Microsoft Launches Zune HD

[KnightWRX]

I do want to discuss the actual stuff, if you want to suggest zune forum, why does the threat started here? Mod did it. obviously he/she thinks its a fit topic.

Sometimes I wonder what arn is thinking. Every Zune thread on here as resulted in a polarized argument with virtually no substance from either camp.

regarding HD radio, yeah, it would be a letdown if it won't let you turn to normal FM radio, but I don't think its the case, is it? (I will have to wait to see, since I dont know the answer)

Agreed, the feature seems a bit worthless if only digital signal comes through. There are still plenty of analog only radio stations, and the feature might not have the draw it could without support for it.

OLED is better.

Maybe. Maybe not. There are drawbacks to the technology (more power draw per pixel, less brightness overall) and there are advantages (no backlight, better contrast ratio). Without the device being widely available and without seeing it in person, it is rather hard to compare both in real world scenario. Web speculation is just that, speculation.

In the end, as long as you can read your screen, does it really matter what type of screen it is ? Not to the average person. Just like the average person doesn't care about the subtle differences between DDR3 and DDR2 ram. It is strictly in the realm of nerd porn.

resolution again, I told you I will need hands on to tell, but if you have to ask, I can only speculate:

when do we need more space(res wise)? game, document (including web), video are the ones come to mind, how does 30px affect these? I dont know, I have to see how mobile IE works before I can talk about it, and there is no sayings if any significant games will be negatively impacted by it. finally video, again, I have very limited experiences with them, but since the screen is either 480x320, or 480x272, they are BOTH SMALL, so IMHO, it doesn't really make a difference.

You always need more screen real-estate. In a game, it can mean less screen devoted to toolbars/status bars and more to the actual game itself. In a browser or productivity apps, it means you get that extra menu, extra button row, extra toolbar.

The only drawback (if you can even call it that) is that you get black bars on top and on the bottom of your videos.

Maybe, but you're not getting less content with 48 less pixels. Nor are you getting more. So I see don't see it as a bad thing. It's not a good thing either.

Yes, you are getting less content. You are getting 480x48 less displayed content on screen. In an already height challenged environment, the more the merrier.

 

[clevin]

just an update, ZUNE HD has both FM tuner and HD Radio tuner, one way or another.

It is future proof.

Maybe. Maybe not. There are drawbacks to the technology (more power draw per pixel, less brightness overall) and there are advantages (no backlight, better contrast ratio). Without the device being widely available and without seeing it in person, it is rather hard to compare both in real world scenario. Web speculation is just that, speculation.

In the end, as long as you can read your screen, does it really matter what type of screen it is ? Not to the average person. Just like the average person doesn't care about the subtle differences between DDR3 and DDR2 ram. It is strictly in the realm of nerd porn.

I dont see many people with PMP set their brightness to highest, I dont think judging it at the max level of brightness is really meaningful, not to mention, the spec released does show zune HD having better battery life than iPT. So the "drawback" about battery might not be an issue one way or another.

You always need more screen real-estate. In a game, it can mean less screen devoted to toolbars/status bars and more to the actual game itself. In a browser or productivity apps, it means you get that extra menu, extra button row, extra toolbar.

The only drawback (if you can even call it that) is that you get black bars on top and on the bottom of your videos.

I always feel iPT and iPhone are too big. pocket size could be a significant plus for many people.

for the documents, web, I do want to know, for the screen size, even with 320x480 on my pre, when viewing webs and documents, I tend to make it landscape to have bigger font, 320 is just not enough, as long as width (480) is okay, Im fine with it. I am not saying this is other people's experiences as well.

Im not arguing against higher res or larger screen, Im just saying all things considered, ZUNE HD screen probably isn't bad neither.

also, mobile safari will not wrap the word when zoom in, if mobile IE would do that, then 270 would not be a problem, this is the feature in opera mini, which is a very good feature.

games, I have to agree, but that also depends on what games we are talking about, I doubt initial arcade games really need extra space. but if it were to get more 3D games, racing, etc, it might turned out to be an issue, we will have to wait and see.

 

[KnightWRX]

just an update, ZUNE HD has both FM tuner and HD Radio tuner, one way or another.

It is future proof.

That's good to hear, because I absolutely love my talk radio in the morning.

 

[cenetti]

here some more cloudy day - outside shots..... both at medium brighthness
no worse than iphone or touch.....
So you guys should stop listening to FANBOYS!

 

[KnightWRX]

I guess we have it, that E really did get cut out even on production models.

 

[Skull21]

just an update, ZUNE HD has both FM tuner and HD Radio tuner, one way or another.

Does that include HD-AM radio stations?

 

[Cask]

Fanboy: OMG< LIKE Dom't get teh ZUNE beecuz itz NOT mad bi APPLE

AppleInsider: Here's some more info about the new features on the Zune. Just giving you a heads up before you spend $200.

don't get me wrong, I have a 3GS and really enjoy it. But they're linking to an Apple insider article that seems really biased. They state that tegra is inferior to the 3gs processor which it isn't. They say that OLED screen doesn't look good under direct sunlight, which is also true for every LCD display (I can hardly read anything on my iPhone 3gs when outdoors)
and they are already bashing battery consumption based on theories. That is fanboyism as it gets. Spend some time with the device and then state opinions. The truth is that this device looks very attractive and it is great to finally see some decent competiton to the touch that hasn't changed much since it was introduced two years ago.

 

[clevin]

here some more cloudy day - outside shots..... both at medium brighthness
no worse than iphone or touch.....
So you guys should stop listening to FANBOYS!

where did you get it? both frys and bestbuy has no stock left here.

Does that include HD-AM radio stations?

i dont know, but some amazon discussion seems to suggest it does.

 

[cenetti]

where did you get it? both frys and bestbuy has no stock left here.

From best buy..... they had a few, probably they're all gone by now...

more shots....

 

[clevin]

From best buy..... they had a few, probably they're all gone by now...

more shots....

nice, any other color? I ordered an engraved black one from the web... hopefully got it sooner rather than later, Im in need of radio, have been using my pre streaming since I sold my zune 4G, its too batt consuming that way..

 

[MacFly123]

Let the fanboys flame start..

Missing a camera and another step behind the big apple. Although, the OLED screen looks very clear and bright; a noticable improvement over the competition.

Funny how this significant step forward only has one thing to offer the touch/iphone doesn't. The oled screen.

I think i'll stick with my iPhone and be happy.

Lets see it in daylight, outside use.

And HD radio. Even the Nano only has FM. Though if you've got an iPhone the need for a radio receiver is null.

How is it another step behind Apple? The Zune's internals are way ahead of Apple at this stage.

I highly suggest you all read this article. It is very eye opening!

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/09/14/from_oled_to_tegra_five_myths_of_the_zune_hd.html

Everyone in this thread should read it as a matter of fact.

 

[clevin]

I highly suggest you all read this article. It is very eye opening!

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/09/14/from_oled_to_tegra_five_myths_of_the_zune_hd.html

Everyone in this thread should read it as a matter of fact.

I think the facts are more profound if you just take a quick look at above photos.

e.g., your linked article says

This means when you take it outside, the OLED's screen is completely washed out by sunlight.

now look at it, what do you think?

also the articles filled with tech terms, ended with conclusions that are filled with speculations or partial facts that may or may not be biased, I really dont think it would enlighten normal end users.

 

[Arcadium]

Fanboys, there the scum of Nerds.

Give this a thought here. It's seriously the only REAL competition with the Touch, and it out performs it with Tegra. The HD radio is nice, and playback will look nice when I get a dock for my HD TV.

I look at it like this. The Zune HD, destroys the iPod Touch in actual portable Media playback. The iPod is far from the best sounding, while Zune is put up with Walkman. Regardless, the 16:9 ratio makes Video look fantastic, and it's a more connected media experience with the Social and Marketplace.

However, the iPod has the upper hand, for now as we see, with the appstore, making it the best Portable pocket computer. That I can agree with. While it doesn't appeal to me, I can definitely see why it would appeal. It is a nice and nifty thing that makes it worth it.


Guys, just wait and see. And don't say things like Microsoft Products are only for people to stupid to buy Apple products. That's just dumb, and stupid to say. This device is really nicely designed, give it a chance. It is missing a few things (Mac Compatibility, International launch, etc), but that's without not saying that the iPod Touch also has a couple flaws.

 

[Arcadium]

They still don't have the software to back it up.

Beside the Mac missing, it does. Your insane to not at least give it respect in the sense it is very well organized and designed. And on opinion, very nice looking, works well, etc.

 

[clevin]

there is a non-review review. first I saw

http://technologizer.com/2009/09/15/this-is-not-a-zune-hd-review/

 

[mosx]

Apology accepted. And yes, in these debates, attacking the credibility of other posters is important. That's what I did to you, and since you now admitted that you made a claim without any plan to back it up, we can dismiss all your previous and future posts as shallow and worthless, same for your claim about HD Radio standing for something more than just ... HD Radio.



Irregardless of getting a Zune HD itself, we can already make the comparison. Would you rather have a 16:9 1920x1080 or a 16:10 1920x1200 24" Monitor.

My choice is obvious, more resolution = more screen real estate = better experience. I just don't see what 16:9 brings to the table that is sooooo much better that I should sacrifice pixels in order to get it.



Again, it starts making a difference when people start claiming "Less is better". This is my original question and one that has still gone unanswered.

You people can whine about Apple fanboys all you want, you aren't much better.

The Zune HD is a media player first, everything else second. The iPod touch is also a media player first, everything else second.

Again, the Zune HD is a media player first. It is designed for portable video playback. Nearly all video content these days is made for 16x9 displays. 16x9 translates to 1.78:1. The iPod touch and iPhone screens are 1.5:1. When you're watching video on the Zune HD, 16x9 video will properly fit the screen. In the case of 2.35:1 video, the black bars will be smaller. In the case of all other widescreen video, it will fit the screen perfect. With an iPod touch or iPhone, the "higher resolution screen" causes unnecessary black bars or, to get rid of those black bars and have it fill the screen, you lose a pretty significant amount of video on all sides.

As for the monitor argument, I chose a 23" 1920x1080 display over a 1920x1200 display. Why? Because I'm tired of 16x9 video having extra black bars and 2.35:1 video having black bars as large as they do on standard def TVs.

16x9 is a proper aspect ratio and modern video, as well as modern games, are designed for that aspect ratio. Theres no reason to suffer with distorted/cutoff video just because Apple wants us to.

Edit: Because of that improper aspect ratio on the iPod touch and iPhone, when you're watching 16x9 content, the resolution is exactly the same as the Zune HD. The only difference is the Zune HD screen is filled while the iPod touch and iPhone screen has ridiculously large black bars.

 

[cenetti]

And here is my unofficial .... screen test

ipod touch - zune - iphone

Enoy ...
Oh btw... you can come up with any excuse like
they're not playing the same movie/same scene...probably the quality is different..blah blah blah....

Fact of the matter is.... Touch/Iphone both have outdated outdated sucky screens.... end of discussion .....

I have all three of them... and it's clear as day and night..... Anyone who denies that FACT is a damn fanboy fool.... in denial..

 

[Lynxpro]

Word only became bad at version 6. Word 5.1a for Mac was rock solid and a joy to work with compared to WordPerfect 5.1.

If you depend upon consistent formatting and the ability to see what formatting is present, then in no way shape or form has Word ever been superior to Word Perfect's "reveal codes". At least WYSIWYG actually meant something on Word Perfect.

 

[djgamble]

These are some odd price points.

I think most people will go for the $199 Touch, even if it is only 8GB.

It's slower though... sorta sux, you only get the speed bump if you get the bigger h/d.

 

[inkswamp]

Oh come on! OLED screen are miles better than LCDs!

Not really. OLED and LCD outshine each other in different areas--each having strengths and weaknesses. There is no clear "better" of the two.

And my point stands: the blacks on my iPhone look nothing like what's shown in that photo.

 

[unfrozen.jon]

Fanboys, there the scum of Nerds.

Give this a thought here. It's seriously the only REAL competition with the Touch, and it out performs it with Tegra. The HD radio is nice, and playback will look nice when I get a dock for my HD TV.

I originally thought Tegra would outperform the 3GS but reading about it, it actually underperforms the CPU and GPU in the 3GS. I know I am posting a link to this article again but its gives a good comparison:

http://www.appleinsider.com/article...o_tegra_five_myths_of_the_zune_hd.html&page=2

"Tegra is also being hyped as providing "8 processing cores," but this is nonsense as it simply counts logical blocks common to all embedded SoC parts as "cores." The CPU in the Tegra is a single ARM11 core. Even if the Tegra did supply multiple CPU cores, the Windows CE kernel used by the Zune HD doesn't support multi-core SMP so it couldn't make any use of them."


I admit I am an Apple fanboy but I also give a fair opinion to non-apple products. The Zune HD could be great if they focus on integration with the 360 and mobile Xbox Live which would be a huge advantage instead of trying to mimic the competition. But right now I'm not impressed, I think MS is going the wrong direction with it.

 

[SeattleMoose]

Another Dud From A Sinking Ship

Microsoft Products are only for people to stupid to buy products.

 

[unfrozen.jon]

It's slower though... sorta sux, you only get the speed bump if you get the bigger h/d.

Flash memory, if the iPod Touch and iPhones used Hard drives they could be much higher capacity and there wouldn't be a worldwide shortage in NAND Flash memory. Oh and I'm not picking on the use of the term hard drive, I still catch myself using it to refer to drive space.

 

[Jelite]

Lots of negs for this one, apple fanboys going hard. It's ok people competition is good, no need to get all defensive.

 

[lazydesi]

Zune HD screen is beautiful, when compared with ipod touch or iphone