NOTICE: This entry was written for the Zune30, Some problems have been addressed on the Zune80, see changes on parenthesis.
After at least 2 months of playing and owning a Zune these are my gripes and praises for the device:
PROS:
- Bright and large 3" LCD screen, Even Larger on Zune80!
- Clear Radio with RDBS
- Interface is easy to master and is actually more efficient to use.
- Form Factor and construction - It is very sturdy, and does not attract scratches so no need to buy those silicon covers! It also looks good too! (sans the sweat of my palms)
- Wallpaper customization and image zoom mode.
- Magnetic buds for Zune30. The R and L magnet in the earphones help you know where to put the right bud in which ear, even in the dark. (the R is the embossed one)
- Zune pouch that was included. It cleans and keeps your zune protected.
- Supports Podcasts
CONS:
Zune Software...It just lacks something....a lot of things actually...(seems okay now)Useless WiFi(wireless synching is now enabled)- 3 days or 3 plays crap (removed 3-days restriction)
Album art is low-res (only 250x250 I think)(zune software update fixed this)- Can't be used as a HDD drive, even with patch! have to press sync and upload your data at once for it to be stored
- Video format could've been more!!! (Xvid, Divx codes should have made it!)
- Dust seems to accumulate in the small slits around the device.
Battery seems to lose power quickly even on standy-by (is this only happening to me?)(fixed with firmware update)
As you mave have noticed...It seems that I have listed more cons than pros for the Zune. It does have it shortcoming as a first-generation device. Most of them I already knew even before buying the device so it's actually tolerable and my fault :) Zune is only less than 3 months old, and with a very late headstart to the market leader, what they have come up was actually a pretty good device, except for some nuances that could've been fixed before it was officially released.
I am hoping that for future firmware and software updates...The following could be addressed (Ranked in terms of importance)
- Hard disk drive support - We need this.
- More video codecs please..Xvid, DivX and if possible, MOV
High resolution album art support(already did)- Some cool Wifi features other than synching
- (any other..? )
What are your complaints on the Zune as a user? and suggestions on future fixes and features?
zuneblogs.com is blocking non-spain, non-uk and non-us traffics...
ReplyDeletewhat do u think bout that?
yeah..I just checked that out and it blocks us philippine-based user..hmm...i wonder why..
ReplyDeleteI tried searching for it at google and the owner seems to say that he is planning on providing blog hosting at that address (zuneblogs.com) so maybe he doesn't want other people in other countries to be able to register and clog up his server..hehe!
Exclusive to his local area i think.
the only con that i found having a zune is the lack of a clock and/or sleep timer. With my old iriver H10 mp3 player, (which broke by the way, the screen literally just fell off about 2 Months after the warantee was up) i used to put it on before i went to sleep and put the sleep timer on for about 30 mins, so by the time i was asleep, it would shut off. The Zune does not have this or a clock, which some people may not mind, but hopefully they can throw that in a Firmware update soon. But for the most part i have not had a problem with the ZUNE. i must say, it does get a lot of attention from my friends and other people who see me watching a video on its larger-than-ipod screen. o yea, and i have it in brown, that gets alot of attention, mainly positive, but some people, like the preppy bitchy cheerleaders dont like it in brown. I like the cool green "glow" around the outside of it too.. that adds to the Pro's in my opinion. so yea.. all in all.... The Zune.... A Keeper.
ReplyDeletedont worry ur not alone on the battery life.. mine did the same thing i thought it was broken... but its just made that way i guess i went to the store lady n said i wanted an Ipod n she said the batteries were the same...... i'm not so sure haha
ReplyDeleteWhich audio codecs & video codecs have been used in this Zune?
ReplyDeleteZune80 Specs - http://www.zune.net/en-us/products/zune80gb/specs.htm
ReplyDeleteZune30 Specs - http://www.zune.net/en-us/products/zune30gb/specs.htm