H.Cornerstone
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I am looking for a MP3 Player, and just wondering how are Zunes? Are they reliable? How's the software? Is it easy to put songs on it that aren't downloaded through the MSFT store?
MSFT Zune.
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UnderwaterMadman
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I am guessing that the 30gb Zunes are not very reliable based on the number of refurbed units out there.
If you are looking at the 4/8gb you should really check out the Creative Zen.
If you are looking at the 4/8gb you should really check out the Creative Zen.
I've had my 30 GB Zune since about 6 months after launch. I haven't had any problems with mine at all. I have got music that I have personally ripped and from the Zune store without any issues. The software is.....interesting. Most of the time there are no issues, but it can be a bit of a memory hog. Not anymore than some of the iTunes versions.
Spidey76
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I've had my 30gb Zune since Christmas 2007 (purchased new during the Amazon sales) and love it. You can do some more research on Zune.net
I've also never downloaded any songs from the msft store. Using the USB 2.0 connection on my desktop, the songs transfer very quickly (not even that bad on my older PC w/ USB 1.1), as do podcasts. The only lag I have experienced is transfering videos or video podcasts (because of the conversion time). You tell the software where to find your stuff & it will populate. From there, just drag & drop to the device icon.
The software and firmware were recently upgraded and seem to work just fine.
I've also never downloaded any songs from the msft store. Using the USB 2.0 connection on my desktop, the songs transfer very quickly (not even that bad on my older PC w/ USB 1.1), as do podcasts. The only lag I have experienced is transfering videos or video podcasts (because of the conversion time). You tell the software where to find your stuff & it will populate. From there, just drag & drop to the device icon.
The software and firmware were recently upgraded and seem to work just fine.
My wife has one of the original Zunes. The player itself is great, no complaints. The software is atrocious. You can't just treat it like a hard drive and move files over. You have to sync a Media Player library to the device. Also, it chews up and spits out ID3 tags, instead tagging files however the hell it feels like.
I got one of the new 80Gb zune's about a month ago and I love it. The software is incredibly easy to use and import music. All it takes is just telling the software what folder in your computer to rip from and then it just becomes drag and drop from the playlist to the zune.
I've had my 30GB Zune since launch and have had zero problems. I don't swap out my music much; yet, putting everything on there the first time was a breeze and the playlists work great. I use it primarily for movies and podcasts, which auto download and sync up. I own a lot of TV DVD seasons which I save onto my Zune; the screen is great and watching them on the go is a huge plus.
VioletArrows
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It was a little screwy in the beginning and I had to format it, but it's fine now. I have one of the refurbished 30GB ones and it's got all my music, my picture folders (I've still yet to figure out what this is for), some podcasts, and a bunch of youtube videos on it. Software's getting better, but they needlessly overcomplicate and ruin some things.
I can't tell you much about the marketplace since I never use it, but they recently added a lot of good stuff as far as tv shows go. Unfortunately iTunes is still hogging all the good stuff. I've only got about 5000 songs, and if you have your music folder well organized and EVERY SINGLE TAG IN GOOD SHAPE, then you won't have any problems. Unfortunately mine isn't so the software likes to be a dick and hide things, mislabel them if I forget to turn off the tag updater, and just put everything in the wrong place. Now I'm used to its system and know where everything is.
I can't tell you much about the marketplace since I never use it, but they recently added a lot of good stuff as far as tv shows go. Unfortunately iTunes is still hogging all the good stuff. I've only got about 5000 songs, and if you have your music folder well organized and EVERY SINGLE TAG IN GOOD SHAPE, then you won't have any problems. Unfortunately mine isn't so the software likes to be a dick and hide things, mislabel them if I forget to turn off the tag updater, and just put everything in the wrong place. Now I'm used to its system and know where everything is.
itachiitachi
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I had mine for about a year with no problems, It can be a little slow putting video on the thing. If you look hard you can still sometimes find new ones for around $100.
Access_Denied
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The software sucks, but then again, so does iTunes. I recommend some third party software like I used. Other than that, Zunes are cool. I like the Zune control pad better than the iPod Click-Wheel. But, they don't perform well underwater. 
I have both an iPod (video) and a Zune (first gen) -- since my car stereo only has full support for iPods, but I prefer the Zune as a personal player. The software is about a draw, I have to use both programs to update both players.
While I prefer my 30gb Zune to my iPod Video, if I were buying an mp3 player today I'd get an iPod Nano, just because I want something that fits in my pocket.
While I prefer my 30gb Zune to my iPod Video, if I were buying an mp3 player today I'd get an iPod Nano, just because I want something that fits in my pocket.
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