01-28-2006, 02:00 AM
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Developer & Designer, News Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,959
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Microsoft Planning a Portable Media Device to Rival the iPod?
"After getting trounced for four years in the digital music business by Apple Computer (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT) finally seems poised to do something about it. BusinessWeek has learned that the software giant is working on plans to develop its own portable digital media device to rival the iPod, rather than just providing technology to partners. Microsoft hasn't decided if it will go ahead. But sources inside the company and at its partners say Microsoft has put together a team that's considering the business end of such an initiative."
Microsoft has the power to pull something like this off. Peter Moore suggests that the use of the Xbox brand name could give the device greater market penetration. And, if you think about it, he's probably right. There are so many Portable Media Centers out there that get lost in the clutter of other media devices that nobody even gets the chance to notice them. Then you have the iPod. Everyone knows the iPod name. Similarly, everyone knows the Xbox name. If Microsoft can tap on that concept, and put together its brightest minds and create an integrated hardware/software solution as solid as the iPod & iTunes combo, then maybe, just maybe, this iPod rival might get somewhere.
And, while on the topic of the Xbox, I'm going to use this space as a public service announcement for all our ANZ readers. The Xbox 360 release date has been pushed from March 2nd to March 23rd. Microsoft claims that it was a necessary move based on "unprecedented global consumer demand and short-term manufacturing issues." As if the wait wasn't long enough already. 
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01-28-2006, 05:48 AM
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Editorial Contributor
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 5,411
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Trecherous grond there. If you slap the X-Box branding on it to capitalize on that name, it better be a killer portable game platform. It can be the best media device ever, with 3D laser holography and virtual 5.1 sound, but if the gaming side is weak, and it says X-Box, it will bomb.
__________________
Sometimes you are the anteater, sometimes you are the ant.
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01-28-2006, 01:57 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 16
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Manufacturing problems? More like the US needs more
Yeah, right.
Lots of other companies pull this kind of ****. Australia is a niche market, we get all the leftovers from other markets. (Eg Nokia internet tablet - not even listed on the aussie website yet, though incredibly popular in europe and the US)
More likely they decided they needed to have more xboxes sold in the US market to pretty up their numbers.
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01-28-2006, 04:57 PM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 95
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ipod..ipod...ipod...76% of the ipods in existance were sold over the last 12 months...so it's not too late yet....
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01-28-2006, 09:42 PM
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Contributing Editor
Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 524
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I'd like to see this!
I'm all for good compitition. Maybe they'll have a new video storage medium that will help drive the price of UMD's down for those of us with psp's
It would be interesting to see what microsoft comes up with. The Gizmondo didn't seem to exactly take off but that's about the closest thing that exists that uses some form of windows ce/mobile/whatever is on it. Strangly, based on the screenshots i've looked at, the Gizmondo doesn't seem to be able to do nearly as good graphics as the psp can. Has anyone seen or played it and the psp? I think it uses the best mobile chipset from nVidia so I expected as better than what it looks like.
iRiver is supposed to have a similar device coming out I think. This could be a fun year for mobile gaming. I'm pretty happy with the selection of psp games already.
I'm not sure the Microsoft device would do much to ipod sales though. The ipod has a strong foot hold and most people who buy ipods only want to use the thing to listen to music. When they hear the microsoft thing plays games some people will just say "i don't want to play games, I want something that's just easy to listen to music with". Then again, who knows
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01-28-2006, 10:48 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 238
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Depends on how MS would handle this sort of device; if they go up against Apple, what would be the big difference between that and all of the other WMA-enabled devices, the only one of which that looks like it might make Apple stand up and notice is the Creative Vision:M. Similar form factor, almost exact same interface, but plays back WMA/MP3 and Divx/WMV, instead of AAC/MP3 and MP4/H.264. Not to mention 4 hours of video playback instead of 2 for the ipod. But I think WMP 10 blows, and I'm a iTunes user, so the choice was easy for me. However, Apple could use a good kick in the can to keep them on their toes.
But if they went the Sony PSP route, they'll probably make some of the mistakes Sony has made, minus the MS Duo slot. Console ports and probably some sort of video disc like UMD, since they have to be seeing how much Sony is taking in off of waterdowned UMD movies, it's got to be one of the few things keeping the system afloat at this point, that and GTA.
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01-29-2006, 07:33 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Oct 2004
Posts: 318
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The PSP is a excellent gaming platform with a good screen for watching video on. The MS Stick isn't to bad. Only about a 20% Premium on other medias and that's dropping.
With newer firmware it has a very useful web browser (better than PIE).
I would assume that with thw XBox name it'll interface with 360. And sell music via Xbox Live. I think they'd hook it in as a media player that can be synced with hdd of the 360 and transfer the saved games etc from it.
Don't think it would be a mobile gaming device.
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01-30-2006, 12:55 AM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,079
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by carphead
The PSP is a excellent gaming platform with a good screen for watching video on. The MS Stick isn't to bad. Only about a 20% Premium on other medias and that's dropping.
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The problem is NOT so much price but INCOMPATIBILITY!! Look at the video tape market: it only started to sell when the market chose VHS vs the others two.
Look at USB: not only it quickly replaced the parallel and old serial ports but there was also quickly a LOT of different devices never seen before: lights, fans, cup heaters, etc. on top of mice, keyboard (that use the same port interchangeably), modems, webcams, digicams, movie cams, memory keys, external HDD, etc. etc.
OTOH see the mess with MP3 players with different connectors: the 3rd party accessories market is non existent for most devices but the ipods, because they use the same connector throughout most of the line ans sell like crazy even to non computer savvy people.
Standards, standards, standards!!
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01-30-2006, 07:45 AM
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Ponderer
Join Date: Sep 2003
Posts: 98
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Hey Darius,
Actually, Microsoft announced the Portable Media Center Operating System in the fall of 2004, and several prototype devices - by Creative, iRiver, and a couple of others - were released for review by the major media outlets. You can see reviews on PC World.
But they then just let it drop. Both Creative and iRiver still have their webpages for these devices, but they are listed as "Discontinued" (iRiver) and "Not currently available" (Creative), and both now offer similar devices without the MS PMC OS. (The iRiver U10 - so-so, but cheaper - and the Creative Zen Vision - truly excellent, but real pricey!).
They were waiting on Microsoft to formally release the OS to them, but the subsequent release of the Video iPods prompted them to offer their non-PMC devices now.
You can see the iRiver PMC 120 here, and the Creative Portable Media Center here.
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01-30-2006, 03:48 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 450
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Jim,
Actually, Portable Media Centers were not just prototypes. These devices were released and sold (and some are still sold), just not very well. But the point of Dariu's post is that Microsoft is considering doing something they've not done yet. They are considering developing and releasing they own portable media device, as opposed to just developing their own software and letting other's manfacture the hardware to run it on.
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