Gizmodo: Zune

PSA: Promotional Xbox 360/Zune Points Expire

Jason Chen — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 13:00:00 EDT

Here's an interesting fact about Microsoft Points—the fake currency used in the Xbox 360 and Zune Marketplaces—that we just learned yesterday: points expire. If you've got promotional, contest, or giveaway points from Microsoft for doing something or other, you should check out their billing site. These actually expire after a given time. The good news is that points you buy normally don't expire, and would be completely ridiculous otherwise. Just keep an eye on your stuff. [Unscripted360]

Microsoft's J Allard (Xbox 360 and Zune) Gets a Promotion

Jason Chen — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:02:21 EDT

J Allard, who most recently helped give the Xbox and the Zune a really, really good user experience has gotten a promotion to "Chief Experience Officer" of the Entertainment and Devices devision. The E&D devision, for those of you who don't know, encompasses Xbox, Games for Windows, Mobile Communications (including Windows Mobile), Zune, Connected TV, Microsoft Surface, Mac Office, Microsoft Auto and Windows Embedded. Now that Allard is essentially going to have his fingers in all these pies, you can expect a Zune/Xbox 360-level of UI polish that projects like Windows Mobile haven't seen before. You can't see it, but we're doing a fist pump now. [ZDNet]

Creative's Zen X-Fi to Enter Ring Dominated by iPod Touch, Zune

Elaine Chow — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 17:00:00 EDT

New details have been leaked about Creative's answer to the iPod touch and Zune, a wireless music player with Wi-Fi media sharing capabilities called the Zen X-Fi. Pictures show the device sporting a chrome-and-black plastic look that's vaguely reminiscent of the iPhone, along with a nine-point directional pad. Besides certain internet features, X-Fi will also come with an SD card slot and a built-in speaker.

According to leaked specs, the nine-point pad will offer users the option of instant messaging on Windows Live or Yahoo Messenger in a phone-style typing schema. The device will also use wireless to share media between home networked computers and access an internet-based media pool, called a Public Home Server.

The player is named after Creative's X-Fi audio technology, which restores lost data in compressed music files to create concert-like audio effects. Users can turn to two X-Fi options—Crystalizer makes audio richer and clearer, and Expand repositions the music to sound like it's coming from in front of you, simulating listening to a live performance on stage. Check out the manual:

[epiZENter]

Disney's Innoventions Dream Home is a Big Ad For Microsoft and HP...But I Still Want It

Sean Fallon — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 21:00:00 EDT

Recently, Disney announced the grand opening of their new Innoventions Dream Home located in Tomorrowland in Anaheim, Calif. The construction was a collaborative effort between Disneyland, Microsoft, HP, Life|ware and home-builder Taylor Morrison—so naturally the home functions more as a big advertising campaign for current products than an actual "home of the future." Still, I wouldn't mind booting out the fictional Elias family from their 5000-square-foot home to get my hands on some of this tech.

Microsoft:

In addition to Microsoft technology we are already familiar with like Surface, Home Server, Vista, the Zune , Xbox 360 and the like (the home of the future is still running the 360?), there are a number of future technologies installed in the home that were inspired by innovations from their prototyping lab:

•Magic Mirror: A mirror projects different clothes, accessories and hairstyles onto each family member’s image when they stand before it. The clothes not only morph to the contours of the body, but also sway as the person in front of the mirror moves.

•Kitchen of Your Dreams: The kitchen recognizes ingredients as a family member sets them on the counter, suggesting recipes for those items and providing instructions once a recipe is selected.

•Story Time: Visit the child’s room to be transported to Neverland. Read “Peter Pan” aloud to absorb a full multimedia experience, as cues in the story set off lights, sounds, colors and video.

HP:

In the kitchen, HP has their TouchSmart PC keeping things organized and the iPAQ 510 Voice Messenger is available to make calls. In the living room the aforementioned iPAQ is connected to the Surface table to transfer and display photos. They can also be transferred wirelessly to any number of HP digital photo frames in the house as well as to the MediaSmart TV.

As for Life|ware, they provided much of the RFID technology and media center solutions that tied all of the technology together.

To get the full scoop on the home of the semi-present, hit the following press releases. [HP and Microsoft and Life|ware and Disney via Hemagazine]

Zune Listener Badges Show Your Dedication To That Band You Like

Jason Chen — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:00:00 EDT

The recent Zune Update a month or so ago added the ability to track your listening habits and reward you for them. Think of achievements on the Xbox 360, except not pedantic ones like listen to every artist that released a single in 2003. These badges are actually quite nice, and display on your Zune Card if you do whatever it is enough times in the previous month. A thousand plays isn't all that hard if you're sitting at your desk all day like us. No cheating, cause we know you'd just leave your player on repeat and turn your speakers off. [Zune via Zune Insider]

Robbie Bach Denies Blu-ray Xbox and Zune Phone, But Hints Zune Touch, and Zune Platform May Expand to Other Devices

Wilson Rothman — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 16:30:00 EDT

In an SFGate interview running today, Robbie Bach, Microsoft's president for entertainment and devices, touched on many familiar points: Zune is more than a product, it's a platform, and because of that, we shouldn't be surprised if pieces of it turn up on other devices. However, as for a Zune phone or any other iPhone competitor, Bach stressed that there is a diverse array of Windows Mobile products to choose from, and added, "We don't have any plans to make phones ourselves." As for the old chestnut about a Blu-ray-equipped next-gen Xbox, he said, "That is so far out that there isn't anything to talk about." (He probably won't change his mind by tomorrow.) Update: Apparently there's some hullabaloo over Bach saying, "Just assume that over time where there's a screen, touch will be part of it." Is that a reference to a Zune Touch of some kind? To be honest, it's a fairly un-bold prediction, given the direction of all handhelds everywhere. So yeah, sounds like a touchscreen Zune will happen, but like, duh.

It was all business as usual, but with all due respect, I do have to beat Robbie up over a few other overly precious quotes:

On the failure of high-def disc formats:

You have to look at how fundamentally compelling the difference is between a progressive scan DVD player and the picture that it can produce and what you get on a high-definition player. The reality is there is some difference, but most people look at it and say, "I am not going to pay extra for that."

On lack of ad revenue as the main reason web-browsing sucks on most smartphones:

The business model for browsing on a phone has not gotten itself completely clear yet. In the PC space, the way people monetize the Internet is through advertising. Now in the phone space, we believe that advertising will be a part of that experience, but it's a different form factor.

On the future of handhelds:

We think the market is going to evolve to people having their favorite device that they are going to carry around with them. That device is going to do multiple things, one of which is going to be music...We call them mobile phones but in fact they are going to become much more than mobile phones.

Again, I mean no outright disrespect, hearing things like this from the head of all Microsoft's CE divisions makes me a little nervous. [SFGate via WMPowerUser]
Thanks, Surur!

iHome ZN9 is the World's First Zune Alarm Clock Radio

Jason Chen — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 16:56:31 EDT

It's pretty amazing that no one's made an alarm clock radio for the Zune yet—it's been out for a year and a half already—but iHome's stepped up to the plate. The ZN9 has dual alarms, separate weekday/weekend times, backlit LCD, and of course a Zune dock. It's similar in functionality to this other iHome alarm clock we're currently testing, but this one's got an Xbox 360-like tapered case. $99 for the Microsoft fan in July. [iHome]

Zune Marketplace Adds a Bunch of TV Shows

Mark Wilson — Wed, 28 May 2008 15:50:00 EDT

The offerings over at Zune Marketplace are about to see a nice little update as Microsoft adds 400 new episodes of various television shows. That's not gigantic if you start analyzing shows by 24-episode seasons (and even less when you scale it to dailies like The Colbert Report), but if you were to scale that in terms of MTV seasons, that's like 100+ new shows! Holy crap! Here's the full rollout schedule of the new content:

Zune Marketplace Video Store Update Schedule:
· Wednesday, May 28: COMEDY CENTRAL

o "The Colbert Report"

o "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart"

· Friday, May 30: NBC Universal

o "Friday Night Lights"

o "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"

o "Law & Order"

o "Life"

o "Lipstick Jungle"

o "Saturday Night Live"

· Tuesday, June 3: SCI FI Channel

o "Battlestar Galactica Classics"

o "Destination Truth"

o "Ghost Hunters International"

o "Ghost Hunters"

o "Who Wants to Be a Superhero?"

· Friday, June 6: USA Network

o "Dr. Steve-O"

o "In Plain Sight"

o "Law & Order: Criminal Intent"

o "Monk"

o "Psych"

o "The Starter Wife"

GameStop Squashes Its Bad Zune Habit

Jack Loftus — Sun, 25 May 2008 12:00:00 EDT

It was always strange seeing a video game retailer peddling MP3 players, but nevertheless GameStop has ceased selling Microsoft Zune portable media players. The breakup puts a small speedbump in Microsoft's path to wrest marketshare away from Apple's iPod line, and could slow the progress Zune made against Creative earlier this month. While the initial reaction might be doom-and-gloom for the Zune, the level-headed amongst us will remember that GameStop sells video games, not music players, and big box chains like Target, Best Buy and Wal-Mart will continue to stock it. GameStop said it will continue to sell Zunes until stock is dry, so if you're looking for a deal you might want to stop by your local store. [The Street via Kotaku]

Buy a Cheater's Crushed Zune For 99 Cents: Do What You Will With The Dirty Videos

Sean Fallon — Mon, 19 May 2008 18:40:00 EDT

This is one of the reasons you don't cheat on your women, my friends—because they will hit you were it hurts. And that usually means a swift kick in the nuts followed closely by a thorough dismantling of your precious gadgets. The poor Zune pictured here met its demise after a scorned woman found videos on it featuring her then-boyfriend in the act of cheating.

The woman behind the sale claims that she needed the proceeds to help her survive in a new town after moving there with the asshole man in question. However, the sale concluded with no bids—most likely because stories like this on eBay always seem phony. However, if she does decide to put it back up you can take your chances and put in a bid. The porn is included free—if you can find a way to extract it from the damaged drive, that is. [eBay via Crunchgear]

Zune Hits 2 Million Sales, Drinks Creative's Milkshake

Jason Chen — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:10:00 EDT

Industry numbers group NPD has just confirmed that Microsoft's Zune's sold 2 million units, just slightly under one year after it sold its first million. Where is Microsoft getting the marketshare for the extra million? Mostly from Creative, who dropped from 4% marketshare to 2% from Q1 '07 to Q1 '08. Apple's also gone down from 72% to 71%, so there might be some defectors in the fruit squad as well. Total marketshare for Microsoft now stands at a decent 4%. [PMP Today via Tech Digest]

Put Games On Your Zune Now: XNA 3.0 Preview Arrives

Brian Lam — Wed, 07 May 2008 21:28:24 EDT

XNA 3.0 tech preview is out, and with it, you can dev or install some homebrew games on your Zune right now, like Alien Aggressor and Galactic Wars 3. The directions are at [Zuneboards, thanks IPXX]

New Zune Colors Make the Beast With Two Black Backs

Jason Chen — Wed, 07 May 2008 19:25:50 EDT

If you've got time and absolutely nothing better to do, you can graba resource explorer and dive into the Zune software. What would you find? Some images of two new Zunes, both with a black back. The current black 80GB and red 8GB Zunes have a silver back, which are also pictured, so these would be new new. It looks like just bad lighting, but the resource item actually says "black back." We don't know whether these are retail colors or just limited edition Zunes for employees, but we'll probably find out soon. [Zunited News Center]

Microsoft Developing Copyright Filter for Zune, Will Block Pirated Content

matt buchanan — Wed, 07 May 2008 18:40:00 EDT

Yesterday, NBC jumped aboard Starship Zune after its protracted breakup with iTunes. It's clear why—and going with NBC's pricing was only part of it. Saul at the NYTimes says that Microsoft has agreed to develop a copyright filter that would block pirated content from being played on Zunes. Which is exactly what NBC was demanding from iTunes. Sucks, right? Well NBC's president of digital distribution just thinks you don't know what's good for you. Update: Microsoft says NBC was speaking out of turn, and there's nothing like this in the works for Zune. Phew. Update 2: As I suspected, Microsoft's denial actually isn't that black & white, details on that below.

"In the long term, the consumer wants there to be quality premium-produced content, and in order for that to continue to be a viable business, there needs to be significant protection around it." This is the same NBC that was working with AT&T to build a network-wide dragnet for pirated content, so color us totally not surprised. Just don't know why Microsoft would agree to this and give people a reason to avoid Zunes (whether it's a legitimate one or not), when they're already way behind the iPod (which told NBC to take a flying hoo-ha).

Update 2: Saul has since updated the original post with Zune Insider's retort, but he also adds what Microsoft spokesman Adam Sohn told him yesterday when he asked about the copyright stuff:

"I don't think they are wrong, but we are not going to characterize those discussions. We have agreed to work with NBC across a range of topics, and protection of copyrighted material is certainly one of them."

The big tell? Via email, Saul told me that neither Microsoft nor NBC contacted him about a correction. And this isn't the kind of thing they tend to let lie. But feel free to draw your own conclusions. [Bits]

Zune Owner Uses Craigslist for Love Connection

Mark Wilson — Wed, 07 May 2008 17:40:00 EDT

One lonely Zune owner in West Hollywood is searching Craigslist high and low for one of his own—a simple lady to "rocket sweet tracks up each other's Zune slots." Isn't looking for a Zune-using soulmate the technological equivalent of being the last unicorn, fervently searching Earth for a companion, but ultimately settling on a one night stand with a horse* on its way to the glue factory? We mean, what was meant to be a one night stand. Before her kids moved in. Of course, if this is a viral ad, it's far less funny. And it probably is.

*Admittedly, we have to place in our Zune-unicorn metaphor for the role of the horse. So you can just assume the Zune owner resorts to herpes-covered prostitute who uses a Rio or something. [Valleywag]

Seriously, Where's the Zune Support for Mac?

Adrian Covert — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:25:30 EDT

While at the Zune Media Event in Redmond on Monday, the media had some downtime between presentations, and naturally the conversation moved to Microsoft vs. Apple. The mix of bloggers, reporters and Microsoft advertorial/internal bloggers provided an interesting, if predictable dialogue. Then the convo turned to iPod vs. Zune, and the question of Zune's lack of Mac support came up. The closest anyone came to giving a good reason was suggesting Mac users bought Apple products more for the logo than the actual product, meaning they'd never abandon the iPod for a Zune. A fair point, perhaps, but a silly reason for a company to justify their lack of support for another platform. Here are a few reasons Zune should support OS X:

Tech Journalists and Reviewers Use Macs: Sure, Microsoft may not think it's profitable to develop software for a platform where users are unlikely to purchase their products, but what about drawing interest from the media? If you look around any tech media event, you're going to see more people using Macs than PCs. And sure, most, if not all, of us have both platforms running. But for those of us who use OS X as our primary OS, how many are using Zune past the initial review stage? It's more of a hassle to go back and forth between machines just to use devices, especially when it comes to the storage of media files. I think the media would be more interested in the nuances of Zune if it fit in with their daily lives.

Zune 2.0 Is a Quality Product: Pound for Pound, I'd say the Zune80 is a better product than the iPod Classic. It has a better UI, more features (hardware and software), a better platform and control mechanism for gaming, and a decent enough design. While many companies in the past have put out good MP3 players, none have hands-down outclassed the iPod. The Zune80 might be the first to challenge the supremacy of the iPod. Why not have faith that Mac users will see that?

Devices And Platforms Should Never Be Exclusive: The iPod never really took off until it began supporting Windows with it's 2G iteration. Of course, Apple had more to gain from opening up to a much, much larger Windows user base, but it never hurts to make a product more widely available to the public.

How Costly Can Mac Support Be?: Even if the number of potential Mac users who would buy Zune products is minuscule, how expensive can it be to code an app? There have been far smaller companies who have supported both platforms, and Microsoft has other Mac apps, so what gives?

All The Cool Kids Are Doing It: The iPod didn't become the de facto standard for MP3 players because of its technical prowess alone. The great white earbud craze of 2004 probably started because a handful of popular kids liked the design of the iPod a year or two earlier, which in turn made them technological tastemakers. All the kids who want to be popular generally follow along. I think it goes without saying that it's currently considered "cool" to own a Mac. Microsoft is never going to get Zunes in the hands of this group if they can't get their music on it.

It's entirely possible adding Mac support won't have a huge impact, but with open source technology and DRM-free media growing more popular by the day, giving people the freedom of platform is always good for the image.

Colbert says Zune Ownership Proof You're Crazy

Benny Goldman — Wed, 07 May 2008 09:50:00 EDT

On last night's Colbert Report, Stephen gave advice to George Bush on how to go "completely nutball" so Sen. McCain can distance himself from the extremely unpopular president on the campaign trail. Not only did he tell Bush to wear a tinfoil jockstrap, he said the prez should buy a Zune. Really? Sure it's market share is 4%, but what about the new software? [Colbert Report]

Zune 2.5 Update Screenshot Tour

Jason Chen — Tue, 06 May 2008 12:10:00 EDT

If you haven't yet gotten the chance to update to Zune 2.5, here's a screenshot tour that takes you through the new and notable changes. A lot of the stuff is the same—it's only a point update and not one to change the fundamental features—but there are great updates in the social portion of the software. Hit the jump for the full tour.

NBC Coming To Zune After Ditching iTunes

Mark Wilson — Tue, 06 May 2008 09:28:00 EDT

While NBC decided that Apple's $1.99/episode mandate was not for them, the company has opted to give Microsoft's Zune store a shot to host their content. Apparently the decision comes because Microsoft is more flexible in their pricing. And while Microsoft still retains the right to set a show's ultimate price, they claim to be "open to understanding which episodes can be priced lower and how we may introduce premium content which may be priced higher than $1.99," according to Zune Social general manager Julio Estrada. But something tells me that NBC is more interested in that "premium content" than the lower priced stuff. [infoworld]

Zune 2.5 Update Brings TV Shows, More Social Networking, Improved Software Features

Jason Chen — Mon, 05 May 2008 23:28:02 EDT

The Zune 2.5 Spring update launches tomorrow, and with it comes purchasable TV shows and even more social networking functions. The big part is more tightly-integrated social stuff—like being able to see your friends' Zune cards inside of the Zune software instead of heading to your browser—the upside of which is automatically getting the full tracks that your friends have recently listened to if you're a Zune Pass subscriber. This takes up about 100 megs per friend card. There's also improvement in the player itself, like the return of auto playlists and the introduction of gapless playback. Wee!

Other cool social stuff:

• Xbox Live-ish icons on your Zune Card that are like achievements, awarding people who listen to an artist the most or passing a total number of song plays.
• Dynamic friends' list that shows what everyone's listening to. Find out about the band Tokyo Police Club from your buddies.
• Windows Live Messenger "now playing" integration
• Album reviews! Tell everyone what you think about so-and-so's latest album, because the world needs to know.

But the big thing is the video store, which comes now with 4,800 music videos and downloadable TV episodes for $2. Their current partners are NBC, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and Cartoon Network. There's going to be future Zune Social integration for video, but nothing yet. Microsoft's also leaving the door open for original content and programming as well, but there's no video sharing/squirting as of yet on the hardware devices.

Other changes to the player include:
• Auto Playlists (smart playlists) are back! They're not as powerful as they were before—or as iTunes is—but they're automatically updating playlists that you can have based on your criteria.
• Gapless playback. Finally.
• Easy drag-and-drop song metadata editing.

The update should go live somewhere between 10PM PDT and 4AM PDT tomorrow.

Zune Finding Ways to Work with Danger = Zune Hiptop?

Adrian Covert — Mon, 05 May 2008 16:53:38 EDT

After a presentation at Microsoft's Zune media event, Chris Stephenson, GM of Marketing for Zune, offhandedly mentioned that they're finding ways to integrate and work with Danger's 250-man staff. As a reminder, Danger, who Microsoft bought, is strictly a consumer handset OS maker. No one has officially confirmed the Zune Phone project's existence until now, without a retraction. But this is a step in the right direction.

XNA Hits The Zune This May

Mark Wilson — Mon, 05 May 2008 15:59:00 EDT

Our wait for games on the Zune is slowly coming to an end, as Microsoft has announced that XNA (an Xbox 360-light game platform) will come to the Zune this month. Not every title will be supported—Microsoft only has four XNA titles running on the Zune at this very moment—but those that arrive will support up to 8-player ad-hoc wireless gaming (as we mentioned before). Also of note, developers can use the Xbox 360 controller with the XNA software development kit and to map Zune actions to the controller.

Developers only have a measly 16MB of RAM to work with, so don't expect to see anything currayzeee. But it's good to see the Zune and Xbox 360 finally swap some spit. This is just like the series finale of Friends!!

Video: Zune Multiplayer Games In Action

Adrian Covert — Mon, 05 May 2008 15:32:13 EDT

There's a Zune event going on up at the Microsoft event today and the Zune team showed off a few demos of games. Two cool aspects are that Zune XNA games supports 8-player ad-hoc wireless game play, and while there is no 3D hardware acceleration, it can use software rendering for 3D. The demo for the first-person shooter, Potato Chase, put these features on display.

Potato Chase controls pretty smoothly with the Zune Pad. You push slightly on any edge and it moves you forward, backward, left or right. Click the middle, or any of the edges, and it fires a bomb toward your adversary. You can host a game, or join a game wirelessly with up to eight other players. While it is a primative demo, there was a minimal amount of slowdown while playing with two other people. There's also an API feature that uses album art to build the walls of the battle arena, however it wasn't functional on the demo units. Pretty cool stuff from the XNA team.

Creative Zen Getting Bubblegum Pink Makeover

Haroon Malik — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 23:30:00 EDT

Looks like the Zune isn't the only PMP to be getting a color makeover, Creative's Zen is in on it too. The new model was spotted at Wal Mart, where it is retailing at $69.99 for a 2GB unit, with no other capacities listed. As far as we can tell, the pink Zen is ready for immediate shipping, despite the fact it is not available at Creative's own online store. The new addition has me thinking it is time for a pink gadget in my arsenal; admit it, you want one as well. [Wal Mart via Geek&Hype; Thanks, pickupjojo!]

Red Zune 80 Heading to Retail Stores

Sean Fallon — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:46:54 EDT

According to Zune Insider, the Red Zune 80 is starting to show up in retail stores after a stint at Zune Originals. The color must be hot, hot, hot! [Zune Insider]

Windows Sales Way Down, Microsoft Makes Less Money (Vs. Last Year)

matt buchanan — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 18:33:49 EDT

Here are the meaty bits in the cold platter of numbers that is Microsoft's quarterly earnings report. Windows sales are way down (the client division, which makes Windows, saw sales drop by 24 percent vs. last year). Office is doing alright, but they're losing their ass on online services. The entertainment division (Zune and Xbox) is balling, with revenue up 68 percent, making Xbox and Zune profitable for almost a year now. But bottom line, Microsoft's income was down 11 percent from last year. [Microsoft, WSJ via Valleywag]

Zune Getting Audible Audio Book Support As Literacy Sheds Another Tear

Jason Chen — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:00:00 EDT

Paul Thurrott of Microsoft loving fame got a confirmation email from Zune tech support that says Audible compatibility is coming soon. Hurray for people who love listening to words. Here's what the email said:

I understand that you have contacted us today in regards to whether or not the Microsoft Zune is compatible with our service. We have great news! After much anticipation, Audible and Microsoft have completed negotiations on making the Zune AudibleReady! While we do not have an exact date as to when the device will be officially AudibleReady, we expect to make the Zune compatible before years end. Our Device Center on our website will be updated upon the Zune becoming compatible, so please be sure to check there periodically.

Huzzah! No launch date, but it is coming soon. As in, 2008. Perhaps around the same time as new Zune models hit the market? [WinSuperSite]

Allen Iverson Special Edition Zunes

Jason Chen — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:49:12 EDT

Following up on the Joy Division Zune that hit recently, here's an Allen Iverson edition Zune that comes with a pair of Reeboks. Only 60 will be made, highlighting the limited edition nature of this set. UPDATE: Person who submitted this story to Digg says: "Like people who buy Zune watch sports." [Zune Insider]

Microsoft to Release Limited-Edition Joy Division Zune in June

Chris Magor — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT

Microsoft will release a limited-edition Joy Division Zune sometime around June 5, coordinated with the launch of a DVD about the band. It is thought that the Joy Division Zune will be designed by Peter Saville, the graphic designer behind both Joy Division album covers, and a big player in the Manchester music scene of the '80s. While there are not yet any pictures of the artwork available, there is every indication that the design will be something along the lines of that which is on the band's Unknown Pleasures album. [Wired and Pitchfork—Thanks Scrypt]

Microsoft's Zune Video X Could Be Xbox Live Marketplace Meets iTunes

Jason Chen — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 21:00:00 EDT

Mary Jo Foley over at ZDNet has a pretty interesting rumor on a Zune Marketplace-like service in development code named "Zune Video X". It's supposed to take what Microsoft's learned from their Xbox 360 Live Marketplace endeavor (menus, selling movies, renting movies, organization, etc) and port it into a Zune ecosystem. The point? "A single hub where Zune users could buy and download music, videos, TV shows and more entertainment content."

If this is true, it'll be interesting to see when Microsoft will roll this out. They've already revamped the Zune UI in the 2nd generation Zunes last Fall, and to redo the entire Marketplace portion of the suite again this year might be too many changes in too short a time. Then again, we'd really like Zune to support video and movie rentals that are tied into Xbox Live's movie rentals. [ZDNet]

Zune Tattoo Guy Asks Microsoft's Permission to Change Name to 'Microsoft Zune'

Jason Chen — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 15:35:00 EDT

As if this Zune Tattoo guy couldn't get any crazier, he's actually starting the process of legally changing his name to "Microsoft Zune." As you'd suspect, Microsoft might have a problem with that, so Mr. Zune Tat called up tech support to ask their permission on whether it was OK. And for all of our enjoyment, Steve decided to record his call and put it up on YouTube. The result? The tech support line he talked to doesn't have any real information for him and they advise that he write a letter to legal. If you're interested, hit the jump for a tech support call that has all of the holding and none of the resolution that you'd normally get from your own tech support calls.

[Zune Scene]

Snowboarding Reader Meetup Tomorrow: Custom Gizmodo Zune Giveaway

Brian Lam — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 19:29:55 EDT

The little reader meetup on Saturday April 5th (that's TOMORROW!) continues to grow. Alpine Meadows is hosting us, treating us to breakfast, putting up a big Gizmodo banner, and giving our volunteer Red One camera crew a snowmobiled chaperon. Olympus is sending us a waterproof 1030 cam to demo. And Brian from the Zune team is coming out with some demo Zunes preloaded with good music to shred to. (I've picked a few tracks, but the Zune team's own music experts are dialing in a playlist, too.) Even better they're giving away a few Zunes with custom drawn Gizmodo logos. Who would have thought this little event would get so much love?

• Nokia is bringing a ton of N95s for us to use.

• Smith Optics will be bringing some of their new hot swappable goggles and fan driven turbo goggles to test out, along with a bluetooth helmet and I think lots and lots of headbands. (Slope style counts.)

• JBL is giving away headphones.

• VuDu is giving away a box.

• I'll have a Garmin Colorado preloaded with Ski trail maps. Overkill compared to a paper map, but potentially useful for off-piste adventures and worth checking out in person.

• Zune'll come along with a few loaners preloaded with Gizmodo approved snow shredding tracks and those custom Giz Zunes to give away.

• I'll have one loaner of the Vholdr outdoor camcorder.

• Nacski might be setting up a bus ride system from SF.

• Silverado Systems is going to bring a pair of RED One cams to document the day

• I'll bring a Dash GPS.

• Olympus is sending a water and shockproof 1030 to test.

If you want to come as a reader or as someone who wants to demo some gear, drop me an email. It would be great to meet in person.

[Photo by Planetxau — Some rights reserved]

Sony BMG "Working On" iPod-Friendly All-You-Can-Eat Service

matt buchanan — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 11:40:35 EDT

So, there might not be an iTunes subscription plan, but that doesn't mean the labels are any less enthusiastic about a monthly cash drip. According to their CEO, Sony BMG is "working on" its own subscription service, which would "provide access to our entire music catalogue for all digital players, including Apple's iPod" for about $9 to $12 a month. Better yet, he said it's "even possible that clients could keep some songs indefinitely, that they would own them even after the subscription expired."

One big question is how the DRM would work, since subscription music is obviously totally tied up, but not all players support the same DRM scheme: Zune's got its own set of chains and the iPod's got FairPlay. So they'd probably have to have player-specific subscription setups.

But here's the real problem: A subscription to a single label for $10 a month? The only way it makes any sense for consumers is if they're sitting on a fat pipe to all four of the majors, and likely, it's the only way they'll bite. And maybe still, only with Apple mojo to boot, if history's any guide. [AP; CNNMoney]

Red Zune 80 Now Customizable via Zune Originals

Jason Chen — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 18:05:53 EDT

The red version of the 80GB Zune is now customizable via the Zune Originals site. Head on over and pick out a custom design and custom text for your own Zune, which you could then use to propose to your girlfriend with. If you do use this idea, email me. I want to talk to your crazy ass. [Zune Originals]

Zune 3 Details - Holiday 2009 with Wi-Fi Music Store

Jason Chen — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 15:00:02 EDT

Microsoft France's Francois Ruault seems to be a bit more talkative on the Zune platform than he should be, inadvertently announcing that the third-generation Zune is going to launch during the holiday season of 2009 (which means there's actually no release this year—weird). Plus, there's going to be a Wi-Fi music store! What's interesting to EU readers is that Francois said the third-gen Zune will debut in Europe at the same time. What's even more interesting to people who don't care about Europe are the mobile capabilities, a.k.a., the music store.

Apparently the Zune Marketplace is heading to "Mobile Platforms", with talk of it being on both Zune proper and Windows Mobile. This is heading fairly deep into rumorville, but it could mean that the Zune will get a mobile music/video store (like the iTunes Wi-Fi store) accessible over Wi-Fi. It can also mean the Windows Mobile 7 will get the same store, and will debut some time in 2009. This, assuming the rumors are correct and this French to English translator we're using is accurate. [Generation NT via Anything But iPod]

Next Gen Zune Could Have Smart Shuffling

Brian Lam — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 17:51:04 EST

At Microsoft's Techfest, a researcher was showing off a smart shuffle system that uses tags and meta data like tempo and genre to direct playlist creation in a portable music device. The demo was being done on a first generation Zune.

The system is being developed in direct response to the huge number of songs people carry around on their media players, and specifically the millions of songs a Zune library can stock using a Zune pass. The system automatically recommends new songs based on songs played, and the logic is continuously "steered" by voting tracks up and down.

Video Tour and Details of Zune Games and SDK

Adrian Covert — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:40:15 EST

I got a chance to see first hand what the newly announced Zune gaming platform could look like. It's important to keep in mind that this announcement is still in the early stages of development, and we won't see any finished products, on the business or creative side, anytime soon. But this quick video walkthrough gives us an idea of what to expect in terms of development, API integration and wireless gaming.

Microsoft isn't trying to compete against the Sony and Nintendo with the Zune games. The demo they showed us, a Galaga style arcade game, was closer to an iPod game or a highly polished cellphone game. Games requiring the Zune Pad on 2nd Gen Zunes won't be able to work on Zune 1, and Microsoft is still working out how to approach this discrepancy between the two models.

Also touched on was the possiblilty or API integration, where stored media on the Zune could be used in games, and wireless gaming, opening the possibility for internet or ad-hoc connectivity. While no commercial distribution model is in place, the early SDK will be available to anyone with a XNA Creators Club membership and created games can be shared amongst members. [Zune Games on Giz]

Xbox 360 XNA Arcade Games to Come to Zune

Jason Chen — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 14:28:13 EST

Microsoft just announced that the XNA Game Studio, the user-created games program for the Xbox 360 is coming for the Zune. The demo shown at Game Developer's Conference shows a person controlling the game with the Zune pad, pausing the game, going out and switching music on the Zune, then going back into the game. Very neat.

In addition, since the Zune has Wi-Fi, you can also do multiplayer games as well! You'll be able to multiplay from Windows to Xbox to Zune, which means that you might be able to develop one game for three platforms (with slight tweaks for each) that people can play with each other. Definitely cool. Check out Kotaku for more GDC coverage. [Kotaku and Kotaku]

Dealzmodo: Zune Home AV Kit $20

matt buchanan — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:19:19 EST

Buy.com is practically giving away the $100 Zune Home AV kit—which includes a dock and cables to hook your Zune up to a TV, stereo or PC, plus remote—for $20 a pop, plus $7 shipping. If you've got a Zune, it's not a bad little deal. [Buy.com via Crave]

Microsoft Valentine's Day Zune Delayed; Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word

Haroon Malik — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 10:55:00 EST

Those chaps at Microsoft promised a special edition Zune 80 for Valentine's Day, but the units have struck a delay and will not reach their destinations on time. That surely blows, but if your sweet was due to receive a Cupid red Zune 80, fret not. Microsoft is doing the right thing—they're refunding the cash, and shipping the Zunes for free regardless. Jump for the note they sent out to the lucky/unlucky customers.

We wanted to provide you with an update on your order status. Due to some issues in our fulfillment center there remains a chance we will miss getting your Zune to you by February 14th. We are working hard to get your order to you as quickly as possible and we currently plan to ship your Zune within the next 3-4 days. Once your order is in transit, we will send you a shipping confirmation with a link for tracking.
Our goal is to provide a smooth customer experience for ordering, customization, and delivery. We sincerely apologize for not meeting that goal in this specific case. We will be refunding the entire amount of your order, which you should be able to see on your credit/debit card within 7-10 days. We hope you love your Zune and that you will accept our sincere apology.

If you have additional questions, please call 1.877.GET.ZUNE. For fastest service, press 5 then press 1 and have your order information ready.

The Zune Originals Team

To everyone who has profited from this turn of events: go and buy her a proper present, you Zune-loving cheapskate. [Ars Technica]