![]() Reviewers felt the Zune was better than the iPod in some respects, such as the user interface, the ability to exchange songs (which users called squirting. From the Zune 30 in 2006, the company expanded the array with models like the smaller 4, 8, and 16 GB versions, and eventually the bigger 80 GB and 120 GB versions. Like we said, overall, the performance wasn't bad, and more options were available. Talk about bad timing.Īgain, it became the target of jokes. Microsoft came out with pots and pans banging to launch the Zune, one day AFTER Apple had announced its fifth-generation iPods with storage capacities ranging from 1 GB up to 80GB, and tons of extras. Yes, people want to support the underdog, but sometimes, they also want to watch it fail. The iPod had already established itself as the go-to mp3 player. It was late 2006, early 2007, and Apple was working on something more significant: the iPhone. Overall, users and testers alike considered Microsoft's first try as a good one.īut behind the jokes, there's truth. The device worked well, had extras like FM radio and wi-fi capability, albeit limited. And what happened next, didn't help either. The device garnered a certain cult-following from the start.Ĭult-following, however, doesn't take a product to the number one spot. The rest of the world thought otherwise.Īt least, to a tiny population, the device's uniqueness, including the color, seemed to have worked. They truly believed that this color would be hip. ![]() ![]() Still, Microsoft felt "brown was the new black." That's not the title of a new, highly controversial Netflix series. Let me give you a moment to think about all the devices you currently use with such a color. Well, when we say there was lots of hype, that's what Microsoft hoped.įirst, there was one big elephant in the room: it was brown. It offered a new marketplace, and the Zune had specs such as 30Gb of storage and audio, video, and photo. In the past, Microsoft had collaborated with Toshiba and its Gigabeat products. The service wasn't only a music marketplace, because Microsoft brought a device into the equation: the Zune mp3 player. Two years later, Microsoft shut it down and launched the Zune service. In 2004, it created MSN Music to compete, but the idea was short-lived. Microsoft Zune OriginsĮver since iTunes was born, Microsoft tried to copy it. We'll tell you all about that other mp3 player, the Zune, in this article. They didn't: what followed was an embarrassing attempt at being cool, with odd mistakes and even more unusual colors. To win, they needed to have all the parts of the equation right from the start. So, to them, it seemed natural to take on and dominate another market: mp3 players. In the mid-2000s, Microsoft was riding high on the successful Xbox and established itself as the leading software for PCs. But, most importantly, you need to believe in what you are bringing to the table. If you want to challenge the number one in any market, you need to have a good, rather an excellent product.
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