Advantages: iPod Ecosystem, New Interface, anodised case. Zune larger screen, Fm Radio
Disadvantages: iPod smaller Screen, easily scratched case. Zune basic funionality, poor software

...'s. This could be until now!! Back on November 14th 2006 Microsoft brought out a brand of digital music players called ZUNE. The players came in 3 colours, Black, Pearl White and Rich Brown, had a 30gb HDD, 3" LCD Screen and offered the playback of music and videos, the ability to view pictures, FM radio and also on a limited bases share files wirelessly with the Xbox 360 and other Zune players. Cases are made from silicone rubber and feature what is known as a doubleshot effect. This is produced by painting the inside of the case a different colour then the outside. The two-tone look is quite impressive and looks great. Controls are not touch-sensitive like the iPod but offer a circular controller with four buttons for direction as well as a middle button to select a song etc. The user interface is definitely the Zune's strong point. intuitive... Read review

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Advantages: Cheap, durable, High quality music, not an iPod
Disadvantages: A bit big, some people may not like the nav buttons

...This is a very good choice for a very good value, top end video / mp3 player. Can I also say, once you update the Zune with the official microsoft update, the software of the Zune is updated so it is exatley the same as the new one, along with the PC software. My decision After I broke my Creative Zen Vision: M I was faced with a choice of getting an iPod or a Zune. In the end I settled for a Zune and I'll tell you why. How it looks The looks of the Zune may not be its strong point, however I like its simple design. There are some interesting colours, I've got a brown sort of colour which goes green at the edges in light. It has almost a rubbery feel to it, its does not have a glossy / shiny surface like the ipod. This is a good point as it is difficult to scratch, and easier to keep clean - so it still looks like it is in mint... Read review

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Advantages: 80Gb disk, FM radio, video player, wireless synchronisation, neat device and OS
Disadvantages: Problems with dvr-ms files, annoying synch app, possible probs with encrypted wireless

...The Microsoft Zune 80 is the Zune 30's bigger brother. It plays MP3, WMV, WMA, MP4 music and video files, displays JPEG pictures and has an FM tuner, but its real value is its truly whopping 80GB hard disk which can hold my entire music library and several full length films. It also supports wireless connection to your home network and can transfer music wirelessly to nearby Zune users (with restrictions) should you have the urge so to do. Given that there are few Zune users in the UK, this latter facility is currently of little value. The device itself is light and neat, with a metal back and a clear glass front sporting only three buttons, each of which is overloaded with context dependent functions that take a little while to get used to. The central 'squircle' button (i.e. a squarish-circle) is the Zune's answer to the ipod 'wheel... Read review

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Advantages: Large colour screen, durable, great sounding tracks!
Disadvantages: Slightly weighty, more features possible.

...The Microsoft Zune. Zune. What a name! I bought one of these recently because I wanted to find out what all the fuss was about. I can tell you, I was immediately gripped. After handing over (yes, again) my card getting home and putting the kettle on I was enthralled. The Zune appears to have been loving placed into its little box. The USB cable and documentation have been carefully placed into the sub sections of the box ready for an interested user to slide them out... Interesting colour, too. Brown is one of my favourites and after seeing the rather alluring but cliched iPods I wanted something different. It's matte meaning (unlike the glossy iPod) it's highly scratch resistant! The Zune didn't take long to charge. Neither did it take long to upgrade its own software and download the 2,000+ songs I have in my library. I am... Read review

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Advantages: sharing with friends, ease of use, price
Disadvantages: wireless feature limited, size, available in the US only, horrible software (not any more)

...Ok everyone who expects a 3000 words expert review please click on this link http://reviews.cnet.com/mp3-players/zune-30gb-blac k/4505-64907-32068976.html This is the longest, best and most detailed review of the zune 30gb available. I did not copy it cause I thought that this would be wrong and I won't paraphrase it (I would achieve around 2500 words). This might have been the chance to earn some more cash or members who trust me but I hate cheating (myself). So now I gonna describe the player. The Zune created by Microsoft and published in 2006 is now a year old and has some brothers the new zunes 4, 8 and 80 (numbers indicate GB - storage). The first zune originally came out in three colours white, black and brown (brown?? yes!! and this colour was the seller number one whether you believe or not) later two more colours joined... Read review

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Advantages: easy to use
Disadvantages: bulky, hard to sync with music files on comp.

...i first saw this after reading one of my monthly newsletters from cnet. it said the ipod will meet its match with this piece of machinery, and it has, it may not have the good looks of the ipod or the accesories to go with it, but it has something different, it pays attention to people who want an easy to use machine capable of holding large amounts of music and playing them at high quality. it can play very high quality videos with its 3 inch screen which puts the ipod and many other mp4s to shame. it is a bit bulky and scratch very easy meaning you may have to invest in a screen protector. but a big problem with the zune and the ipod and many other mp3s is the fact they do not use windows media player software to be able to transfer music. the zune software is easy to install and the initially is easy to sync with your music... Read review

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Advantages: Zune-to-Zune sharing and huge screen
Disadvantages: battery life is not very good while watching movies

...HUGE viewing screen, plenty of memory for all of your music, pictures, and videos, plus it is durible. You can drop this and it wont scramble like an ipod... my favorite 2 traits about the zune is 1) when you watch movies you can turn the screen horizontal and make your movies widescreen 2) you can transfer full songs, playlist and pictures to your friends wirelessly!!!!!!! Store up to 7,500 songs, 25,000 pictures, or 100 hours of video has battery life of up to 14 hr. when listening to only music ... if you are watching videos the battery life decrease ALOT ... this is one of the only bad parts about the zune is that the battery life is not very good while you watch movies!... Read review

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Advantages: Easy to use, great headphones, Fantastic build quality and screen
Disadvantages: Only a 30gb hard drive, slightly buggy PC software.

...Before I say anything, there is a very two sided argument about ipod's versus Zune. Many, if not all reviews on the web are biased towards one side, and I will *try* to keep my review as open to both arguments as possible. Now, first things first, the price. I had to ship mine over from America to the UK. The price including postage and packaging was roughly £150. Only £125 was for the player itself. Then VAT and other ridiculous taxes were added when it reached the UK, making the total price of the player £200, which is only £10 more expensive than an ipod. The packaging of the Zune is very high quality. It is a sort of odd plastic/cardboard in brown, which looks very sleek and stylish. Presentation is good, with "welcome to the Social" written on the inside sleeve as you slide it open. Under that flap is where the Zune... Read review

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Advantages: screen, Fm tuner, new & better software & firmware, customisation, earphones, nice design, cool touch pad
Disadvantages: does not work on mac,

...OK after using my Zune for over half a year I can proudly say that this is an alternative for an Ipod. It's still not out in the Uk or Europe but one can get it via ebay or other websites - just be careful not to be scamed! The player is expanding as recently it was introduced in Canada and Microsoft promised to deliver the music player to Europe soon. The player features a 3inch screen which is amazing (i know some poeple dont like the idea of watching stuff on a small screen but for those who do fancy it - the zune is a great device). It has inbuilt WIFI capabilities which allows you to sync your music and podcasts without having to connect the zune to the computer.... Read review

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Advantages: Ease of Use, Sound Quality, Durability, Features
Disadvantages: Design, Size, Weight, Screen scratches quite easily

...I have owned this products for a few months now and it has been the best mp3 players i have ever used. Its firmware allows easy transitions between songs and videos as well as proiding supurb sound and vision. Also for £120 it was great value. Although i did have to by an imported one due to Mircrosofts shortsightedness when not releasing it worldwide. On top of this a few weeks ago the firmware was updated to give it most of the features of the newer zunes, meaning that i can sync it over my wireless network without connecting it to the computer ,another great feature. My main concern with the product is the fact that it can not be used as a portable hard drive as most other mp3 players can including its main rival the ipod. It was also an inconveniance having to buy an imported one however this isnt a major problem as many ebay... Read review

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