Ok, so you’re in the market for a good mp3 player. There are about a billion out there, but two stand out above the rest. Microsoft’s Zune and Apple’s iPod. Which one is better? Let’s take a look at the specs.
Now just so you know, i’m actually comparing the Zune to the regular iPod, not the iPod Touch, which just wouldn’t be a fair comparison.
The Similarities
Right off the bat, you can see that most of the major specs are almost identical. 80 gigabyte hard drive on both, same price tag at $250, 30 hour max battery life, the size is pretty close with the Zune being a little bit larger, the resolution is the same.
If you think about it, this makes sense after all. The iPod was out several years before the Zune, so Microsoft had the luxury of taking an existing product and adding some features to improve upon it. After all, why would you release the exact same product without adding anything?
The Differences
The thing that Microsoft seemed to focus on with the Zune was the wireless side. The standard iPod has no wireless functions at all, and the Zune has many, like syncing wirelessly to your pc, and zune to zune wireless transferring of music. Add in an FM tuner, and you have a much more versatile product overall.
Another upgrade worth mentioning is the customizable background. It may seem trivial, but people appreciate being able to customize their gadgets these days.
One slight downside for Zune is that there are no games, but most people will never notice really, since they’ll probably prefer their PSP or Gameboy DS for that anyway.
Another is that the Zune is only PC compatible, while iPod works on PC or Mac. It might not be a huge deal now, but any business is good business, especially when it comes to stealing business from your competitor even if they don’t hold a huge market share.
One more thing worth mentioning is that the screen size of the Zune is about 20% larger than the iPods at 3.2 inches, but the resolution is the same. Some people report that this can make the Zune look a little pixilated at times, since you’re displaying the exact same image on a larger screen, similar to zooming in on a digital picture too far.
Zune vs iPod - Final Thoughts
When it comes down to it, it’s more about preference than anything, unless of course you really want wireless features then you should go with the Zune, and you Mac owners don’t have a Zune option anyway unless you have a PC that you can use to get your music.
Everything else is so close that it’s hard to specify a winner. If you have a ton of WMA files you’ve purchased that don’t play on an iPod, give the Zune a shot. Whatever your decision, don’t just buy an iPod because everyone else has one, go with what you’re comfortable with, go with what YOU like, that’s always the best bet.
Source :- Technocrati.com
