Sep 10

Microsoft says no plans for Zune HD in France, other markets still up in the air

Posted in: canada, europe, Microsoft, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

Those in the U.S. may finally be getting their hands on the Zune HD next week, but it looks like folks elsewhere could well be in for a longer wait than they may have been hoping for. That’s been the speculation since the device was first announced, of course, but Microsoft is only now getting a bit more specific about the matter, with Microsoft France exec François Ruault telling PC World that the company has “no plans” to launch the Zune HD in France, although he adds that doesn’t necessarily mean it’ll never be released there. That presumably also means that the rest of Europe is similarly up in the air, but if past history is any indication, it seems likely that the Zune HD will indeed land there eventually, sometime after it finally makes a trip north of the border.

[Via MobileTechWorld]

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Microsoft says no plans for Zune HD in France, other markets still up in the air originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Sep 2009 18:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sep 02

Microsoft Kills Current Zunes in Anticipation of HD

Posted in: Microsoft, MP3 Digital Audio, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd

Microsoft is putting all of its eggs into the Zune HD basket. The company has discontinued sales on the current Zune ahead of the scheduled mid-September release of the much-hyped Zune HD. This news comes according to Paul Thurrott over at SuperSite For Windows.

All of the means that, as soon as stores run out of their current stock of non-touchscreen Zunes, those devices will be all but a distant squirting memory.

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Sep 01

All Zune models not named ‘Zune HD’ on the outs

Posted in: Microsoft, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

Microsoft guru Paul Thurrott of SuperSite for Windows fame has read the writing on the wall. According to the reps he spoke with, production has ceased on all Zune models before the upcoming Zune HD. In other words, when supplies run out, Zune 4, 8, 16, 80, and 120 are as good as dead, with only this year’s model left standing. Shed a tear for the old guard, and keep an eye out for what we’re hoping will be some pretty sweet sales as everyone tries to clean out stock.

[Via ZuneSpring]

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All Zune models not named ‘Zune HD’ on the outs originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Sep 2009 22:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 28

Zune HD pamphlet discloses HD movies coming to Zune marketplace

Posted in: Movies, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd


With TV shows, music video, and video podcasts already proliferating the Zune marketplace, it was really only a matter of time before Microsoft dipped its toes into HD movies — not to mention kind of a logical step since Xbox Live was getting its movie section Zune-branded. BostonPocketPC writer Steven Hughes has uploaded pictures of an alleged pamphlet handed out at Best Buy’s Zune HD showings that, among other things, make reference to finding Zune Marketplace content including HD movies. Ban on HDTV Media Center recordings notwithstanding, things are looking up for Zune 4.0 software. And here we thought Apple was late to the party with its movie service.

[Via Zunited]
Read – Pamphlet pics
Read – BostonPocketPC

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Zune HD pamphlet discloses HD movies coming to Zune marketplace originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 24

Zune HD box contents spotted at Best Buy

Posted in: Microsoft, Today's Chili, unboxing, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd
We’ve already gotten a glimpse of the Zune HD’s packaging courtesy of Best Buy’s big preview event this past weekend — but what about the contents of said packaging? Therein lies excitement. Excitement like some giant fold-out instructions, a USB cable, and a pair of headphones that seem to be more or less identical to the ones that came with the Zune 120 — oh, and a little thing called the Zune HD. Hit up the link below for a closer look, and a couple more demo videos for those that still can’t get enough of the thing.

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Zune HD box contents spotted at Best Buy originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 23

Zune HD’s “Apps” menu item spotted in the Marketplace, still short on details

Posted in: apps, AppStore, Microsoft, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

At Best Buy’s Zune HD preview today a certain Matthew Arkin on Qik was able to shoot footage of the “Apps” item that resides within the “Marketplace” section on the device. It’s still incredibly unclear what Microsoft’s plans are for that functionality — they’ve long admitted its existence, but have waffled on the name and have been reticent to show it off in meetings with us. Microsoft so far has only promised to have applications on par with the games currently available for Zune, but there’s obviously a lot of implied competition with Apple’s App Store that the word “Apps” on a touchscreen device conjures up. On video (embedded after the break) the rep is asked if there’s an SDK, and apparently Matthew got a “yes” offscreen, but we’re not really sure of the veracity of that statement, or what it means for developers at the moment — hopefully good, freedom-ey things.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading Zune HD’s “Apps” menu item spotted in the Marketplace, still short on details

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Zune HD’s “Apps” menu item spotted in the Marketplace, still short on details originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Aug 2009 02:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 22

Zune HD box spotted?

Posted in: Microsoft, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

According to one tipster, the Zune HD was a no-show today at both of his Houston-area Best Buys, so hopefully this little tidbit can make it up to that loneliest of all Zune fans. According to CrazyphoneGuy of Twitter and his prodigious Twitpic account, the picture above is of the Zune HD’s new box. It looks quite a bit like existing Zune boxes, but that’s certainly no slight. Anyone else track down the Zune HD at a Best Buy today, or was NVIDIA just fooling with us?

[Thanks, Brayan]

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Zune HD box spotted? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 22 Aug 2009 17:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 21

Zune HD getting previewed at select Best Buys this weekend

Posted in: BestBuy, Microsoft, NVIDIA, preview, tegra, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

Now that NVIDIA is totally free to chat up its Tegra involvement in the Zune HD, it’s wasted little time in publishing a list of Zune HD preview locations where you can witness the magic for yourself this weekend. The tour is fairly limited to the big urban hubs, but peep the PDF and see if your friendly neighborhood Best Buy is represented.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in. Warning: PDF link]

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Zune HD getting previewed at select Best Buys this weekend originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 Aug 2009 12:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 17

NVIDIA confirms Tegra processor within Zune HD, details it real good

Posted in: Microsoft, NVIDIA, PMP, processor, tegra, Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

It’s no big secret that NVIDIA’s potent Tegra chip will be powering Microsoft’s forthcoming Zune HD, but up until now, the former company had been rather quiet about its involvement in the project. Just a few days after the OLED-equipped portable media player went up for pre-order around the web, NVIDIA has stepped in to affirm that its own Tegra processor will be “providing the multimedia muscle in Zune HD.” We’re told that no fewer than eight independent processors make up Tegra’s collective whole, with each one engineered for a specific class of tasks; among them are an HD video processor, an audio processor, a graphics processor and two ARM cores. Each of the chips can work together or independently to minimize power consumption, and the built-in nPower technology is said to optimize system power use and enable extended HD video / MP3 playback time. Sounds good in print, but we’ve got just under a month to find out how it performs for real.

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NVIDIA confirms Tegra processor within Zune HD, details it real good originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 15

Zune HD’s HD Radio breaks through the FCC as well

Posted in: Today's Chili, zune, zune hd, ZuneHd

Can you feel it? The Zune HD is really really real, and the FCC just rubber stamped another internal component: the onboard HD Radio. With a September 15th release date already on the books, it’s not exactly a surprise that the wireless insides of the device won’t fry your babies, but it’s still a comforting thought. And check out that sexy label! Totally worth the second trip to FCC land.

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Zune HD’s HD Radio breaks through the FCC as well originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 15 Aug 2009 14:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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