Zune 8 GB Digital Media Player (Zune 2) Review

The interface is easy to use. Everything flows right and simple things like the addition of Podcasting as a top level menu choice mean I was able to get to what I wanted with fewer clicks. Excellent job team Zune.

The desktop software is actually easier to use than iTunes. I found it considerably easier to find music and Podcasts within their software than the iTunes counterpart. It is true that the launch of the Podcast Directory doesn’t have the entire world of Podcasts in there but I don’t think that will change search/etc. I’ll do some side by side videos when I catch up from the week.

The wireless sync is braindead easy and much faster than I thought it would be. I’ll do some comparison timing/testing as well but it at least feels faster than the iPod wired sync. The one thing I realized on my roadtrip (that might be obvious to some) but you do need a wireless network to sync – you can’t sync Zune to PC directly. Figured that out in the hotel room with a wired Internet connection. Of course, that’s what the sync cable is for.

The music quality sounds great. I’m not really an audiophile but it sure sounded fabulous to me. I did put a Podcast on both my iPhone and Zune and could swear the Zune version sounded better on both some cheap headphones and my Bose noise reduction headphones. Yes, I do have an adapter for my iPhone that lets me use them. No, I have no quantitative proof and the Green Zune was the shiny/newer product.

Video looked gorgeous. I had (with permission of course) a training DVD that I needed to watch on the flight home. I ripped it to MP4 using Handbrake and loved how quickly it synced with the Zune. No transcoding is a very good thing.

Battery never let me down (but I don’t think I gave it a real test). It wasn’t that long of a flight.

The “what’s that?” factor. Everyone I sat next to on ever plane or hotel shuttle asked me “what’s that/” whenever I brought my Green Zune out. They were all impressed and when I mentioned to one gal that they’d be “in the stores” on Tuesday she asked for a specific store and wrote down a note to herself to pick up one.

This is a great little player. Microsoft has done a fabulous job. iPod finally has some competition.

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