I need my music to run because it really does take my mind off the fact that I am running which makes it 20 times easier. When the damn Zune locks up I have mess with it which causes me to get burnt out much more quickly. I have tried reloading the software, the Zune, and nothing makes it work for me.

My next step is simple. I am taking it back to Costco and waiting for the next gen to come out. They have some major bugs to work out of this thing and I don’t want to wait for that to happen.

My theory as to what is causing the issue? Since the Zune only locks up in the gym I am wondering if the wireless (even though turned off) is getting some interferance from the Polar heart rate monitors that are built into the machine? Either that or it just doesn’t like exercise.

Looks like I will have to eat crow and stick with my iPod for a little while longer. Damn you Microsoft for allowing me to back you up and then crushing me like this!!! DAMN YOU!!!! I’m fine now.

Word,
Matt

I guess I should break it down into pros and cons.

Pros: (Da Good)

• FM Transmitter
  Really I don’t need to say more about this. The antenna is the headphones so they get a very clear crisp signal. Sadly this is better than my car at the present.
• Price
  At $249.00 on the shelf not a bad price for the extras you get.
• Big Clear Screen
  The screen on this thing makes my old iPod look… well old. It is large, crisp and clear. The Zune comes loaded with some videos, both music and movie previews, and the images are stunning. I was very suprised in what I saw in a player that was so small.
• Sound is MUCH gooder…. (AKA better)
  I am not much of a music connoisseur, but I do know sound. I am sure that some will be pretty angry with me here and say it is just my headphones or I am crazy, but out of the box, the Zune sounds much better than my iPod ever did STOCK.
• Controls are solid and basic
  I can’t argue with Apple fans on this one. The iPod does have the UI down… but I have gotten so use to my wheel that I guess I just never had any chance to see it from another point of view. It is like moving from I.E. to Firefox. They are similar but they do it different. The navigation is SOOO much easier than using the iPod. I love that when I scroll through my music the screen puts a big letter on the side to tell me where I am in the alphabet. It is a major timesaver for me.
• Battery Charging
  FINALLY!!! A battery monitor that shows me how much the battery has charged while it is charging. This made my day. It might seem like a small acheivement, but I hated not knowing how much juice my iPod had unless I unplugged it. So far the battery indicator seems to be correct and not a SWAG (the bad kind)

Cons: (Da Bad)
Yes, there are some…. =/

• iTunes vs. Zune software
  I could go on at length about this, but iTunes wins hands down. I think when you are on version 7.0 vs. 1.0 you have somewhat of an advantage but shame on MS for not making this better out of the box. MAJOR DISAPPOINTMENT.
• Accessories… OUCH!!!
  So Apple was guity of this when they came out with the iPod… the accessories where nasty expensive, but that was compared to the device being at $499.00 not $249 ($229.00 from Costco). I have the basics for my iPod… just the FM transmitter and a car charger. With the Zune those are going to cost me about $79.99. What a horrible price point if you ask me.

I am sure more will come up as I continue to use it. So far… very happy.

I have open office here at work. I don’t have Microsoft Office installed just to purposely see how I deal with not having it. I haven’t had one complaint. PrimoPDF is free… no ads, no spyware, just a cool PDF creation tool. The creators didn’t give you a reader, just a creation tool that you print to. So… if you can print it, you can save it as a PDF.

PrimoPDF Website

Word,
Matt