A ton of questions

[Sowaka]

Sorry, I wasn't quite sure where to post questions that weren't technical issues, so I ran here.

So I'm in the market for a nice MP3 player, one that's easy on the eyes, convenient and functional, and the Zune caught my eye. I'm not a huge fan of Apple and the iPod isn't particularity attractive in my eyes so I'm looking towards this beautiful gadget, but there are a few things that worry me and a few questions that pop into my mind. Any help answering them would be appreciated.

1) How do you transfer music onto the device? When I plug it into my computer does it open as a storage device, or am I going to have to install a new and special media player onto my computer to get my songs onto it?
2) Does the Zune have its own file type, can I just jam anything into it or does it come with software that converts my music into files it can read?
3) I currently have a fairly large sized collection of media on my computer... now then, am I going to have to buy it all back to put it on the Zune, or can I put any existing media that's already onto my computer onto it? And in that regards, how much does each song cost? My friend tells me that you can get unlimited downloads for a month if you pay $15, but what are the other options?
4) I hear this thing was wifi, though I'm not familiar with the concept. I know that two Zune users in the same area can share songs (or at least "demos" of the songs), but can I download or buy music using my Zune on the go, or must I be plugged into a computer?
5) Quality. How is the sound quality on this thing, and on the files you purchase? I know that the headset you use makes a big difference, but assuming I have a high quality headset, will the Zune match its power?
6) Docks... the only thing that makes me want to buy an iPod are the docks they have available for it, giant clock stereos with iPods docks on them... does the Zune have anything like this? I went to bestbuy and future shop, and neither had anything on display that I could find (it was boxing day, so the store was exceptionally crowded with people blocking everything, so I could have missed it) and my favorite online store only has one Zune dock that costs $350... which is a little out of my price range. So, are there any Zune docks out there?
7) Lasting... we're under hard economic times, so is it possible that the Zune branch of Microsoft will ever go down? I don't to be using my Zune and then three years from now find that it's turned into trash because support and the Zune store have been dropped. I heard Sirius Satellite Radio could be going down in six months... so I don't want to experience something similar to what the Radio holders could experience.
Is it really worth it? All I really need is a nice MP3 player with added convenience... would getting a zune be the best idea?

Thanks in advance. I'll probably have a few more questions in awhile ;P

[ljtj28]

1) You sync content onto your zune using the Zune Software (http://www.zune.net/en-us/software/default.htm).  The software is really nice though and it's very simple to get your music on your device

2) Zune Audio compatibility http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928191

3)  As long as the music you have isn't DRM protected (you didn't buy it from iTunes basically) you can sync your music to your zune.  Songs are 99 cents each on the marketplace, albums vary but expect them to be around 10 dollars.  A large chunk of the zune marketplace is DRM free so you know when you buy it it's not going to be restricted at all.  The 15 dollar a month zune pass let's you "rent" music.  In addition to being able to download unlimited music, you get to keep 10 tracks per month so if you're into music discovery that's a great value.

4) Using the zunes WiFi you can share songs, sync to your computer without wires, and there is an on device marketplace and yes, you can download songs on the go.  If you have zune pass you can stream any of the songs on the marketplace assuming you are connected to WiFi. 

5) Sound quality on zune is considered by almost all critics to be superior to the iPod.  No custom EQ but it sounds great without it.  I'm not sure how high quality marketplace songs are but they sound fine to me..

6) www.zunestore.net has lot's of docks and accessories.  Also try amazon.com

7) Microsoft has several times said the Zune is in it for the long haul.  I doubt it's going to go under anytime soon...

[Hardcorp]

Sowaka, Welcome to the social....

All for your questions can be answered with a little searching. Take a look around...

[Sowaka]

Whoa, thanks for the speedy and informative reply! Might just order one of these soon.. though just a few more questions that I thought up, sorry!

1) When I buy a song, is it limited only to my Zune or can I have full access to it and do what I want with it like edit it into my own videos or put it on other devices like my PSP? Also, if I ever lose my Zune, corrupt the files or somehow delete them, will there be a way to restore the files? Would I have a "Zune Account" that lists all my purchases and lets me redownload them as I need them, or is it a one-time thing where I pay, and get to download the song just once?

2) Where exactly do I go to purchase media for my Zune? I thought there was just one master microsoft site that supplied everything for the Zune... but when I googled to looked up the artist selection I found this: http://zune.all4consumer.com/?tid=z6g8 which lists multiple sites that supply Zune downloads. Also, how often are these media libraries updated? I was looking at one (lost the link) and it had many of the rare artists that I'm interested in (ones that are almost impossible for me to acquire albums from...) and they had the artists listed, but not always all of their albums, or any of them for that matter, which was the case for Elizabeth & The Catapult.

And I have been doing a bunch of searching, and have found answers and information about the Zune that I never knew before... but nothing really beats the reply of an informed Zune owner answering the specific questions I have. Nothing short of getting my hands on an owners manual and reading the whole thing at least.

[DarkMatt]

I'll try to answer some of these latest questions 

1)  Some songs are DRM-Free MP3 files - this means that once you buy them, you can do whatever you like with them - whether it's burning them to a CD, putting them on your PSP etc.  Others will be WMA's with DRM in them.  With these, you can still sync them onto your Zune, burn them to a CD and listen to them, but they won't work on other devices.  The tracks you download using the Zune Pass are WMA's with DRM, and these only allow you to listen to them on your PC or on your Zune.  You can't burn these tracks.  You can, however, register up to 3 Zunes and 3 PC's to listen to them on.  When you go to buy a song, it will have an MP3 icon under the album art if it is in DRM free MP3, so you'll know what you're getting.

You get a Zune Tag (the same as an Xbox Live Gamertag if that means anything), which keeps a record of all your downloads, and all songs you've gotten via Zune Pass.  You can go into your account and re-download anything you've previously downloaded, even if it was free under a promotion etc.

2)  The Zune Marketplace is built in to the Zune software - download the Zune software from Zune.net to have a look at it.  It's Microsoft's version of the iTunes store if you like.  There's a good number of artists on there, even some rare ones I've found, but occasionally you'll find there's an artist listed but only the album info is on there, not the albums themselves.  Whether or not these are coming to the marketplace later, I don't know.  New albums are coming up on there quite regularly though.

Hope that helps 

[Sowaka]

Ahhh thanks, that helped a ton. I'll probably go and buy a custom one from their website... though I do wish there were a few more color selections, the shades weren't too appealing when I saw their demos in Bestbuy =P

And one question regarding the protection... are the majority of the files protected, or unprotected? I don't intend on using the Zune for the rest of my life, but there are songs that I will enjoy for the rest of my life, and it'd be nice if I could upload most of them onto new gadgets I buy rather than having to stick with the Zune for life or re-purchase most of the songs so that they'll work. And if there are many protected songs, would it be illegal to make them unprotected if I found a method, or am I gonna be stuck only being able to play it on the first few new Zunes and computers I buy? I mean... in my view, I bought the stuff, so i should be able to upload it to whatever I want. Although, if I had a MP3 player that acted as a mass storage device when plugged in, would it be able to play licensed and protected music?

Okay, and ONE last question (hopefully!). Where do the profits go? I've always believed in buying things when the artist actually sees a good cut of the profit, so if I buy a song for one dollar... how many pennies would the artist see? If I bought an album from the Zune marketplace, would the artist get more or less money than if I just bought their real album?

[Ricardo Dawkins]

4. WiFi gaming is available, too. Wifi allows for sharing pictures and podcasts. Sometime in the future, OTA download of podcasts will be available
5. One of the best regarded in SQ. Go to www.headfi.org Some examples:
http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f15/should-i-buy-392877/

[ljtj28]

90% of music available for purchase on Zune Marketplace has no DRM or copyright protection.  So chances are the music you buy will have no DRM. 

As for where the profits go I really couldn't tell you but I can tell you the artist will make a similar amount as they do for every sale on iTunes or the Amazon music store. 

[Sowaka]

Alright this looks great, I'll be putting in an order for one of these badboys or picking one up tomorrow. Thanks again for the help! Hopefully you won't kill me for asking for more.

But hopefully one last, somewhat unrelated question. Where the hell can I buy a "iHome ZN9 Zune Clock Radio" in Canada? Amazon.com and the US Zune Store both have it... but neither of those ship to Canada, and the product is not listed in the Canadian branches of the sites. I can't seem to find any trustworthy or well-known sites that ship them to Canada either... so where the hell can I pick one up? I'd like to buy the Zune and the dock at the same time, at the same place so that I'm not running around trying to figure out where everything is at... but it's being rather difficult. Is the device even available in Canada? Google isnt turning up much.

Though would there be any other similar devices that would be easier to find? I really just need a dock for my Zune that can also act as an alarm clock (my room is very limited in space) with a display that can be seen in the dark.

[Sowaka]

Alright grabbed one, works like a charm so far, even managed to find the stereo clock dock that I was looking for and everything is fairly satisfying... however, I'm having trouble in the marketplace. When I go to buy a pass it tells me that it can't process my request and when I go to buy Microsoft points it won't let me register my credit card, the "country" field is greyed out and is permanently set to United States. Are people living in the US the only ones allowed to buy these damned points without going to a store and purchasing the more expensive cards? Living in Canada means that I can't even access the marketplace to buy songs? =/

[Ricardo Dawkins]

No access to the marketplace in Canada. Try using UltraReach or UltraSurf. Google and download this tool. A Windows Live ID account based in the USA is needed. and I think, a credit card from USA is needed, too.

Read this:
http://forums.thoughtsmedia.com/f5/international-zune-users-guide-23576.html