ZUNE and your X360 - ZUNE HD Now in 64GB - Latest Update Now Supports AVI/XviD

right now it is just demo. (MS will want you to pay for the full version) One of the games will only work on 2nd gen zune.
 
Just read about ZuneTV on a blog and checked it out.

It's a YouTube-ish video sharing site...the catch is that all of the videos are in Zune-friendly formats.

Check it out:
http://www.zuneboards.com/tv/

The selection is a bit light because it just launched, but it's a commendable enterprise.
 
I had to completely restart everything on my computer because of some nasty spyware. Everything is cool now, but for some reason I cannot install the Zune Hardware. I keep getting this:

"CAN'T INSTALL FROM MICROSOFT UPDATE

Can't install the required components from Microsoft update. Please try again later.

Error code: 0x80004002"

And then it gives me this link:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/944938?sd=zune

Is my computer missing some updates or something? I'm kinda confused as to what I should do.
 
[quote name='asianxcore']Finally installed the new update.

I like that I can actually edit incorrect track tags and so forth. Go Microsoft :)[/quote]

The new track editor is awesome...I love that I can copy and paste album art into the software from the net, too.

My collection has never looked so pretty. ;)
 
[quote name='Blackout542']I had to completely restart everything on my computer because of some nasty spyware. Everything is cool now, but for some reason I cannot install the Zune Hardware. I keep getting this:

"CAN'T INSTALL FROM MICROSOFT UPDATE

Can't install the required components from Microsoft update. Please try again later.

Error code: 0x80004002"

And then it gives me this link:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/944938?sd=zune

Is my computer missing some updates or something? I'm kinda confused as to what I should do.[/quote]

Anyone know wtf is up?
 
W00t Just got me a 30GB Black Zune now what? lol I would love to get a car charger whats good to buy and not to buy? Whats some good places to go to get info on the zune etc. Thnx In advance
 
[quote name='Mrcapcom']W00t Just got me a 30GB Black Zune now what? lol I would love to get a car charger whats good to buy and not to buy? Whats some good places to go to get info on the zune etc. Thnx In advance[/quote]

I got a cheap car charger at Monoprice.com it was like $4
 
[quote name='LinkinPrime']I got a cheap car charger at Monoprice.com it was like $4[/quote]

Ditto this. Mine works great.

If you're looking for Zune resources I'd suggest Googling these blogs:
Zune Insider
ClicZune
I HAVE A ZUNE
Generation Zune
Zune Info
Got Zune?
 
This is probably a stupid question, but I've never owned an mp3 player before besides my PSP and am thinking about a Zune; in order for music to be put on the Zune, does it need to have been purchased from the Zune marketplace? Or can I put songs on it I've ripped from CDs/dl'd from other sources?
 
[quote name='Jesus_S_Preston']This is probably a stupid question, but I've never owned an mp3 player before besides my PSP and am thinking about a Zune; in order for music to be put on the Zune, does it need to have been purchased from the Zune marketplace? Or can I put songs on it I've ripped from CDs/dl'd from other sources?[/quote]

you don't need to have purchased songs from the market place to play on the zune software or the player. Songs you ripped or got elsewhere will be playable on it.
 
I thought there were some cool little auto-playlist tips in this article from the Zune Insider blog so I thought I'd post it here for you guys:

Not many people know that the Zune 2.1 software release was a complete re-write of the software. We wiped the slate clean and started over. So, it wasn’t as simple as porting features over, we literally had to re-write the application from the ground up. Features like autoplaylists are no simple task to implement, and while we wanted them in the first 2.1 release, it just wasn’t possible. Now we have them, so it’s moot point, but I wanted to enlighten you as to why they weren’t included until now.

It was almost serendipitous that the “July Zune News” email was sent out earlier this week, and guess what the tip and trick was? You guessed it, how to create autoplaylists. (See this link for explicit instructions on how to create and sync autoplaylists) I thought, “awesome segue for my next blog post, sweeeet…”

Enough babbling, dude, show me some autoplaylists…
I have a few autoplaylists that I listen to religiously, I think you’ll find them useful as well. I won’t go in depth on basic setup (see link), but I will give you a few ideas on some parameters to start with. Here goes…

“Auto faves”
This is the quintessential autoplaylist. All of the songs you have rated as a heart will be added, and as you mark new songs with a heart rating, they are added to the list. I play this one more than any other playlist I have. This one is super simple to make; fire up the autoplaylist editor and select the Rating drop down, and then choose the heart (like) rating. Set the limit to no limit, and you’re done. (ps- a different spin on this one is to create a separate autoplaylist of songs you haven’t rated yet. I have found more than a few gems I had forgotten about using this method)

“100 Songs I have never heard”
This one is easy to setup, and is blast to listen to. Leave all music filters set to “all”, with the exception of “song plays”. In the song plays drop-down menu, choose “never played.” Set the limit to 100 songs, and let it arrange them randomly. The software will automatically scan your collection for songs you have never played and generate a random list. Then, each time you play one of the songs from the playlist, it is removed, and another song you haven’t played is added in its place. I was amazed that I hadn’t listened to Master P since Zune 2.1 came out, but Percy and I are back on good terms now…

“Songs added in the last 7 days”
Since I have the Zune pass, I am a fiend for new music Tuesdays! I download most of the new albums that come out on Tuesday, jam them over the week, and then keep the albums I really like. Rinse and repeat. To accomplish this, I fire up autoplaylists and select the Recently added drop down and choose “in the last (days):” and enter in the number 7 (you can obviously tweak # of days as you see fit). Then choose to arrange the songs by date added. I choose no limit to the songs as a personal preference, but you can choose to limit it if you like. Voila, now you have a running autoplaylist that will continually refresh itself with the new tunes you acquire.

“50 most played songs”
When I made this one, I realized that I listen to Radiohead way too much (is that even possible?). Start by setting your song plays to More Than 5. Then choose to arrange the songs by most played. Set the limit to 50 songs and you’re done. As you play songs more and more, they will be added to the list, as you stop listening to others as much, they will drop off of the list. Good way to find your uber-favorites.

How about some tricks?
Ever want to listen to a list of all of the Daft Punk, Radiohead, and Gorillaz tracks in your collection? I know I do. You can add multiple artists to the same autoplaylist by using a semi-colon. So, in the Album Artist field of the autoplaylist editor, choose your artist, then put a semi-colon after it, then type in another artist, and repeat. My album artist field in the editor looks like this (without quotes) “Radiohead; Daft Punk; Gorillaz”. Now you can add any artists you like together. I even have one with OutKast and Goodie Mob when I am in a southern hip hop mood. (Note: you can also do this with multiple genres. Like Hip Hop and Electronica? Try it out.)

If you’re like me, you have multiple genres listed for the same kind of music. Electronic, Electronica, Electronic/Dance, Electronica & Dance, etc. Wow! How about Hip Hop, Hip-Hop, Hip Hop/Rap, Hip-Hop/R&B, etc. Yikes! Thank god (or our developers) for including a wildcard matching algorithm. In the genre field of the autoplaylist editor, just type in “electro” (no quotes), and the editor will pull every genre that starts with “electro”. For the hip hop dilemma, type in “hip” and it will pull all of the hip hop variant genres in your collection. You can do this with any genre. This is one of my fave features of autoplaylists hands down.

Alright, I have talked long enough. What say you loyal readers? Do you have a favorite autoplaylist that you can’t live without? Have another trick that you use to make the editor more powerful? Post a comment and share your faves with the other readers.

Experiment, have fun, and be excellent to each other…
Click to expand...



The "100 Songs I've Never Heard Before" is my favorite.
 
My main music PC died , now I can't update my plays so my Zunecard is up to date .

Can I tie it to a new PC in the meantime , or will that confuse my device ?
 
[quote name='bmachine']I thought there were some cool little auto-playlist tips in this article from the Zune Insider blog so I thought I'd post it here for you guys:
The "100 Songs I've Never Heard Before" is my favorite.
[/quote]

That's a good post. Unfortunately I did the faves by hand when I didn't want to be assed to learn how the new features worked, over 550 songs. @_@ I'm definitely going to try the other ones later.
 
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New Zunes are coming!

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10034897-56.html

With most of its news already leaked out there, Microsoft on Monday confirmed the details of its fall Zune lineup.


On the hardware side, Microsoft will beef up Zune's capacity, expanding the hard drive-based model to 120GB and the flash-based player to 16GB.

More significant are the software and service improvements. Most notably, as is the case with the iPod Touch, Zune owners will now be able to use the device's built-in Wi-Fi to download songs.


Also new, the updated Zune will make recommendations based on the songs someone is listening to and there will also be new Zune "channels" programmed by experts and along themes like "work-out" music.


Zune will also come with two games--Hexic and Texas Hold 'em--and adds support for audio books in the Audible format.


Of course, this all comes a day ahead of an Apple event, at which the market leader is expected to announce changes to its iPod line.


In any case, I'm going to get a firsthand look at the Zune line later Monday and talk strategy with some Microsoft executives. So I should have more to say on the Zune front in short order.


Update: As for pricing, Microsoft plans to charge $249 for the 120GB model, $199 for the 16GB model and $149 for the 8GB flash model. It also plans to chop prices on some of the remaining older devices in the channel.
Click to expand...
 
Oh man...those new ones sound sweet! My Gen 1 is still holding strong though...only grip is that it tends to lock itself every now and then...but using the lock switch to lock it again, and unlock it gets it unlocked right away.
 
If they can increase the battery life on the new ones, I might consider upgrading from my 80. I can only get about 3 hours of video or 10 hours of music on my current one.
 
I love the zune's FM tuner. I use it at the gym all the time to listen to the TV stations' audio. I can't believe Apple hasn't copied this "feaature" yet.

Please MSFT, please give me "remember playback position" on files with the up-coming update...
 
[quote name='TheRock88']New Zunes are coming!

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10034897-56.html[/QUOTE]


Huh, I didn't think anyone was still buying Zunes, but whatever. Terrible timing though. You're going to announce this stuff the day before an Apple announcement? Congrats, you finally caught up to Apple for one day. Now enjoy that until Apple basically makes all your improvements laughable.
 
Improvements laughable? The ipod has not ever really had any one feature that was super cool that the Zune didn't (except, perhaps, the ability to purchase songs with wi-fi, but only one version of the ipod even has the ability to do so).

Name some features that the Zune has lacked, that the current ipod generation has had.
 
[quote name='rainking187']Huh, I didn't think anyone was still buying Zunes, but whatever. Terrible timing though. You're going to announce this stuff the day before an Apple announcement? Congrats, you finally caught up to Apple for one day. Now enjoy that until Apple basically makes all your improvements laughable.[/quote]

You're right. I don't know WTF we were thinking. :roll:

Also: eat a dick.
 
[quote name='rainking187']Huh, I didn't think anyone was still buying Zunes, but whatever. Terrible timing though. You're going to announce this stuff the day before an Apple announcement? Congrats, you finally caught up to Apple for one day. Now enjoy that until Apple basically makes all your improvements laughable.[/QUOTE]

Get back under your bridge.

-------------------------

Huh, I'll definitely consider a 16GB if I can find a bit of a discount this winter. The battery on my gen1 refurb is kinda crappy and I'd like to keep it in my office at work.

Then again, my new roommate is an Apple fanatic, so I have to tread carefully these days. :D
 
I've still got my Zune 30 from launch and it's beat to hell, but still works great. The battery is pretty drained now, and I've got scratches all over the screen, so I wouldn't mind getting a new one. But I definitely don't need 120GB. My 30 is full, so the 80GB is definitely my best bet. I hope it's below $200 now, and that I'll be able to find a deal on it for under $180.

Then again, I might just get the iPhone soon, so a new Zune may not be necessary.
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']I hope the new features are available for previous gens, just like the last one.[/quote]

Ditto.

On another note...where have you been dude, don't see you posting here as often as you used to?
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']I hope the new features are available for previous gens, just like the last one.[/quote]

this has been confirmed. gotta give it to microsoft on this front. has any ipod had a firmware update with any significant upgrade?
 
Is it against TOS to talk about stripping the DRM from zune songs?

Looks like I'll be upgrading to an 80 as soon as there is a deal on one. Not enough music yet for the 120 but my 30 is very near full.
 
[quote name='DarthPuma']Is it against TOS to talk about stripping the DRM from zune songs?[/quote]

That would be piracy...so I'm assuming "yes".
 
[quote name='bmachine']That would be piracy...so I'm assuming "yes".[/quote]

Do even the mp3 versions of songs you can buy on Zune Marketplace have DRM?
 
[quote name='LinkinPrime']Ditto.

On another note...where have you been dude, don't see you posting here as often as you used to?[/QUOTE]

Got frustrated with the place and took an extended break. I'm not back, I'm just checking in.

[quote name='bmachine']That would be piracy...so I'm assuming "yes".[/QUOTE]

Ehh...If I buy music on either iTunes or ZM, my feeling is that I should be able to play it on the other device. It may not be legal, but it's certainly not piracy.
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']Got frustrated with the place and took an extended break. I'm not back, I'm just checking in.



Ehh...If I buy music on either iTunes or ZM, my feeling is that I should be able to play it on the other device. It may not be legal, but it's certainly not piracy.[/quote]


Bummer dude...come back soon...officially.

I feel the same way, if you bought it you should be allowed to play it/copy it to other devices as much as you want.
 
[quote name='LinkinPrime']Bummer dude...come back soon...officially.

I feel the same way, if you bought it you should be allowed to play it/copy it to other devices as much as you want.[/QUOTE]

If I do, I certainly won't be posting as much as I did before. Too many things going on in my life now.

[quote name='Foo228']Well...Apple does charge twice if you want a song as a ringtone, legally[/QUOTE]

There's an easy, legal way around that. You just edit the song length, convert to AAC, delete from iTunes, rename to .m4r and double-click. Done.
 
[quote name='LinkinPrime']I feel the same way, if you bought it you should be allowed to play it/copy it to other devices as much as you want.[/quote]*Cough*Zune Pass
 
[quote name='CocheseUGA']
There's an easy, legal way around that. You just edit the song length, convert to AAC, delete from iTunes, rename to .m4r and double-click. Done.[/QUOTE]

Smart idea. Thanks for the tip.
 
[quote name='Foo228']Smart idea. Thanks for the tip.[/QUOTE]

Don't forget to make your song full length again after you're done.

If you need help, just post up.
 
Three things:

1. The info in that video is terribly exciting.

2. I love the "discovering new music" perspective they're taking.

3. That dude has horrible taste in music.
 
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