ArsTechnica has a nice comparison of the Apple TV versus the Xbox 360 as the best choice for home entertainment system or digital hub. It’s a pretty easy for me with the Zune and a PC to take the 360 as a better choice for my digital lifestyle and it’s probably the better choice for millions of Windows users as well.

Apple TV is probably great for some folks but why would you miss out on the gaming capabilities and Xbox Live by choosing an Apple TV unless you already have a Wii or Playstation and no need for the Xbox game console? Seems like the Xbox 360 is an easy choice over the Apple TV for most of us.

Mano a mano: Apple TV vs. the Xbox 360: Page 2

Why the Apple TV is better:

* Cheaper than the Xbox 360
* Cheaper HD rentals
* Less restrictive licensing
* Build quality
* Better integration with the iTunes store
* Silent running
* Small form factor

Why the Xbox 360 is better:

* Lots of features when combined with Vista Windows Media Center
* Better picture quality (at the expense of file size)
* Plays games
* DVD drive (and the option of HD DVD)
* Includes cables

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Tags: Apple, Video, Video Games, Xbox, playstation, xbox, xbox 360, xbox live, zune

Found another great article on Gamasutra about Xbox Live and XNA but the most interesting quote in the entire article was the one below:
Gamasutra - Connecting Communities, Redefining Xbox Live: Chris Satchell On XNA

It’s interesting. There’s always been the theory that Microsoft was going to do the “X Boy,” but there’s never been any real credibility to that theory, as far as I’m aware. Coupling XNA with Zune is an interesting way to still get into the handheld games space with an existing device and not have it be a potential problem or liability.CS: It is interesting, because Zune was never designed for gaming. I don’t know about you, but I love the way this control input feels, especially…

I’m excited about what can be done with XNA on Zune and I think game development is going to be awesome for Zune. I wrote about the XNA platform when it first came out and I knew then that XNA was a great fit not only for Xbox but for Zune as well and recent announcements have confirmed what I already knew. Microsoft mobile games development will be under the Zune platform more so than Xbox. There is no Xboy coming Zune!

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Tags: Games, The Zune, Video Games, Xbox, Zune, Zune Developers, Zune Game Player, Zune SDK, Zune XNA, xbox, xbox live, xna, zune, zune game player, zune games, zune xna

Recordnet.com: “Zune-Arts.net” website review

By Michael Jimenez
Middle College High School
March 06, 2008 6:00 AMZune-Arts.net

This is a friendly Web campaign focused on promoting emerging artists. The page contains the collaborated works of individuals taking advantage of the advertising the site provides.

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Tags: Community, The Zune, Zune, Zune Fans, Zune.net, website review, zune, zune arts, zune arts.net, zune website

I realized that I never posted a link to the announcement last month about XNA development on Zune. It’s been a long time coming but we’ll have games for Zune that are designed and developed by members of the Zune community. If anyone is as hyped about developing a game as I am then please contact me so we can get to work on building some games for Zune game players.
XNA Team Blog : Announcing: XNA Game Studio 3.0 and Zune

Announcing: XNA Game Studio 3.0 and ZuneDavid “LetsKillDave” Weller

XNA Evangelist

We could have rested on our laurels by just announcing the new Xbox LIVE community games and XNA Creators Club Online features, but we’re a driven bunch of people here, and we’re passionate about gaming, so let’s lob another amazing treat out there.

The XNA Community Games Platform team is delighted to offer you a sneak peek at our first major feature for XNA Game Studio 3.0: The ability to build games for the Zune platform! This will let you write one game and deploy it to all three platforms that XNA Game Studio 3.0 will support: the Xbox 360, Windows, and now the Zune. While the Zune lacks the 3D graphics horsepower to drive high-end games like you can on the Xbox 360, we’ve taken extreme steps in making sure that you will have the broadest access to the XNA Framework APIs possible, allowing you to create fun Zune games while still letting you integrate carefully with the overall Zune media experience. That means that XNA Game Studio 3.0 integration includes discoverability/access to the user’s music – allowing the user to customize background soundtracks or create real-time visualizations at their discretion. In addition, the XNA Community Games Platform team has announced the ability to have multiple Zunes wirelessly engage in an ad-hoc gaming experience (think of the possibilities!).

Our current planning is to offer a preview release of XNA Game Studio 3.0 in the Spring 2008 timeframe, with a final release scheduled for the holiday 2008 season. We look forward to your feedback and seeing what kind of amazing games you can create for the Zune!

Read more about this at http://creators.xna.com/whatsnew.aspx

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Tags: Community, Games, Gaming, Microsoft, The Zune, Video Games, Xbox, Zune, Zune Developers, Zune SDK, Zune XNA

Here is a very interesting article written by Patrick Klepek over at the Multi Player Blog at MTV.com that asks if the Microsoft Live Anywhere Initiative is dead? For those of you who do not know what the Live Anywhere Initiative is take a look back at the Wikipedia page for more details. In a nutshell Live Anywhere is Microsofts global plan for dominance of our digital lifestyle where they want us to be able to access their services from anywhere at anytime through Windows, Xbox and now Zune.

Patrick asks if the Live Anywhere Initiative is dead and I don’t understand how he came to this conclusion really. I think that Zune is actually the most important component to the Live Initiative. I think Zune will cover most if not all of the mobile components and is not limited to just music and phones. I realize that everyone has been waiting for a mobile Xbox platform to arrive but I think its already here in the form of Zune. I think that Xbox will be reserved as the home entertainment console with a focus on HD movies and IPTV which I think will make an obvious partner with Xbox as the preferred content delivery method of the future. There will not be a mobile Xbox game player or platform, its going to be Zune Game Players. I believe that Zune is the mobile platform and the “Anywhere” aspect of the Live Anywhere Initiative that is still very much alive. It’s progressing just fine but what our friend Patrick has missed is that it will not be developed under the Xbox brand as so many expected it would be it will be under the new brand of Zune.

My money lies on a portable game player from Zune and not Xbox. What better way to insure the success of the Zune brand then to build the mobile game player on that platform? It won’t matter what they call it they mobile game player from Microsoft is a sure success and by building it on the Zune platform they guarantee the success of their new mobile entertainment and communications platform. Once they integrate more Windows Mobile and Live features into the Zune game and music players the convergence of Live Anywhere exists. The Live Platform is all of the Microsoft services including Windows, Windows Mobile, Xbox and now Zune. It began as Xbox Live with the games because that was the easiest to generate a community with and they will slowly make it a Microsoft portal with access to everything Live. This should make it easier to understand why Microsoft has been dumping billions into Xbox when you see that it was about much more than just games and why they will dump billions into Zune which is about much more than just music.
MTV Multiplayer » We Asked Microsoft: Is That ‘Live Anywhere’ Initiative Dead?

At the Microsoft’s press briefing at E3 2006, Bill Gates came on stage to introduce Live Anywhere, an ambitious company initiative to integrate the Xbox 360 experience into everyday life via mobile phones.Nearly two years later, Live Anywhere has yet to materialize.

Is Live Anywhere dead? Here’s what Xbox Live exec. John Schappert (who took the stage for Microsoft’s keynote at GDC this year) told Multiplayer in an e-mailed statement:

Technorati Tags: zune, xbox, live, microsoft, live anywhere, xbox live, zune live, zune games

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Tags: Microsoft, The Zune, Xbox, Zune, Zune Phone, Zune Rumors, Zune XNA, live anywhere, microsoft, xbox, xbox 360, xbox live, zune, zune game, zune game player, zune games, zune live

I guess we all understand why the HD drives in the Xbox 360 are external components don’t we? Lots of people faulted Microsoft for making the HD drive an external attachment but it was obviously a smarter move than making the same drive an internal component wasn’t it? No one could know who would win the format war and Microsoft hedged their bets by choosing the HDDVD drive in partnership with Toshiba by making it an add on component that can easily be changed over for another drive in the future.

Making the 360 a modular system was smarter in many ways. It helps keep the cost of the base unit lower and gets more users on your consoles. This is a safer bet then the move Sony made by including the Blu Ray player in the Playstation 3 whereby they have priced themselves above many entrants to the market and made themselves a high end system trying to compete with more affordable consoles like the 360 or Wii. Sony is sitting pretty now that the format war is over but they took one hell of a risk by integrating the Blu Ray and had this format war gone the other way this discussion would more likely be about the death of Sony and the Playstation than it is about a potential partnership between 2 of the top 3 console makers in the industry.

Microsoft has no problem in shifting sides, gears or partnerships and they will gladly open up to a partnership with Sony and include a Blu Ray device for the Xbox 360 in the near future I am certain. Why else would they have built the 360 with an external drive connection? What other choice does Microsoft have even? They are not going to develop some other format are they? No. They have no other choice but to concede a portion of future HD drive sales to Sony for every 360 sold if they want their player to be compatible with the only HD format available any longer. Don’t they?

And what about Sony? Do you think they will keep the Blu Ray a proprietary system and force Microsoft to develop an alternative or do you think they will settle for a slice of all HD drive sales on future Xbox units by establishing the Blu Ray as the HD standard for all game platforms? Do you think they want to risk the victory they have just claimed as the only HD format available? No. Sony will gladly take a piece of HD drive sales on Xbox because they know that at some point in the future all HD players will be Blu Ray and Sony will make money on every game console their competitors sell.
Sony Reportedly Discussing Blu-ray Xbox With Microsoft

Sony turned to Microsoft for a possible Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 360, a senior executive told the Financial Times yesterday. On one hand, Microsoft has always supported the HD DVD format, which is now dead and buried, while Sony said they wanted to adjust to the consumers’ needs. After all, if we think of it, as there is no more HD DVD, what can the two companies do but talk?Everyone is curious to know how this collaboration would materialize in terms of prices, as Sony has kept a pretty high price tag on its Blu-ray so far. The question is: is Sony ready to give up the advantage the PS3 has now over Microsoft’s Xbox 360? As it appears, they’re nor afraid of a little competition, and that’s not all, as Sony will also get some great revenue from a Blu-ray drive for the Xbox 360.

Technorati Tags: microsoft, sony, xbox 360, playstation, blu ray

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Tags: DVD, Microsoft, Video Games, Xbox, bluray, microsoft, playstation, sony, xbox, xbox 360

I am rebuilding the ZuneMAX database and getting rid of some of the unused features of our site. During the process you may notice things chaing rapidly and errors popping up as I modify the new template and create a more fluid look for the new site.

I will be looking for some writing partners who want to write about their Zune players. If you own a Zune and would like to discuss a position writing for ZuneMAX.com please contact me for more details.

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