iPod vs. Zune
I recently listened to the Diggnation podcast, If London’s Calling…, starring Kevin Rose and Alex Albrecht. During part of the podcast, they were discussing the old Zune getting new features and then they started talking about the new Zune and the features that the iPod Touch is missing.
I have never really been a fan of the iPod, but I do have one (30GB iPod Video). I love it because it takes up very little space and I can listen to music and podcasts and watch videos no matter where I am. There are a few things I don’t like about it:
- The click wheel is the most annoying way to move through menu options. Sometimes it even causes me to bypass the option I want. Having to remember which part to click to go back is annoying as well. If the click wheel was labeled better, it might be slightly easier.
- The battery drains when I’m not using it. Maybe mine came with a bad battery, I don’t know. But, it could be just a week that I haven’t used the iPod (fully charged battery) and I will turn it on and it tells me it needs to be charged!
- The blinking “Do not disconnect.” icon.
- iTunes may have a few nice features, but it is slow! Let me choose how I want to put my music on my iPod, please. And, in the format I want it in!
- Calendar, Contacts, Notes, etc. I don’t really care about any of that if I can’t edit directly from the iPod.
- It’s not wireless. (I know the iPod Touch has this, but I don’t own one.)
Even though there are several things I don’t like about the iPod, I still like it. But, the Zune has some nice features that the iPod is lacking:
- Playing Windows Media Audio (.wma) and Windows Media Video (.wmv).
- Wireless. (Again, I know the iPod Touch has this feature.)
- FM Radio! There are many times I’d like to listen to just the radio.
- Faster charge time.
I would gladly trade my 30GB iPod Video for either a new Zune or even better, an iPod Touch. I know the iPod Touch is currently at 8GB and 16GB, which is much less than 30GB, but I know the size will eventually increase, right Apple?