Liliputing

  • Reviews
  • Deals
  • How To…
  • Mini PCs
  • Shop
  • About
    • About Liliputing
    • Contact us
    • Advertise on Liliputing
    • Support Liliputing
    • Privacy Policy

RIP Zune HD (2009 – 2011)

10/04/2011 at 12:21 PM by Brad Linder 1 Comment

Zune HD

Microsoft’s Zune HD portable media player has been on life support for a while… now the company has officially pulled the plug. A page on the Zune support website states that Microsoft will no longer be making Zune players, and will instead focus on Windows Phone.

Update: Microsoft says the Zune HD isn’t dead yet… but all signs certainly point to the portable media player being on its death bed. 

The move isn’t particularly surprising, since Windows Phone devices can do pretty much anything a Zune can… and much, much more. But the Zune HD was a small, affordable device for playing media, surfing the web and running a few apps that was produced by Microsoft and sold without any sort of a service contract.

Windows Phone 7, on the other hand, is software that third party device makers slap on smartphones that are typically sold by wireless carriers. You could always by a Windows Phone 7 device and use it without a voice or data plan — but you’ll end up paying a lot more than the $200 or so that a Zune HD cost.

When the Zune HD launched in September, 2009, it was basically Microsoft’s answer to the iPod Touch. It featured a 3.3 inch, 480 x 272 pixel AMOLED display and a first generation NVIDIA Tegra processor. It was a nice little piece of hardware… without much of a software ecosystem. My only major complaint when I reviewed the Zune HD a few years ago was that there were almost no good apps for the platform. Two years later that hasn’t really changed.

Microsoft promises to continue offering support for the device for the foreseeable future — and you can still find a number of retailers with Zune HD models in stock, it would appear that production of the Zune HD has ceased.

While a number of device makers are putting out Android-powered iPod touch competitors, it looks like it’s time to wave goodbye to the only such device from Microsoft.

 

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Email

Daily Deals (2-15-2019)

A few days ago I noted that the 2.2 pound Asus E203MA laptop with an 11.6 inch display, an Intel Celeron N4000 Gemini Lake processor, 4GB of RAM and … [Read More...]



Support Liliputing

Liliputing’s primary sources of revenue are advertising and affiliate links (if you click the “Shop” button at the top of the page and buy something on Amazon, for example, we’ll get a small commission).

But there are several ways you can support the site directly even if you’re using an ad blocker and hate online shopping.

Contribute via PayPal

  • donate monthly
  • donate once only
Select a Donation Option (USD)

Enter Donation Amount (USD)

Subscribe via Patreon

Become a Patron!

1
Leave a Reply

Login with
Facebook Google Twitter WordPress Yahoo! Disqus Reddit Stackoverflow GitHub
avatar
This comment form collects your name, email address, and content to allow us to keep track of comments placed on this website. Please read our privacy policy for more details.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser cookies for the next time I comment.
1 Comment threads
0 Thread replies
0 Followers
 
Most reacted comment
Hottest comment thread
1 Comment authors
1stkorean Recent comment authors
avatar
This comment form collects your name, email address, and content to allow us to keep track of comments placed on this website. Please read our privacy policy for more details.
Save my name, email, and website in this browser cookies for the next time I comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  Subscribe  
newest oldest most voted
Notify of
1stkorean
Guest
1stkorean
You can flag a comment by clicking its flag icon. Website admin will know that you reported it. Admins may or may not choose to remove the comment or block the author. And please don't worry, your report will be anonymous.

Ballmer really missed the boat on this.  The Zune should be the Zone Phone and not WP7.  It is fact the Zune was/is a far better device than the iphone would/could ever be.

Knowing what MS can and has done I get tired of them being made fun of, degraded, humiliated and playing catch up.  But I do know most of it is MS’s fault for not having forward thinking leadership which I hope is coming soon.

We can only Hope after the release of Windows 8, Ballmer will be gone. 

I guess this is just one reason why Ballmer is on Life Support right now!!!

Vote Up0Vote Down  Reply
7 years ago

Follow Liliputing:

Facebook Twitter YouTube tumblr RSS Patreon

Latest News

Lilbits 349: The 5G smartphones are coming

Mobile World Congress is a little more than a week away, and we'll likely see … [Read More...]

Windows Subsystem for Linux update will let you access Linux file from Windows

One of the most surprising things about Windows 10 is that you have the option … [Read More...]

SPUDwrite is a DIY E Ink typewriter… with a printer… and an LCD display

Modern computers can do an awful lot of things. You can write a novel, or read … [Read More...]

Featured articles

GPD MicroPC handheld computer preview

It's been a good couple of years for handheld computer enthusiasts. Companies … [Read More...]

Taihe Gemini portable 1080p touchscreen monitor preview

The Taihe Gemini portable monitor has made quite a splash since going up for … [Read More...]

Zotac Pico PI470 is a pocket-sized PC with Intel Amber Lake

Zotac's latest pocket-sized computer is the company's most powerful to date. … [Read More...]

Disclosure: Some links on this page are monetized by Skimlinks and Amazon's and eBay's affiliate programs.

Login

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries RSS
  • Comments RSS
  • WordPress.org

Copyright © 2019 Liliputing · About Liliputing · Contact Us · Privacy Policy · Go to top of page

wpDiscuz
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.