Zune 2 FAQ

[zune]

Zune 2 FAQ

How much does Zune cost?  The MSRP is 249.99 (80gb) 199.99 (8gb) 149.99 (4gb) 199.99 (30gb)
When is the launch date? Nov. 13 in the USA
Does the Marketplace have podcasating, vidoes, and some DRM free tracks?  YES, after Nov 13th 2007
When will it luanch internationally?  No announcement yet
Where can I buy or preorder? Almost anywhere in the US, even from this web page.
Where can I buy internationally? Something like ebay
How big is it?

               Zune 30      Zune 80         Zune 4/8
Weight     5.6 ounces  4.5 ounces       1.7 ounces
Width       2.4"           2.4"                1.6"
Height      4.4"           4.25"               3.6"
Thickness  0.58"          0.5"                .33"

Does it have a FM radio tuner? YES
Does Zune 30 get all the new firmware features?  Yes, but it lacks native support for some codecs and 720x576 TV out
Does it use WiFi to send songs & pictures to other Zunes? YES
How does the Zunepad work? The pad is touch sensitive and also works as a D-Pad
Is the LCD screen plastic?  2nd gen devices have glass LCD screens
Does Zune 2 have a stainless steel back?  2nd gen devices have matte aluminum backs
Can it wireless sync? YES, but it's about  5x slower than USB 2.0.  If a power supply is connected it will sync automatically, if not the user must initiate the sync.
What is the WiFi range? 30 feet (has been tested to do better)
Does it play movies and show photos? YES, even the flash players
Is it manufactured by Toshiba? (Toshiba makes the Gigabeat) Not the Zune 80, 8 and 4.  They are made by Flextronics.
Does it support PlaysForSure ?  NO
Will it play Music purchased from iTunes?  NO
Will it play songs ripped from my CD's and other songs already on my computer? YES
What file formats are supported?  WMA, MP3, AAC, JPEG,WMV, MPEG-4, H.264
Will it transcode MPEG-4 and H.264?  2nd gen players have native support but Zune 30 will transcode.
What is DRM?  Digital Rights Management or in other words copy protection
What is the official Zune web page?  www.zune.net
What software will it use to transfer podcasts and music from pc to Zune? Zune PC Software
What is the screen resolution?   320x240 pixels for all Zunes
What is the maximum possible battery life in hours?    30 for Zune 80, 24 for Zune 8/4, and 14 for Zune 30
What is the maximum possible battery life with Wi-Fi ON    About 10% less
What is the battery life with video playing  4-5 hours
What earbuds come with the zune?  Zune 80 gets premium all others get regular
How much is Zune Marketplace?  Unlimited songs for $14.99/month or $0.99 to buy a song
Are subscription songs permanant?  They can expire without a subscription.  Purchased songs are permanent.
What colors are available?  Black for Zune 80, BLack, red, green, pink for Zune 8/4
What's a double shot? Injection molding process that injects 2 separate types of plastic to form a single part.
Can I see it side by side with iPod?  YES http://www.zunescene.com/comparison/
Does it have an EQ?  no
Does the original Zune dock work with new Zunes?  YES, the USB connection is the same for all zunes
Does it support lossless audio?  YES for all Zunes with new firmware
Can it be used as a hard drive?  NO, not without hacking the registry

________________________________________________________________

Forum FAQ

Why is my title "iPod lover" 
You have to make 3 posts to become full zune.
20 posts = zune freak
50 posts = king of zunes
200 posts = zune emperor

[nedfunnell]

http://www.engadget.com/2007/10/02/microsofts-new-zunes-officially-in-80-8-and-4gb-sizes/

Hard drive Zunes

    * It's called the Zune 80 and, shockingly enough, it has 80GB of storage.
    * Uses the new Zune Pad -- four way touch-sensitive d-pad (with up, down, left, and right buttons).
    * It will sell for $250 (with "premium" headphones).
    * Available only in black (to start).
    * Screen size has increased to 3.2-inches (from 3-inches). As far as we know the resolution is still QVGA.
    * Dimensions are 61.1 x 108.2 x 12.9mm (2.4 x 4.25 x 0.5-inches), some 1/3rd smaller than the classic Zune.
    * The classic Zune will now be known as the Zune 30 -- it's not going anywhere. More on that in a sec.

New flash Zunes

    * Zune 8 and Zune 4 are the names for the 8 and 4GB flash based models.
    * Also uses the Zune Pad.
    * These will sell for $200 and $150 respectively.
    * Both will be available in pink, green, black, and red.
    * It will feature a 1.8-inch screen (compare to the nano's 2-inch screen).
    * Dimensions are 41.4 x 91.5 x 8.5mm (1.6 x 3.6 x 0.33-inches) -- compare to the new iPod nano, at 69.8 x 52.3 x 6.5mm (2.75 x 2.0 x 0.26-inches).

Everything else

    * New Zunes ship in November, date not yet announced.
    * All Zunes (including the Zune 30) will have a new, redesigned interface and feature parity. In other words, early Zune 30 adopters will have all the same software features as new Zune 80, 8, and 4 users.
    * Additional native video codecs for h.264 and MPEG-4 -- users no longer need transcode those file types to WMV.
    * Zune can FINALLY sync video from your Media Center PC! Jeez, took you friggin long enough, guys!
    * WiFi sync to host computer! Includes moving over music, movies, photos, podcasts, etc.
    * Podcast support! (Sorry, no over the air downloads -- sync only.) Podcasts can also be shared via WiFi.
    * The 3x3 song sharing DRM has had its three day restriction removed, but users can still only play files three times.
    * There is still NO wireless music store.
    * The Zune software is all new and rewritten, and is supposed to actually be more than a rebadge of WMP10 now. Friggin finally.
    * The Zune music store is going DRM-free, with over 1m MP3 tracks being made available for download. Other details (like which labels, whether there is a DRM-free upgrade path is for users who've bought music with DRM, price differences, etc.) are not yet revealed.

[m4rk0]

What about delete on the fly?

[beatlehead84]

How about the subscription plan? Will it disappear or will it be drmed mp3's? It would be the first subscription plan to feature mp3s....

[ZackP]

losslesss and gapless are needed and then it is perfect

[FrnchDp]

I didn't realize this FAQ post was actually to post frequently asked questions!!   

where's my clock?!!

 

[kryptman40k]

Updated info and in regards to lossless:

http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/zune/more-zune-2-details-lossless-support-glass-screens-green-is-the-new-brown-306648.php


Going beyond the Zune 2 and Flash Zune launch details, we just got off a conference call with Microsoft and got new details on the Zune and Zune platform.

• The Zune and Zune Software now supports lossless audio. Windows Media Lossless.
• Microsoft claims that the Zune is now a much superior option compared to the iPod.
• Launch date, according to Amazon, is November 13.

• Zune Pass (the monthly subscription scheme) work with the 1 million DRM free songs, but all songs you download with the Zune Pass will still be wrapped in DRM to be recognized as a rental.
• Wireless syncing will automatically sync one minute after activity is stopped as long as you're in Wi-Fi range and attached to a power source (dock, AC adapter). You can manually trigger the Wi-Fi sync as well even without being connected to power.
• Syncing will interrupt any activity you're currently doing.
• All the old accessories are compatible with the new devices (there may be some problems with a dock, but they'll get back to us)
• Screens are now made of glass as opposed to plastic in the 30GB
• The Flash Zunes, even though smaller, have the same resolution as the 80GB Zune.
• Zune Social, the social networking site, will launch in beta.
• You won't be able to send songs through Zune Social, just pointers to 30 second clips of what you're listening to
• The brown isn't discontinued (it's still in the 30GB models), but they say green is the new fashionable color, so they're going with that in the Flash models
• No battery life details yet
• No sound quality comparisons vs. the iPod yet either

Update:
• The new Zune dock offers component out with the 80GB, composite out with the 30GB, and no video out for the 4/8.

[FaBoLoUsRmX]

What is know about the firmware of Zune 2?

More specifically...
Gapless playback
bookmarks on audio files
Unicode support

and will these updates come to the Zune 30?

[GI-Jimston]

I would like to know about the wireless syncing.  Is it just using the 802.11b?  If it is, I'll stick to USB 2.0.  Unless you're only syncing one or two songs, 802.11b is not fast enough.

I'm wondering if Microsoft put a faster wireless in the Zune 80, or if it's still 802.11b like the 30's.  If it's 802.11g, it might be more useful. 

Don't get me wrong, I think the wireless sync idea is great in theory, but I'm interested to see how MS utilizes it, and whether the wireless can hold its own against a USB connection.

[Socal]

I would like to know about the wireless syncing.  Is it just using the 802.11b?  If it is, I'll stick to USB 2.0.  Unless you're only syncing one or two songs, 802.11b is not fast enough.

I'm wondering if Microsoft put a faster wireless in the Zune 80, or if it's still 802.11b like the 30's.  If it's 802.11g, it might be more useful. 

Don't get me wrong, I think the wireless sync idea is great in theory, but I'm interested to see how MS utilizes it, and whether the wireless can hold its own against a USB connection.

Tech specs at Amazon.com say 802.11b/g - good thing 'cause 802.11b would suck for anything more than a song or two.

[jlo mein]

Waiting for them to announce native USB HDD capability and the ability to hear sound while fast forwarding songs.

[FrnchDp]

...the ability to hear sound while fast forwarding songs.

why?

[Swivel]

lol i guess if yo want to hear the song really fast

still seems kinda pointless...

[ogflatlander]

Do we know yet if they will support audible.com files?  I would like to get my wife a Zune so everyone in the family has one but that is the only thing that is keeping her with the Creative.

[scottredd]

...the ability to hear sound while fast forwarding songs.

why?

Not everyone listens exclusively to music.  When listening to recorded long format radio shows, podcasts, or audiobooks, often you'll want to skip ahead and review backwards, and being able to preview the fast-forward or the rewind would be very useful.

Compare it to fast forwarding a video to skip commercials or to rewind to watch a scene over again.

Regards,

Scott

[themunkee]

 
http://zuneinsider.com/archive/2007/10/05/in-which-i-attempt-to-answer-some-zune-questions.aspx#11881
No native h.624/mpeg support for the Zune 30... oh well

[scottredd]

I wonder how the wi-fi sync will be configured?  From what I've read, the sync is to your host PC over your local wireless LAN.  If the configuration to the Zune is done using an IP address, I wonder if network config stuff could be done to make this happen over the Internet, say, from a public hotspot.

Imagine setting up an SSH tunnel on your office PC to tunnel traffic back to your home PC using the wireless LAN in your office, or using your NAT capable router to expose the service port for the Zune software to the Internet so you can hit it from the coffee shop.

There wouldn't be much use for this for syncing music, but for continuously updating podcast feeds, I can see where field syncing would be cool.

Regards,

Scott

[FrnchDp]

...the ability to hear sound while fast forwarding songs.

why?

Not everyone listens exclusively to music.  When listening to recorded long format radio shows, podcasts, or audiobooks, often you'll want to skip ahead and review backwards, and being able to preview the fast-forward or the rewind would be very useful.

Compare it to fast forwarding a video to skip commercials or to rewind to watch a scene over again.

Regards,

Scott

that explanation might have made a bit more sense from the person who asked it originally, but they did ask about fast forwarding songs.  You can fast forward and rewind with the Zune, you just don't hear the digital noise it would create if it was audible