Microsoft Zune Review and IPod Comparison

Everyone is familiar with Apple's iPod, but have you heard of Microsoft's Zune? When people see my Zune the usual reaction is, "Hey what is that thing?" Apple's dominance of the mp3 player industry has not been threatened by an other single product as of yet. Could the Zune be the new iPod? My vote is no.

I purchased my Zune a few months ago for about $250 USD. There were a few selling points that made me by the Zune instead of the iPod. The first thing that I found great was the relatively large screen. At 3 inches it is much larger than the iPod Video's screen which is a major plus if you plan on watching movies often.

It also includes a built in FM tuner which seems work pretty well and gets good quality reception. With 30 GB of hard drive space, the device is comparable in price with the 30 GB iPod video. The two aforementioned features were enough to make me choose Microsoft over Apple.

Now let's talk about the bad. One of the first things you will notice about the Zune is the size. This thing is big. Weight is not really a problem but the volume is much larger compared to an iPod. It is much larger than even the 60 GB iPod video. Carrying it in your pocket can get annoying because it is hard to not notice whereas the iPod slips into your pocket comfortably.

Wearing it on sports arm bands is also not pleasant, especially if you are running. It bounces around a lot and will slid around on your arm no matter how tight you have it. Second, it is pretty hard to find peripherals for the Zune.

It does not have a market nearly the size of the iPod and because of this you won't see many third party products. Third, the battery life seems pretty short. Microsoft boasts 12 hours on a full charge but I seem to average a bit less than that only listening to music and with every power saving feature enabled. Finally, the Zune firmware does not come with any extras like the iPod. You will notice that there is not even a clock. Most people, including myself, probably won't find this a big issue but it is still something to note.

Finally, which mp3 player has the better software? I'd say the Zune wins hands down in this area. The Zune's PC software is very easy to use and set up. The interface is very user friendly and easier to look at. I find iTunes to be very buggy and hard to get used to. Keep in mind I am using Windows XP. I'm not sure if that really affects anything, but perhaps that explains my problems with iTunes...I don't know.

Overall I'd say I am pretty happy with my purchase but if I did it again I would choose the iPod Video. The biggest selling point for me was the large screen but I have yet to watch a single movie on it. If you plan on watching movies, however, go with the Zune. The screen is very nice, bright, and large and much better than the iPod's. Honestly though, I see the Zune brand failing unless they make some big changes in the second generation devices.