This Week in Consumer Electronics reports Microsoft's Zune will cost $299. Microsoft hasn't confirmed the price point, but apparently TWiCE got the info from retailers who have been briefed by MS.The Zune will come in three colors, have a 30GB hard drive, and WiFi capability. Apparently the WiFi can be used to swap songs with other users, but you will have to plug the player in to a computer to purchase songs.
One retailer says it has a larger screen than the iPod, which seemed apparent from the leaked images of the player. But it's not clear what that screen will be used for. Earlier this week, rumors began circulating that the Zune may ship without support for video.
If Microsoft wants to sell a portable media player that is competitive with Apple, they are going to have to offer something special. Right now, the only thing that seems to set Zune apart is the WiFi ability. Theoretically that could be a big selling point.
If they get it right, Microsoft could set up a web store that's easy to use on a small screen and let users connect via WiFi, stream trailers of movies and clips of music, and download them right on their device from anywhere in the house, or increasingly, even when their outdoors. But if it's true that the Zune will ship without a way to download media wirelessly, and may not even include video, they'll be about as successful at challenging Apple's dominance as Creative has been.
1. Can you browse the internet thru the WiFi connection?
Posted at 9:47AM on Aug 11th 2006 by Ian