Zune 3.0 Microsoft Promotional Videos

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=eDgfpYPFO74' target='_blank'>http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=eDgfpYPFO74</a><br /><br /></div><p>These videos are provided to the press by Microsoft for our use, and I'm sharing them here today because until September 16th rolls around, I can't shoot my own videos of this stuff. :-) These videos cover the following scenarios: Buy from FM, WiFi Features, MixView, and Zune Channels.</p><p><object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" width="425" height="349" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="src" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/eDgfpYPFO74&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;border=1" /><embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/v/eDgfpYPFO74&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;border=1" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></p>

[cjaxx]

Until they get the Marketplace in Canada, there's really nothing for me to get excited about here.
I just want to know if they fixed the gapless. It's the most important feature for me...

[Jason Dunn]

Until they get the Marketplace in Canada, there's really nothing for me to get excited about here.

Yeah, I hear you - it's pretty crazy there's still no Marketplace in Canada. :mad:

I just want to know if they fixed the gapless. It's the most important feature for me...

Hmm. I didn't realize it was broken, but I don't listen to a lot of gapless music. What's wrong with it?

[Alber1690]

In that same page they have some screenshots of the Zune 3.0 software. I found some cool UI changes (http://wynknow.blogspot.com/2008/09/cool-zune-30-software-ui-updates-coming.html). It seems like the "Dancing Pink Cloud" has been jazzed up, and we seem to be getting new backgrounds. :D

[Bobbyboy341]

Hmm. I didn't realize it was broken, but I don't listen to a lot of gapless music. What's wrong with it?

Gapless is great if you listen to a lot of live concert music or other material where the tracks run together(such as Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon). Zune currently is not gapless so you hear clicks or spaces in between tracks.

Apple has solved this...why not MS?

[cjaxx]

the Zune does have the gapless playback feature since the last upgrade, but it's imperfect. It cuts out a fraction of a second somewhere at the gap, which is enough to hear a jump in the music, especially if you're listening to dj mixes.

[Menneisyys]

the wi-fi-based channel (podcast) on-device (!!!) update sounds very cool. I'm looking forward to test it and accordingly update my multiplatform podcasting bible!

[cjaxx]

Gapless fixed!! :D
Now I can love my Zune unconditionally. :P

[Jason Dunn]

In that same page they have some screenshots of the Zune 3.0 software. I found some cool UI changes (http://wynknow.blogspot.com/2008/09/cool-zune-30-software-ui-updates-coming.html). It seems like the "Dancing Pink Cloud" has been jazzed up, and we seem to be getting new backgrounds. :D

Yeah, so here's the funny thing: remember how we've complained here before that the "dancing pink cloud" was really lacklustre and not very...energertic? Guess what? It wasn't tied into the music in any way - it wasn't responding to the beat or waveform of the music, it was just...being a cloud. Haha. :D This new pink cloud is tied into the music, and that's why it looks so much cooler.

And there are two brand new backgrounds: Neuxe (which I love) and Zero.

[Jason Dunn]

the Zune does have the gapless playback feature since the last upgrade, but it's imperfect. It cuts out a fraction of a second..

Ah, ok, so they added it in 2.x but it wasn't quite right. Fair enough.

[Jason Dunn]

the wi-fi-based channel (podcast) on-device (!!!) update sounds very cool. I'm looking forward to test it and accordingly update my multiplatform podcasting bible!

Hrm. We were told that on-device podcast updates weren't possible...and I didn't think that there was a podcast channel - we were told it was only for music right now.

[cjaxx]

damn, i spoke too soon about gapless. :(
worked with one mix album, but not with any others. it cuts out some frames, so you get a slight jump ahead. i guess they didn't improve past features...

[Jason Dunn]

worked with one mix album, but not with any others. it cuts out some frames, so you get a slight jump ahead. i guess they didn't improve past features...

Is there an album in the Zune Marketplace that really demonstrates this problem, something that I could point the Zune team to and say "OK, listen to this album, and you'll hear the problem...".