Maven Mapper's

What is the Important difference between a Zune and an iPod?

Free TV Recording Capability!

The iPod will sell you some but not all TV shows for a couple bucks. Plus, the list of available shows seems to be dwindling as the networks, like studios become more wary of Apple's power.  However, consumers are in for a big benefit from Zune's and the studios and networks might be looking at a VCR/TIVO like nightmare in the portable Zune devices.

Using a PC running Media Center (I am writing this on a laptop with Media Center), you can record television programs and zap them over to your Zune.

There is one feature that may well call out to a certain group of users: the Zune can download television programs recorded on computers with the Media Center feature of Windows Vista. I haven’t tried this, and it well could be harder to use than it should be. I would say it’s the sort of thing that mainstream users might want to wait to do when Apple introduces an easy version.

Microsoft Sings a New Zune

That is a huge deal.  All that is needed to make that popular and useful . . .

Well that's locked up inside my head.  Microsoft will have to hire me for that information. 

I worked on the first Wireless Media Player device that was introduced 2 years before any other device including the Zune, so I have a few lessons learned and tricks up my sleeve that I'm banking for retirement.

In the meantime, the Zune guys, (very nice and very smart people, I met several of them a year ago and again last month) will have to either figure out these key lessons on their own or  . . . .  :)

In the meantime, I'll continue to write and as winter approaches start to focus on some indoor exercise ellipticals , I've been working a bit too hard the last couple months and picked up a few extra pounds that I don't need.