Zune 2.0 gets official

Click here to see the Microsoft Zune 2.0 slide show.

Microsoft has officially revealed its plans for new 4GB, 8GB, and 80GB Zune MP3 players (the rumormongers nailed this one). The new players are expected out in November, priced at $149, $199, and $249, respectively. The 80GB version is only available in black, but both the 4GB and 8GB versions will be available in black, red, pink, and green. While the news hasn't exactly knocked us off our feet, there are some interesting new features worth noting (skip to the end to find out what they didn't add).

Wireless sync
Zune users can now sync their player to a computer over a home Wi-Fi network. This is a feature Zune users have been asking for from the very start, so it's nice to see it finally implemented. Existing Zune users (all 1 million) will also be given the new wireless sync feature once the firmware upgrade hits in November.

Zune Social
Zune.net is getting an overhaul, and with it will come a new online music community allowing users to create customizable "Zune Cards" (yes, we're trying to keep a straight face). From the looks of it, the Zune Card is a little Web 2.0 widget that automatically keeps a running tally of your favorite music based on information fed to it from your computer's Zune software. The song titles listed on your Zune Card link back to the Zune Marketplace, allowing all your Zune buddies to preview and perhaps purchase the music you've recommended. If you're expecting Microsoft to cut you in on the revenue made off your recommendations, don't hold your breath.

I'm trying not to rush to judgment before I see it, but my first impression is that Zune Social sounds like a watered-down Last.FM, sprinkled with Microsoft corporate cool-repellent.

Media Center
Tight integration with the video-recording capabilities of Microsoft's Windows Media Center platform is another one of those features (like wireless syncing) that we're happy to see, but really should have been included with Zunes to begin with. If you're using Windows Media Center, or derivatives such as Windows Vista Home or Windows Vista Ultimate, you can now sync PC-recorded TV content directly to your Zune. Like last year's Toshiba Gigabeat S, we suspect that the Zune's Windows Media Center compatibility will mean you can sync TivoToGo content as well, but we'll have to wait and see.

What's missing?
While the new Zunes seem like fun, they don't look like the iPod-pummeling horsemen of the apocalypse we were expecting. What about wireless music and movie downloads, Internet radio streaming, unrestricted Zune-to-Zune music sharing, or iPhone-esque Internet and e-mail support? It's as if Steve Jobs fired cannon at Microsoft filled with iPhones and iPod Touches, and Bill Gates retaliated with a fistful of the Zunes we should have seen last year.

That said, the Zune is obviously set to compete against the iPod Nano and the iPod Classic, and in this context the latest Zunes have a lot going for them. Historically, the Zune trumps the iPod on audio fidelity, as well as screen size and picture quality. Still, if audio and video quality weren't enough to give the iPod a run for its money last year, what's to say this year will be any different?

Need a closer look? Here's our second-generation Zune slide show.

[LMN8R]

Good Job Microsoft

Wow so you managed to build a head to head competitor with the iPod. Too bad your a generation behind again. Oh and don't forget about itunes not sucking like the zune software. Also the iPod looks nicer, is smaller, and is the same price. Can't wait for the zune 3 which will match the current iPod touch, which will then have 64 gigs of memory and wreck the zune again

[rok17]

Yes, Very Good Job Microsoft.

To begin, Itunes software is a bloated pig, the ipod looks nicer in your opinion, in mine it looks DULL. It is smaller, by a fraction but heavier and has less features for the same price and don't forget the lousy sound quality and tiny screen. There is also a new version of the zune software being released with these players that looks to alleviate a lot of the issues from the first version. I just think maybe we should try one before we condemn it.

[LMN8R]

Good Job Microsoft

Wow so you managed to build a head to head competitor with the iPod. Too bad your a generation behind again. Oh and don't forget about itunes not sucking like the zune software. Also the iPod looks nicer, is smaller, and is the same price. Can't wait for the zune 3 which will match the current iPod touch, which will then have 64 gigs of memory and wreck the zune again

[rok17]

Yes, Very Good Job Microsoft.

To begin, Itunes software is a bloated pig, the ipod looks nicer in your opinion, in mine it looks DULL. It is smaller, by a fraction but heavier and has less features for the same price and don't forget the lousy sound quality and tiny screen. There is also a new version of the zune software being released with these players that looks to alleviate a lot of the issues from the first version. I just think maybe we should try one before we condemn it.

[LMN8R]

Good Job Microsoft

Wow so you managed to build a head to head competitor with the iPod. Too bad your a generation behind again. Oh and don't forget about itunes not sucking like the zune software. Also the iPod looks nicer, is smaller, and is the same price. Can't wait for the zune 3 which will match the current iPod touch, which will then have 64 gigs of memory and wreck the zune again

[rok17]

Yes, Very Good Job Microsoft.

To begin, Itunes software is a bloated pig, the ipod looks nicer in your opinion, in mine it looks DULL. It is smaller, by a fraction but heavier and has less features for the same price and don't forget the lousy sound quality and tiny screen. There is also a new version of the zune software being released with these players that looks to alleviate a lot of the issues from the first version. I just think maybe we should try one before we condemn it.

[mastercid21]

now is time for a real improve

ok , microsoft made a better firmware.. so what ?? , i had a zune and im happy whit him , but i had 5230 songs , and is a pain travel to artist in A , to K , so why if they made mp3 players whit massive memory (even ipod) , they just dont think and someone, somebody, buy it not for tryng to see "lost" on it , and better use it to play his TONS OF MUSIC!!
so i had the answer , MADE ALPHABETIC FOLDERS!!
as simple of having a folder whit name A just press it and WOALA!! u had all the artist whit name "A" , so u wont wait months to zune travel for a dem artist in the "M" to "C", in that way is MORE SIMPLE TO MADE PLAYLIST , i had in my computer 15,000 songs , and having that way is 100X more fast and precise to made your lovely customs playlist , so PLEASE CNET , PLEASE TELL THEM , TO PUT THIS LITTLE FEATURE EVEN FOR IPOD , SO PEOPLE WHO LOVES MUSIC AND HAD A LOT ON IT , DONT FIGTH TO DEAD TRYING TO FIND THE ARTIST AND SONG THEY WANT , FOR OUR PLAYLIST.

[dddave40]

Looks like the new iPods have you covered

Have you looked at the new iPods lately? They have a search feature where you can jump directly to any letter or group of letters instantly. Looks like you can wait until the next century for Microsoft to copy this feature, or you can just dump the Zune on eBay and get a new iPod.

[mastercid21]

now is time for a real improve

ok , microsoft made a better firmware.. so what ?? , i had a zune and im happy whit him , but i had 5230 songs , and is a pain travel to artist in A , to K , so why if they made mp3 players whit massive memory (even ipod) , they just dont think and someone, somebody, buy it not for tryng to see "lost" on it , and better use it to play his TONS OF MUSIC!!
so i had the answer , MADE ALPHABETIC FOLDERS!!
as simple of having a folder whit name A just press it and WOALA!! u had all the artist whit name "A" , so u wont wait months to zune travel for a dem artist in the "M" to "C", in that way is MORE SIMPLE TO MADE PLAYLIST , i had in my computer 15,000 songs , and having that way is 100X more fast and precise to made your lovely customs playlist , so PLEASE CNET , PLEASE TELL THEM , TO PUT THIS LITTLE FEATURE EVEN FOR IPOD , SO PEOPLE WHO LOVES MUSIC AND HAD A LOT ON IT , DONT FIGTH TO DEAD TRYING TO FIND THE ARTIST AND SONG THEY WANT , FOR OUR PLAYLIST.

[dddave40]

Looks like the new iPods have you covered

Have you looked at the new iPods lately? They have a search feature where you can jump directly to any letter or group of letters instantly. Looks like you can wait until the next century for Microsoft to copy this feature, or you can just dump the Zune on eBay and get a new iPod.

[mastercid21]

now is time for a real improve

ok , microsoft made a better firmware.. so what ?? , i had a zune and im happy whit him , but i had 5230 songs , and is a pain travel to artist in A , to K , so why if they made mp3 players whit massive memory (even ipod) , they just dont think and someone, somebody, buy it not for tryng to see "lost" on it , and better use it to play his TONS OF MUSIC!!
so i had the answer , MADE ALPHABETIC FOLDERS!!
as simple of having a folder whit name A just press it and WOALA!! u had all the artist whit name "A" , so u wont wait months to zune travel for a dem artist in the "M" to "C", in that way is MORE SIMPLE TO MADE PLAYLIST , i had in my computer 15,000 songs , and having that way is 100X more fast and precise to made your lovely customs playlist , so PLEASE CNET , PLEASE TELL THEM , TO PUT THIS LITTLE FEATURE EVEN FOR IPOD , SO PEOPLE WHO LOVES MUSIC AND HAD A LOT ON IT , DONT FIGTH TO DEAD TRYING TO FIND THE ARTIST AND SONG THEY WANT , FOR OUR PLAYLIST.

[dddave40]

Looks like the new iPods have you covered

Have you looked at the new iPods lately? They have a search feature where you can jump directly to any letter or group of letters instantly. Looks like you can wait until the next century for Microsoft to copy this feature, or you can just dump the Zune on eBay and get a new iPod.

[make_or_break]

ONLY a generation behind?

Who thinks that? As much as I like the SQ of my 1G Zune, there's zero question that the management software for the thing was beyond antiquated and ancient. Even the dust that settled on that vile software had crusted over before the first Zune ever hit store shelves.

I'm glad that MSFT [b]FINALLY[/b] released flash-based players, but this should've happened six months ago, not a year after the first Zune hit the street. Good thing the newest nano is a sonic dog; at least for those who actually CARE about great SQ, the NAND-based Zune should at least get a look-see, though if [i]anyone[/i] is going to get [i]my dollars[/i] when I replace my overstuffed 8GB 2G nano, it'll probably be Creative with its new SD-friendly, [i]16GB[/i] Zen. Thinking laterally again, are we Redmond?

[dddave40]

You want me to "squirt" my crappy music your way??

Welcome to the new corporate frontier of social networking, "squirting" my favorite songs to some poor sucker who happens to be in my range and owns a Zune. That's just a bunch of B.S.! I don't get it. Why are so many people here enamored with the Zune? For starters the Zune looks very plain, the controls are a pain to use, and it doesn't really break any new ground (syncing over wifi to my PC? So what, I have to plug in a cable to charge it anyway). Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Microsoft (I'm a lifetime Windows user and my XBOX 360 absolutely rocks!!) but the Zune doesn't really do anything worthwhile to differentiate itself from the competition. They are priced EXACTLY like the equivalent Apple products, and they don't look much different either. Basically another "me too" product. It seems that the only reason someone would buy one is to be a loner and stand out from the iPod crowd. Well, at least they got rid of the "hip" poop brown model. Hey, here's one way that a Zune stands out from the crowd: www.hideapod.com

[dddave40]

You want me to "squirt" my crappy music your way??

Welcome to the new corporate frontier of social networking, "squirting" my favorite songs to some poor sucker who happens to be in my range and owns a Zune. That's just a bunch of B.S.! I don't get it. Why are so many people here enamored with the Zune? For starters the Zune looks very plain, the controls are a pain to use, and it doesn't really break any new ground (syncing over wifi to my PC? So what, I have to plug in a cable to charge it anyway). Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Microsoft (I'm a lifetime Windows user and my XBOX 360 absolutely rocks!!) but the Zune doesn't really do anything worthwhile to differentiate itself from the competition. They are priced EXACTLY like the equivalent Apple products, and they don't look much different either. Basically another "me too" product. It seems that the only reason someone would buy one is to be a loner and stand out from the iPod crowd. Well, at least they got rid of the "hip" poop brown model. Hey, here's one way that a Zune stands out from the crowd: www.hideapod.com

[dddave40]

You want me to "squirt" my crappy music your way??

Welcome to the new corporate frontier of social networking, "squirting" my favorite songs to some poor sucker who happens to be in my range and owns a Zune. That's just a bunch of B.S.! I don't get it. Why are so many people here enamored with the Zune? For starters the Zune looks very plain, the controls are a pain to use, and it doesn't really break any new ground (syncing over wifi to my PC? So what, I have to plug in a cable to charge it anyway). Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Microsoft (I'm a lifetime Windows user and my XBOX 360 absolutely rocks!!) but the Zune doesn't really do anything worthwhile to differentiate itself from the competition. They are priced EXACTLY like the equivalent Apple products, and they don't look much different either. Basically another "me too" product. It seems that the only reason someone would buy one is to be a loner and stand out from the iPod crowd. Well, at least they got rid of the "hip" poop brown model. Hey, here's one way that a Zune stands out from the crowd: www.hideapod.com

[deitiphobia]

Audible???

So how bought finding out if the Zune now supports Audible.com files? And how bout bookmarking?

[Handyman.]

Nowhere near the Ipod Killer that it could have be

There are so many things that MS could have do to this thing to make it stand
out from the rest. The sync is great but if im at home i would have to charge
the thing anway, like my i pod.

With the person sugesting the alphbet folder thing. Well Zune 2.0 missed this
one too. When you scroll the Ipod quickley the letters of the alpherbet apears
above the part of the song list. You Scroll throught the letters and stop on the
letter you want and then scroll slower to go through the songs like normal.

This was a firmware update to the Last year.

Good Luck Zune.
you will need it.

[jmackowi]

almost there

When they come out with a 160 GB version to match the iPod classic or archos 605, I'm sold. I think at some point, Zune will have the wifi enabled on it, at least for browsing.

By the way, I've been a Creative owner for years. Their customer service is brutal if you don't pay for an extended plan. No more Creative players for me.

[apw76006]

Darn! I had my fingers crossed.

I was so hoping that Zune 2.0 would include web browsing abilities. I guess I am stuck with using my 20GB Dell DJ (yes, I know) until Microsoft decides to go for a home run instead of a base hit. Why is the 80GB only available in black? I have been black all of my life so I have no issues with the color but I like options.

[jslone]

Why? (caution: rant)

Why is MS bothering to compete in this segment? What value added do they bring? Are we not better off as a user community if they took this money and put it into quality control for the Xbox 360 or their buggy OS? I am trying hard to like Windows mobile on my phone but I have to re-boot at least twice a day and I can't get some pop-ups to go away. My Palm OS Treo, flawed as it was, was better than the junk I now have to deal with due to company policy. I do not have a Zune as I am afraid it's another buggy over featured product that does not work. At least my iPod works with minimum fuss.

[Dan9678]

I bought one and I am ashamed...

This post is dead on about Microsoft. I even have the crappy windows mobile on my phone! Microsoft had a chance for a big win here. At the time when they released the first zune no one had the 'perfect handheld device'. There was still room for improvement. I remember hearing Bill gates comment about not having a ipod because he uses his phone for mp3s! I have to laugh now because apple was listening!

I had to send my zune back because it would hang up. By the time they sent me a new one I was so fed up that my new zune has NEVER played a single song... it?s still in the box?

[skyline6]

yes you are so right!!! NOT!!

xbox 360?? dude i agree with you on the OS but dont even say anything about the 360!! you cant compare it to anything because the competition sucks!! sony and nintendo had years of experience and microsoft came in and blew them away! Wii has retarded graphics and childish games which only like 2 games are actually a little fun to play. and playtation 3 sucks, has barely any good games, no one buys it and its never gonna get up and become any better then it is right now...

[qprize]

From a card-carrying Fanboy: Very Nice Look

The "Zune pad" is butt ugly, the wireless synch is a waste of battery and time
(a cable is much faster, and no drop out), and the UI still sucks. But damn!,
they are pretty. The Zune 80 screen is bigger than iPod classic's, but last I
heard they have sucky resolution. And the Flash have smaller screens than
the nano. I guess the strained pea is only attractive compared to the older
sh*t brown model, but that crimson is nice, and the depth of color of all of
them is outstanding (Apple, are you listening?). While I don't expect I'd buy
anything that pink, the tween girls will love it. The both of them who buy a
Zune, at least.

From a design standpoint, it's much better than I expected from MS. But from
a price/performance view, it's still the classic Microsoft philosophy: "It's not
THAT bad."

[HooHaa]

Who cares about this?

Really, Who gives a ****? It's a Zune. Just more crap technology from Microsoft.

[mandelorapido]

Nice features for 249

I wont discuss more about the "ipod-zune" war, i'll just mention that I like what I'm seeing in the zune:

- 80gb
- wifi enabled
- 3.2-inch screen
- fm radio
for $249.

It really looks great for me. I'll have to wait for the complete cnet review.. But I like it.

[skyline6]

Wow... people just piss me off!!

People are funny when they talk crap about the Zune... dont hate! The Zune is way better then hundreds of other MP3's! and why is it always compared to the ipod? why isnt any other player compared to the ipod? and cmon the new nano!!! CRAP!!! and ipod is very simple and has nothing special in it. People like it because its simple, not because its like the best friken player out there and changed the whole world. its simple and easy to use... And most people that talk crap have no clue what there talking about and dont know anything about the product.

[outaru]

i'll wait for wifi enabled ipod classic

imagine you can access your 160gb music on your classic using your ipod touch, that's a better use of wifi than auto syncing but i guess auto syncing is good when you have lot's of juice and you're too lazy to reach for the cable...

oh Apple put wifi on your ipod classic please, let these zune fanatics die in envy...