Pre-Order the Zune HD

I'm hoping the Zune does well. Not for Microsoft, but for Apple. The iPod needs healthy competition.

is J Allard still behind the zune?

Would anyone know enough about sales projections and profit margins to take a guess at to what this new Zune might mean to Microsoft's bottom line?

Ordered mine a moment ago - Zune HD black, 16 GB and a 32 for a friend's birthday. I think the Zune HD will do well for a number of reasons and I also reason it does not matter if it does especially well against the iPhone/iPod Touch, because the software and advancing integration across all platform members is what will matter most in the end. As content and it really is about that, is made accessible across the entire PC ecosystem easily and nearly instantly, specific devices and locations matter much less. If there is a beauty about "cloud" computing, this is it; this is the potential and building for it is where Microsoft is so much stronger than anyone else. For all of it to work, it comes down to context and policies to assess and control context - what is accessible, by whom and by what means? When I look at all the is going on and devices like the Zune HD, this is what I see and think about - context (the relevance - as in is this relevant to what one is doing now and from where and how to weight that - since we're never really away from home and family and never really away from work, either). Think about what that means and then look at Windows and the Zune HD not for what they are, or may be, but for what they can and will be (what you can do on them and what devs can enabled for you).

I really hope Zune HD will have good selling!!! Effectively Apple I Pod need real competition... I hope Microsoft will start their marketing machine on this one!!

They need international rollout dates announced on this sooner rather than later. What ever came of the Zune media content coming to Xbox Live internationally (or at least to Canada)? Is that still happening? I know that they only announced the Zune HD for the US, but they had announced at the same time that media content from the Zune Marketplace would make its way to international waters via Xbox Live, starting with Canada first.

panache Yes, there were other changes but, even Apple admitted through their marketing that the availability of new colors was the "nano-chromatic" new selling point. Or are you pretending to be so dense as to pretend there's no difference between offering a product in multiple colors and saying your biggest selling point is that you have multiple colors?

Blad "The object of a company is to make money." By that reasoning, Microsoft would have killed Windows and Apple would have killed Macintosh and iPod since they all were BIG money losers for quite a while before turning profitable. Glad you're not running either company.

Mike Galos, Your statements are SO WEIRD!!! "Or are you pretending to be so dense as to pretend there's no difference between offering a product in multiple colors and saying your biggest selling point is that you have multiple colors?" Isn't this exactly what MS is doing now? Offering their product in multiple colors?! Maybe you had some kind of typo there or left out some words or something.... And once again..the object of a COMPANY *IS* to make money...No one here denied that sometimes it TAKES money to MAKE money..sometimes it takes time to recover losses...but the END GOAL of making those investments, spending the money to develop a product, even having time pass where the product loses money, is to EVENTUALLY turn profitable on the product. Mike Galos, your points about MS ditching Windows while they were investing money at a loss, is LUDICROUS because management there realized, or hoped (correctly) that the future would be GUI. So yeah, they were willing to invest and lose some money..maybe LOTS of it, to try to see it through, to hopefully MAKE money. It's weird that you deny this.

btw: I find it interesting to note that the Apple Fanatics here haven't been justifying why the 16GB iPod Touch is worth a 36% Apple Tax and the 32GB iPod Touch is worth a 38% Apple Tax. After all, their devices of choice don't have OLED screens, the very cool Tegra chipset, equivalent HD video out, the HD Radio (or any radio, for that matter), Zune Pass, or, or, or... But, I guess paying nearly 40% more for old technology and a poor excuse for a media pricing model is just what they're used to so they don't know to expect better treatment.

@chipwinter 'Microsoft hasn't wasted their time on a Mac version of Outlook, and I don't think that's hurt them one bit." Uhhhh... Entourage? http://tinyurl.com/n4blv3

There was no assurance whatever that Windows would succeed. It took ten years to evolve it to the point where it was widely accepted and embraced - not just by people, but by businesses and developers. Its ramp was long and costly. Microsoft appears to be driving hard toward goals where high-quality content one either buys, or leases is nearly immediately available across all of the devices connected to any single, or multiple devices - regardless of type, or location. They're integrating access to that content within easy to use and appropriate interfaces that run natively on the device type (or can be made to - such as connected DLNa HDTV's, etc..). The Zune, Zune software and marketplace are just small examples of this and while it may take as long or longer than Windows development, it will happen. Others are trying to do that, too, but not nearly in a way which is as inclusive to others as Microsoft is (even Apple's most supportive pundits recognize this). Finally, and again turning to comparisons among Apple's strongest supporters and researchers in security, (reflecting again on context and accessing it from my earlier post), Microsoft has done the very hard work that Apple has not yet completed, and or may not have even begun. (hardware supported NX for all processes parallel to ASLR+DEP and object centric control of data and code bits with a broker monitoring escalations). Microsoft has solved all of these and now we're going to see all the cool software, devices and "experiences" that may be built and delivered on top of that work.

Mike, The "Apple Tax" on the iPod Touch compared to Zune is a myth because the Zune hasn't shipped yet and we don't know what the iPod Touch will cost or the lineup will be when it does. I'd be willing to bet, given the price reductions on the iPhone, that the 16GB Touch retails for around $220 and the 32GB retails for around $299. It's simply not a fair comparison, though, at this point, since you're comparing a generation of Zune that has yet to be released with a released iPod Lineup that we all know will be refreshed in about a month. As far as the college market, Apple has much more than 3% market share. I work at a college, and Macs are becoming the standard here, not only among students, but everyone in our IT management uses a Mac (including me), as well as all the high-level officers, including the president of the institution. And, by the way, the next version of Office for Mac is going to include Outlook and ship next Christmas, so Microsoft must disagree that omitting Outlook hasn't hurt them.

WOW! MikeGalos, why are you so bothered that people as of now prefer the iPod to the Zune? Your panties really are in a bunch!

btw: I find it interesting to note that the Microsoft Fanatics here haven't been justifying why the 16GB Zune HD is worth a 10% Microsoft Tax. After all, their devices of choice don't have access to the App Store, e-mail, a 64 GB option, camera, or, or, or... But, I guess paying more for old technology and a poor excuse for a media pricing model is just what they're used to so they don't know to expect better treatment.

@panache1023 : because it is just sad peoples don't know they have real choice when its time to buy there portable media machine... This is why I told that I hope Microsoft will start their marketing machine on this one because I conciser that the fact the Zune does not sell has expected in the past years has not a matter of quality of the Zune or because the Zune was not better than the I Pod, it was just a matter of marketing... Microsoft did not enough publicize the Zune... If Microsoft really start their marketing machine, they will begin to talk market on I Pod because the Zune is definitely a better and more interesting to use device than the I Pod...

Erico, Is that the same marketing machine that brought us the Gates/Seinfeld ads? HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! The Zune is horrible compared to the iPod, which, by the way, looks to be refreshed on 9/7. Too bad for the Zune; it almost had a moment in the sun...

Ugh we need edit here! Dude1313 said: EricoF3 said: "because it is just sad peoples don't know they have real choice when its time to buy there portable media machine..." ********** Oh you mean like when people go and blindly buy their Dells running XP or Vista? Yeah I have to agree with you there. Very interesting argument that you have just made... Mental Gymnastics commence!

@panache1023: naaaa ... Be patient, Let bing do their place... It just been here for about 2 or 3 month now ... give it a chance... come on... Yes Microsoft ramped the marking on vista but the problem it was vista was not ready to released... I never say Microsoft always do good... They fail regularly!! The important is to try doing things... The advantage of Microsoft on apple is that when they release a mediocre product, peoples reply immediately by not buying it... If Apple release a good product, fanboys kiss Jobs ass... if they release a Mediocre product, fanboys kiss Jobs ass too... So All product of apple are success because fanboys always kiss Jobs ass even if a product is bad...

"The angular industrial design is original and wholly un-Apple-like. But isn’t it odd that the word “marketplace” doesn’t quite fit on the screen in the Zune’s main menu? Clearly, the Zune HD is going to be compared to the iPod Touch. Its biggest shortcoming is that it’s just a media player and web browser; no apps, no games. The Zune HD prices look good compared to today’s iPod Touches, but not so much compared to the new camera-equipped ones Apple is set to announce next month (16/32/64 GB for $199/299/399)." The link to the pics: http://rantsandstuff.com/2009/06/01/nitpicking-the-zune-hd/ The link to the article: http://daringfireball.net/linked/2009/08/13/zune-hd-ipod-touch

@Ocean: Yes The angular industrial design is really great!! I really hate the IPod Chrome oval design Arg... Really ugly one and Iphone roundish design ... all Apple stuff look like oldish 70's chromoly toster... Beurak!!

@Ocean: Why do you talk about no Game on the Zune HD?? THe original Zune had Games Why not the Zune HD?

@Mike "Better not let Apple know whats going on in your magical world. Here on Earth, Apple's only 16GB iPod Touch has no camera" Do you really think that the iTouch is not going to be updated in the fall, like it has been every year? The iTouch will be updated to the same specs as the 3GS, and probably have a 64gig version. I bet this happens before mid October. How many people are really going to do HD out to a TV from a Zune or iTouch?? I know my ripped movies on my computer that are standard DVD res, come out to a 3-4gig file. I have read that a BD movie ripped is about 20gig. So you could get 1 HD movie on a Zune HD 32gig, or 2 on a 64gig iTouch. The copy to the device would take forever over USB.

@Lindy, "IMHO this is make or break for the Zune." If you just think of Zune as a series of portable devices then I can see why you may have doubts. Evidenced by Zune MarketPlace coming to XBox this fall, Zune is diversifying. Thats not a survival thing, it is delivering on Microsoft's "3 screens" vision.

Mike, Wow! You have a 16GB Zune that has OLED screens, the very cool Tegra chipset, equivalent HD video out, and HD Radio? Better not let Microsoft know whats going on in your magical world. Here on Earth, Microsoft's only 16GB Zune has no HD screens, no apps, no web browser and is $299.