Zune Originals

When it comes to hardware, the first Zune was a bust. Not something that we were interested in keeping displayed in our house in its own speaker dock like a certain other MP3 player. With the second version of the Zune coming out any day now, the redesign has caught our attention. Of particular interest is the concept of Zune Originals.

27 original works by 18 different artists is what makes up Zune originals. The different works can be paired with your preferred Zune colour, size and even personalized text. "The NikeID for the MP3 Player" according to Microsoft's general manager of global marketing, Chris Stephenson.

-via Wired

Related Links:

Use your iPod to decorate your home.

Pez MP3 player

Comments (5)

So mass-produced art "originals"... oxymoron. It'd be like buying a nice iPod sleeve and justifying paying 300-400 bucks for an inferior piece of garbage. Then again, from the blog that justifies 3000 dollar chairs. lol

posted by Djluckyonline on November 13th 2007 at 3:45pm
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You'd have to be a fool not to get an original Zune when they are blowing them out at places like woot.com for $90! 30 GB, color screen and updates to basically make it a second gen Zune. Why pay more for an iPod??!?!?! And anyone serious about sound wouldn't stick their mp3 player in one of those docking stations, they'd hook up to their stereo using line level inputs....(if they consider mp3 "hi-fi" enough).

posted by DaveD on November 14th 2007 at 5:06am
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since i abhor ipod and would cut off my ear before buying one, i welcome zune's attempts to be more stylish.

posted by lindsey kathlene on November 14th 2007 at 7:59am
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I'm ignorant. What is the functional difference between ipod and zune? I want to buy one for my dad for xmas but I don't know which. He cares a lot about sound quality when it comes to music, but I expect he will mainly use this for listening to audio books, so sound quality actually won't matter much. He couldn't care less about looks. And I'm on a budget, ideally $100 or less. Any guidance would be appreciated!

posted by mjoe on November 14th 2007 at 1:39pm
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mjoe - zune is to a PC what iPod is to Mac, when it comes to digital tunes. Unless he's really, and we mean really, picky about his sound, you'll do plenty fine with either, or any other type of MP3 player. Zune's are going to be/are at really great prices right now. The big choice is size, and platform.

As for size, you'll be somewhat limited by your budget, but generally more is better so you don't have to worry about limits; you should still be able to get plenty for books and podcasts. All MP3 players play "MP3"s, but the unique content available to zune/non-iPod vs. iPod is what sets them apart.

Note that also DRM (digital rights management) comes into play, because songs purchased on iTunes are only playable on iPods without doing some fancy work; however, you can load your own music onto the iPod/into iTunes in the MP3 format (you have to pick), so you can play it on any player if you desire.

Feel free to post a question asking for recommendations on the Open Threads.

posted by kate on November 14th 2007 at 6:28pm
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