Here is some new Pink Zune goodness. First off here is a pic of the new Baby Pink colord Zune next to the limited edition Pink Zune provided to the Zune workers and the 100 limited edition ones provided to the public.
Pretty big difference there, so which one do you guys prefer?
And also thanks to Cesar there are 2 new Zune backgrounds themed to the new Pink color.
Enjoy :)
Just got an email from a person going by the name Luke, who claims to have snaped a pic of a new Microsoft product. Is this the possible Zune second gen? Or just a crule hox :( (placing my money on this option)
I have to say, looks pretty cool, maybe little iphoneish? But if you do know where this pic does come from let us know.
Update: Yep just as thought its not Zune 2, or really any thing to do with Zune. Its a screen cap from a demo video of Microsofts new SliverLight.
Weird title hu? Well not really, I was emailed this excellent in depth article on the way the market moves with consumer electronics. The article looks at the Nokia 3310, this phone was every where in the late 90’s when the mobile phone market exploded, it really was the phone to have. Just as iPod is now, its the media player to have.
Instead of me going on about it, make a visit over to here, have a read and let us know what you think about it.
News for the ladies here, remember a while ago all those people bidding and searching high and low for those elusive Pink Zunes that Microsoft so sneakily put into 100 unmarked Zune boxes? Well its not been confirmed that they no longer will be in hiding, Pink Zunes will be on sale come May 1st for the usually retail price of $249.99.
The Pink device will not have any thing different to regular Zunes, no bigger hard drive or any thing of that sort, just a new shiny coat of Pink.
On a side not people wondering where this Zune firmware update to 1.3 is? well here is the official word
““Hey C, I know all of your blog readers are eagerly looking forward for the release of the Zune 1.3 Update. I feel their anticipation on the update, and I am very eager to get this out to all of them… I can’t comment on the exact date just yet, but it will be soon, as it’s in the final testing and processes to get released,”
So let the waiting continue…
  One of the biggest issues regarding digital music right now is DRM. Recently, we have seen that the industry is strongly reacting to Steve Jobs open letter concerning DRM. EMI Group is thinking about making all their digital tracks DRM-free. But what would the loss of DRM mean for Zune. We will discuss the pros and cons of DRM on Zune.
 The biggest hassles of DRM on Zune is caused due to Zune’s unique sharing feature. Currently the sharing feature is a pain for users because of the 3play/3day rule that has been implemented. We also have seen some other issues with the sharing feature, such as not being able to share certain songs. If DRM were to be removed, then we would no longer see restrictions on the music we share. But, the record industry (RIAA) may feel that this is similar to practices like P2P services and get Microsoft to block the sharing feature all together. So the end of DRM could either be positive or negative for the sharing feature depending on how RIAA feels about it. But looking at the past, chances are high that RIAA will ask Microsoft to lock up the sharing feature.
 Another issue is in regards to the Zune Marketplace. We may have to say goodbye to Zune Pass because unlimited downloads is strictly available due to DRM restrictions. If DRM is eliminated chances are that ZunePass will be a thing of the past along with other music subscription services from other providers. Ultimately this will be a loss of a great feature of the Zune Marketplace and make it exactly like the iTunes Store. However, it is expected that songs will be slightly cheaper if the DRM was removed. So this can either be good or bad for user depending on what they use it for.
 The only real positive result is that you will be able to buy your music from any provider and play it on the Zune. But from a general standing point, it appears that DRM may actually be a good thing for the Zune.
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 Cesar (Microsoft employee) from ZuneInsider has basically debunked the rumours of a ‘Zune Phone’ or ‘Breaking Screens’ that we reported earlier today. He states that this is basically ‘rumor and speculation’, but in the past some of the things he labelled as rumors happened, while some didnt. So it is hard to know whether either of these are true.
However, he does imply that both sources are ‘fake’ (as seen below):
“BTW, if you are the imaginary friend ”source” cited in the story, can you email me? We should go pretend bowling. And we can invite the “friendly tipster’s buddy” (from yesterday’s rumor), too.”
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 He has also stated that the Zune is about connecting people to music and that a phone may be a part of that experience, but as of now they still haven’t begun working on it. This is indication that a Zune Phone is on Microsoft’s mind and that we very well could see it on shelves by late 2007.
  In a article by CrunchGear, it looks like Microsoft will be adding a Phone to the Zune brand as early as next November. Yet again however, CrunchGear is reporting that this is a tip (but go on to say it is as definite as tips can be) . Apparantly, Microsoft executive will be meeting today to discuss the details, strategies and timescale for the release.
 There are few other details known about the phone, but the following is being reported by CrunchGear:
  And I personnally think that there is a strong chance of them using the design of a existing phone like how Zune is like Toshiba GigaBeat S and iPhone is like the LG KE850.
 Some may believe that this is inspired by the iPhone, which is set to launch this summer. However, Microsoft talked about the ‘Zune Phone’ as early as September 2006, as we report earlier. Below is what the general manager of global market for Zune said in September.
“Microsoft Corp. said on Thursday a Zune-branded phone is part of its future plans to expand in the digital music market, now dominated by Apple Computer Inc.’s iPod. “A Zune phone is definitely part of the future of this brand,� Chris Stephenson, general manager of global marketing for Zune, told reporters at a news conference. He did not give specific details.� (from September 2006)
 So the ‘Zune Phone’ is nothing new, however it’s a shame Microsoft didnt announce this earlier because now the general public will see it as a ‘copy’. It also leads me to wonder what the Zune Phone have that the iPhone doesn’t.
