The Zune Desktop Software 4.0I want to start off my coverage of the Zune 4.0 Desktop software with a slight warning. If you use this and setup a credit or debit card for easy billing you will want to keep an eye on your account. We had an issue where 4000 points were billed to use without us ever having purchased anything. The issue is being resolved through our bank but is something that everyone should be aware of. The problem is that while you think you are dealing with the Zune Marketplace, you are really dealing with the Xbox Live system. This system is controlled by a third party and not Microsoft. As such when you call them for support or with any incorrect billing issues there is nothing they can do. As such you have to open a dispute with your bank [do not worry they are used to it] to get the charge off of your account.
Now that all that is out of the way lest talk about the good parts [and there are many] of the new Zune 4.0 Desktop Software.
This software has been completely redesigned for the Zune HD and follows its clean and simple lines. When the new software was out and we had received the Zune HD I stopped using iTunes as my media player [I mostly use it for back ground music and audio books while working] and started using the Zune software. I was pleasantly surprised at is functionality, audio quality, and flexibility. By default, when you open up the new software you see the Quickplay screen. This is like the one on the Zune HD but includes three favorites that you pick during the initial setup. You can also see items that you have listened to or added recently. This is presented to you in a clean and classy looking UI, opaque white text on a glossy black background. Full color images [if available] are used as icons for the all of the links on this screen and only add to the overall look.
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The collection page is where you will find all of your media. There are separate areas for each type; music, video, pictures, podcasts, channels, and apps. In each section there are tools to arrange your media to your tastes. As you can see in the screen shot below we have arranged the artists [using the Artists view] from A-Z in the left column, the Albums by Date added, and the songs by their rating. This type of flexibility is not really present in iTunes [in this manner] you have to choose the format that suits you most and cannot have all of them present at once.
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Playlists are still present and are easily created by clicking on the paper icon in the lower corner from there you have a few different options for creating new playlists as well as a list of existing playlists.
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Another thing that I like about the Zune software is the channels. Channels are specific genres that you may be interested in [comedy for me] you select the channel and it will go out and get media that you might want. It will list them for you and you can listen to them straight from the player without the need to purchase or download them. If you like them you have the option to add them to your collection. If not you do not have to do anything as the channel will automatically update. It is a great feature and one that I plan to use more in the future. Apple has something like this in the Genius Bar, but you have to buy those suggestions and have no option to listen to them and make up your mind beforehand.
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Heading out of the collection and into the Marketplace we find the Picks screen. This is pretty cool and much like the Genius Bar is based on the tracks you listen to as well as the three favorite artists you chose when setting up the software. As you listen to more and more music the picks chosen by the Zune software will be come closer and closer to your tastes. I found that after only 200 plays the picks section was very close to offering me items that I would actually want to listen to. Picks also includes a list of people with similar listening tastes to your own. You can click on each and see what music they have in their collection and can even download them [if available]. Again this is another nice feature of this software.
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The music section is pretty straight forward, if you have a Zune Pass [which we will cover below] you can simply grab all the music you want [but not videos those cost you] from this section and either listen to them on your Zune/Zune HD or using the desktop player. Of course as the Zune desktop software places all of the music in a folder on your PC there are ways to… Um get around this limitation. We will leave those to you to find though.
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Once you leave the freedom of the music area you enter the “oh so costly” video section. Here is the place where you have to break out the gift cards or your credit card. There are a few free items in this section but for the most part you are going to be buying point [in some fashion] to get anything here.
The selection is also pretty extensive and nice. If you have the Zune HD you can chose from an SD version for playback on the PC [according to Microsoft] or HD version for playback on the Zune HD with the AV Dock. One downside to any purchase [as we mention above] is that there are no refunds at all. Additionally Microsoft warns that you might not be able to re-download this in the future if it is deleted.
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You also have the option to rent movies and TV shows this is much less costly and lets you view the movie within 14 days. And as many times as you want within the first 24 hours after you first view it. If paying for movies is not your thing you can add your own collection of videos [after you transcode them using something like Videora Zune HD Converter] to your Zune by choosing the folder they are in while in the settings menu.
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Podcasts are just what they say they are and for the most part are completely free, even the video ones.
You can subscribe to them as normal and the Zune software will keep you up to date with new episodes.
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Skipping over channels [as we have already covered what they do] we move on to apps. This section of the Zune Marketplace is rather bare. Despite being hailed and built as an amazing mobile gaming and entertainment platform the App area of the Zune Marketplace remains bare even a couple of weeks after the launch. True we have been told that amazing Apps and games are on the way but they have yet to materialize. The Apps that are here are basic games and a couple of boring utilities [Weather and a Calculator] will not interest most consumers. A couple of the games are fun to play but quickly lose their “new car smell” after playing them a few times. Unless Microsoft can fill this section with quality games and Apps [and allow third party open development] they will have a rough time competing with the iPod Touch and iPhone.
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The Social is the last of the main sections found in the Zune software. It allows you to communicate with other Zune software users and recommend media. It is also useful for the Picks portion of the software. It can use people with similar preferences to you to create more accurate picks. While I personally would not use the social much, it is still a nice feature and will allow people to have another outlet for their Internet socializing needs.
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For getting your own CDs into the Zune Desktop Software you simply insert the CD that you want to RIP and click the CD Icon. It will rip them according to your settings and even import album art and information. You can also use this Icon to Burn playlists or albums to CD or just an inserted CD. The last of the Icons is the Zune Player Icon; this icon is an outline when you do not have the player connected and filled in when it is. Clicking on this Icon takes you into the player through the software. Here you can view and play any of the media you have on your player. To leave this area you can click on the small PC icon [Looks more like a laptop to me]
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Zune Pass$15 monthly for unlimited listeningAh the Zune Pass, possibly one of the best things that Zune HD and Zune players in general have going for them. The concept is simple, you pay $14.99 and get unlimited downloads of music that you can listen to on your PC or sync with your player. As an added bonus with your Monthly Zune Pass payment you can pick 10 songs to keep each month that are yours forever. It is a brilliant concept [and yes I know that Microsoft was not the first with this] it trumps the iTunes Store completely even with the lack of Video and App support. I do hope that Microsoft does extend the Zune Pass to include more than just music in the future. It would be worth it [even if the cost goes up slightly] to be able to rent a selection of new releases per month with maybe one keeper and a few Apps thrown in. That would bring in quite a few new subscribers, and that is really where the money is at.
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