTunes but oriented toward Windows users, all for $85-100 if you pick up an old Zune. Otherwise, the feature set is out-priced by the ubiquitous iPod, and out-capacitied by the Classic 160GB.
The watchful can pick up a Zune refurb for obscenely little money. The full-featured WiFi bespeaks important updates to come, and I doubt Microsoft will abandon early adopters when they need to hold onto every member of their user base.
However, if you're addicted to candy red, then watch for Colorware iPods on eBay, Target and Amazon, where you'll occasionally find Ferrrari-red and black refurb iPods for obscenely little. I myself own an 80GB red-and-black iPod, and I find it amusing when color-conscious high school girls stare at it wondering where I found that combination. The new Zune has the same sort of meretricious appeal.
@zippyZ: I think you need to work on your reading comprehension. Here is Brian's + and -:
I really don't know what more one could ask for in a review. Brian wrote two paragraphs that were dense with information on why one should or should not buy a flash Zune with a comparison to the iPod for perspective.
And regarding whether color is a selling point:
Color is a selling point
Ever since Charles Olds cracked wise about the Model T, saying "You can get a Ford in any color you want as long as that color is black", color as a selling point has been one of the first lessons in marketing.
Why does the color of a product matter? Because people have likes and dislikes for certain colors (men and women). One person might want a purple gizmo because that's her favorite color while another want metallic red. No, color does not affect the ability of a player to play music just like it does not enhance a car's ability to function. It affects sales.
For proof that this works, look to Apple with its rainbow of Shuffles as well as the iMac/iBook (toilet seat version) which were sold with such names like Berry. I suspect your main problem with the article is that he gave a favorable review to a player not made by Apple.
my those jeans are snug, must've taken some serious effort to get into (and later, i assume, out of) those. the things you do in the line of duty eh :)
How many of you would do the tight jean test eh? I think this was actually a pretty decent review. How many other reviews add "Man, I need to excercise"?
Everyone is a critic these days but if you write or do better you would be. I think that the information here was as detailed as 90% of the people needed it to be.
I agreed with Ponies... Zune is about color choices and some functionality. Some of the +'s that i saw were just pluses for Zune from the old Zune. People will buy Zune because they are Microsoft junkies and they like the looks of the product. That or they will be a different rebellious product because of cost, recommendation, or ???. Almost everyone else I know has a ipod. Ipod is the standard on which others are compared to. Hopefully something else comes out and makes a new standard but Zune is not it. Sorry Microsoft.
Now let's go have some cake.
@Mless: muffin top? wtf? lol