Zune anyone?

[Razor]

I'm one of those people who are still stuck in the "buying the whole album" not one song phase. That's my reason for not wanting an MP3 player. That, and I honestly don't have the time to waste with an MP3 player. That's what the CD player in the truck, computer, and stereo (when I really want it loud) are for.

[Carbuff]

What... ya think that music made itself?
That shit costs a ton of cash to produce. You don't think an artist should get paid for their efforts?
And be fore you go down that whole bla bla corporate raping of musicians rant, the musicians still get a piece of the sales.
Might not be much, but they still make money.

Whoa, simmer down there, I wasnt advocating anything. I was simply pointing out a reason why some people might not like an ipod. Back when free downloading was all the rage, Napster, etc, itunes was probably the only one offering a pay per song service. Itunes became the poster child for paying for music when a lot of people thought that the whole "sharing" thing was ok. Im not saying that theyre right but itunes could have been looked upon as the "enemy" and therefore a reason to not like an I-anything. Thats all. I like them all as long as I get a good deal on it. Also, I didnt mean that itunes was a pita because of paying for music. Im just a drag and drop kind of guy. The whole synchronizing thing is a pita to me, and Im sure many others agree.

[Big D]

Zune + Amazon .99 cent (DRM-free) mp3's + my entire CD collection on one easy to use device + tons of free sci/news/music podcasts + a really good UI = happy Zune user.

I definitely was not an early adopter of the mp3 player craze, but since I discovered how cool it is to have all my CD's with me wherever I am, it's tough to go back. The thing that really closed the deal for me though was all the awesome free podcasts that you can subscribe to that synch automatically with the Zune.

Disclaimer - I am a Microsoft employee, but that has nothing to do with the fact that I'm a fan of the Zune - or any other device that will allow me to rip my CD's effortlessly in a non-DRM format and download mp3's with zero DRM bullshit. And no, that is definitely not the company line - on the subject of DRM I'm a bit of a rebel. I'm more than happy to pay for music, just don't tell me when/where/how I can use it after you have my money.

[Razor]

Disclaimer - I am a Microsoft employee, but that has nothing to do with the fact that I'm a fan of the Zune - or any other device that will allow me to rip my CD's effortlessly in a non-DRM format and download mp3's with zero DRM bullshit. And no, that is definitely not the company line - on the subject of DRM I'm a bit of a rebel. I'm more than happy to pay for music, just don't tell me when/where/how I can use it after you have my money.

That is exactly why my wife was bought a Zune for Christmas. I agree 100% with you. If it's my music that I've bought and paid for fair and square, then who the hell should tell me when/where/how to use it. That is the cold hard truth.

[Bert]

iPod / iPhone works just fine with non-DRM mp3s. In fact that's all I use mine for.

[hippietim]

Ok, all this fascinating Zune, iPod, DRM, and Microsoft bashing aside, back to the original topic:

If you're using the Zune player, what's your Zune tag?