It’s true - we have a pink Zune hitting retail stores starting in May. We’re doing a limited run of 100,000 devices, and they’ll be sold in the same retail channels where Zune is sold. Here’s a new photo that one of the designers just sent over:

 
It’s interesting: it seems like technology design is mirroring fashion. We’re looking at trends in the coming fashion seasons as we develop new colors.

<Edit 2:57 PM> - added the group shot.

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Kudos to Harvey from Zunerama - he just announced today that he’s going to be co-authoring Zune for Dummies. Awesome. I personally can’t think of someone better to write it, albeit my experience w/ Zune is that it’s easy enough to use to not warrant a “for Dummies” book, although there is an Etiquette for Dummies, iPod/iTunes for Dummies, Stretching for Dummies, and way more than you would think.

 (Not only is he writing the book - he’s also posing for the cover!  (I keed, I keed))

In all seriousness, please join me in congratulating Harvey on the book deal. See, it pays to be in the social

In unrelated news, I didn’t do a Free Stuff Monday this week, but you can win a Zune Tank Case from this thread at ‘rama. Go check it out!

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If you’ve been reading the blog for awhile, you’ll know that I’m hiring some folks to help the team out. Well, we have officially got the first one on-board. Yeah! Soon, he’ll be blogging as well. Did you miss the job description? Want to know what he’s working on? He’ll be focused on getting Zune into the car at first. So, let him know your wish list. Oh yeah… I’m going to have another job posting soon. Keep your eyes peeled.

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Lots of commenters - in this site and others - have observed that the Zune team needs to have more advertising. And that the advertising needs to showcase differentiating features like the large screen, customization and wireless. Well, starting next month, we’re launching a second wave of advertising. Read more about the upcoming campaign in this article in The Street.

As always, when the ads are final, I’ll post them here for you to see. Hope everybody had a great weekend!

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The 1.3 firmware and client launch today. Cesar has the details at http://zuneinsider.com/archive/2007/03/28/firmware-update-1-3-wednesday.aspx.

Thanks to everyone who has been waiting for this update - your patience is appreciated.

From Cesar:
We’re fixing the skipping problem that some users were experiencing – that
is, content acquired from Zune Marketplace will no longer skip when played

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So it’s official. 1.3 is coming out tomorrow. All you doubters (you know who you are) can rest easy that it won’t be weeks or days.

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Looks like a few Zune websites I visit regularly have some cool contests going on right now. Here goes:

• 
  
  First up, ‘Max is doing a drawing for a Zune player. If you already have a Zune, tell a friend!


• 
  
  You can also win a Zune player by mentioning Zune in your blogsite, and then leaving a comment on A Yoga Coffee Outlook.


• 
  
  Generation Zune and IWAPZ are teaming up to bring you The Pink Power Challenge: 2.




• 
  
  I had previously linked to the PPC Part 1, which was also cool.


• 
  
  And last but certainly not least, our buddies at Zunecorps want to give away a Speck case.

Did I miss any? Let me know; I’ll edit the post. Who knows, if there are enough of these, I’ll maybe create a weekly post called “Free stuff monday” (or something more clever.)

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Happy Friday! Ready for some more free music? I’m happy to help, dear blog reader, I’m happy to help. Here goes:

• First up this week, our friends at 3Hive (what’s up Sean!) post 3 tracks from Walter Kong (Zuneinsider favorite this week).


• Aquarium Drunkard has four MP3s from SXSW favorite Page France.


• Rock out to The Mother Hips over at IRockCleveland.


• For fans of new wave, Fluxblog has “Mirror Man,” by The Human League 


• If you can get over the goofy guy in the video (jk - he’s a buddy of mine), You Can Take the Boy Out of Brooklyn has 3 Def Leppard tracks.


• RockInsider has a track from another SXSW favorite - White Denim


• Stereogum has Blitzen Trapper covering Heart. Real nice.


• You Ain’t No Picasso this week brings us music from Sea Wolf, YASXSWF (yet another SXSW favorite).


• This one is for Nighthawk and the other metal-heads out there: Scissorkick has an MP3 from Pelican, ok, it’s not death metal, but still good, right?




• BTW - nighthawk, Charlie, and all my other readers rocking high school. I’ve said this before, but I seriously hope your homework is done.


• And last but not not-awesome - GorillavsBear has a track from YACHT, plus a bonus remix.

Ok, friends, enjoy the free music for your Zune, and have a great weekend!

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For those looking for yet another way to talk back to Zune (in addition to commenting here, emailing me directly, or commenting on another Zune staffer’s site.

Look at the bottom of each page on Zune.net - and click ‘feedback.’ Or, here’s the Direct Feedback link

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I connected w/ James, the release manager for Zune, and got the official word: “Hey C, I know all of your blog readers are eagerly looking forward for the release of the Zune 1.3 Update.  I feel their anticipation on the update, and I am very eager to get this out to all of them…  I can’t comment on the exact date just yet, but it will be soon, as it’s in the final testing and processes to get released,” he says. So there, you have it, dear blog reader: soon.

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Saw this post and this thread on Zunerama and decided to take a break from the SXSW blogging to post it. From ‘rama:

Zunerama member scoutflyer reports that he was able to track down a friend’s stolen Zune that way [by turning on wireless]. The stolen Zune was still in the school building, and by using his own Zune he was able to tell when he got close to the missing player.  

Fortunately the perpetrator had not turned wireless off, so the stolen Zune was still announcing its presence to other nearby Zunes.

Congratulations scoutflyer! Welcome (back) to the Social.

Engadget also posted the story, and threw in their seemingly mandated Zune jabs. Win some lose some

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apparently, someone has created a hack that tricks the PC into thinking that any PC is the primary PC. I was thinking about this today and I was wondering how useful it really is. I’ve never had an issue moving content to the device from any PC in guest mode. Also, wouldn’t you have to install it on someones PC? I’m pretty sure that I wouldn’t want just anybody messing around with my rig. But, hey, to each his own.

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Our friends at IWAPZ and GenerationZune are teaming up to bring you, dear friend of Zune, a cool contest. The Pink Power Challenge

How do you win? You can think about it as a Zune Marketplace Scavenger Hunt. Check out IWAPZ and GenerationZune each day for a clue on a specific artist/track that you can get from ZMP.

What can you win? As it turns out, I have more of the Zune Party Giveaways to share, and I’m sharing it w/ Generation and IWAPZ. In case you missed it, check the tracklist on the CDs:

Disc One:
1. Running On Sunshine by Jesus Jackson
2. Overdue(blackbeard remix) by Bitter:Sweet
3. Everything by Jehro
4. Blue Monday by Tanghetto
5. Del Fuego(carl Borg Mix) by Fat Freddy’s Drop
6. Recurring by Bonobo
7. Tricycle by Psapp
8. Psycho Girls & Psycow Boys(haaksman & Haaksman Remix)by $olal feat. Sam Bush & Melonie Cannon
9. Trance Manual by John Vanderslice
10. No One Else(radio edit) by Natalie Walker
11. Baby Blue by Mozez
12. Stay in the Shade by Jose Gonzalez

Disc two:
1. The Funeral by Band of Horses
2. Elevatin by Wired all Wrong
3. The Looks by MSTRKRFT
4. Young Folks by Peter Bjorn and John
5. Shadows by Honeycut
6. Lowlife by Scanners
7. Favours For Favours by The Futureheads
8. Losing You (Lemon jelly remix) by Hey negrita
9. Kill 100 by X-Press 2
10. Hiding by Wrong Kong
11. Solution by Superbass feat. Relation
12. Fly by 2 Bit Pie

Ok, good luck!

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You know the drill: more free music for your Zune. Every Friday. Ready?

• Music (for Robots) post a few hours of MP3s from SXSW. I stopped counting at 20. . . Nice!


• As you may or may not know, I’m a big fan of covers, remixes, and mashups. This week, Aquarium Drunkard has an MP3 of Grizzly Bear’s covering Yes: Owner of a Lonely Heart.


• Continuing the fine tradition of independent hip hop, Busdriver has a track on YANP


• Asking “What would it sound like if Stephen Malkmus of Pavement had been raised on a steady diet of German techno?,” IRockCleveland has the answer: Alex Delivery. Get an MP3 here.


• RockInsider Jax has music from Land of Talk and Lo-Fi-Fnk


• Dujeous featuring John Legend featured at Different Kitchen.


• And the (cover) hits comin’: Stereogum has Marissa Nadler covering The Band (the band).


• Presenting his Friday favorites, You Can Take the Boy out of Brooklyn posts two MP3s from IdleWild


• Soul Sides‘ Oliver Wang dips into the Private Reserve and posts music from Tami Terrell, Bobby Womac, and William D. Smith.


• And closing out this edition of MP3 Friday, 3Hive posts an MP3 by Martin Sexton

Ok, enjoy the free music and have a great weekend everybody!

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Paul Thurrott of WinSuperSite.com and Leo Laporte of LeoVille.com have a great podcast interview with David Caulton from the Zune marketing team. Dave is a sharp individual and really knows his business about the Zune player and where Microsoft is going with the Zune product line. It’s an hour long audio interview available in mp3 format that is well worth the download. The cover quite a bit about the Zune including some of the shortcomings in the device and services as well as what direction Microsoft is taking with the new line.

Dave opens up the question of podcasting support and they hit him on it. Dave acknowledges the need for podcast support but dances around about when. Dave is very good at these things and there are no commitments on when we’ll see podcast support but it’s beginning to appear like it will be some time before we do see it. Dave comments on the importance of fixing the current Zune players with firmware updates focused on stability and addressing the minor issues found in the current software.

They point out how impressive the hardware configuration is but note the markets disappointment in what the Zune can actually do right now. Dave counters with how important it was to them to provide a stable base to begin with and hints we’ll see a lot more from future upgrades. There is no road map to when we’ll see updates and Dave is vague on what we can expect to see in future features.

The current Zune setup covers the basic needs for an mp3 player to be competitive with the target audience in the current market place. It may not meet the needs of many enthusiast or niche users. The ability to build a device with features consumers are looking for is why Microsoft has jumped into the hardware business with Zune players and Dave mentions what might happen with Zune 2.0 and beyond players. They also go into some detail on the content deal signed with Universal Music and how important content is to the device success as well as how to approach the fight with Apple. They touch on DRM and why they we’re forced to drop Plays4Sure in favor of their own device and closed ecosystem and some great information on what people are actually doing with their mp3 players.

It’s a great interview with a knowledgeable Zune team member. If you’re interested in what is happening with Zune and the future of the devices it’s a great interview to catch. You can download the mp3 interview from http://www.Twit.tv and play it on your Zune or iPod..

The TWiT Netcast Network with Leo Laporte

Windows Weekly 17: David Caulton of the Zune Team

Hosts: Paul Thurrott and Leo Laporte

David Caulton, Zune team member since 2005, welcomes us to The Social.

Check out Paul’s Blog at http://www.internet-nexus.com and the SuperSite for Windows http://winsupersite.com for more information.

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As you might recall - some Zune staffers and I are going to SXSW this year. If you’re in the Austin area, let me know - I’ll see about getting you on the list for some of the parties that Zune is throwing there. No promises, though; when a venue is full, a venue is full. When I’m down there, I’ll try to get into as many shows as I can - and I’ll post the photos and recaps as often as I can. Who needs sleep anyways?

Alternately, we can meet up for some Texas BBQ. Drop me an email - contact info below, after the jump. I’ll leave you with a picture of some premium Zune-branded earplugs we’ll be giving out to select folks at SXSW (my pink zune not included):  

See you down there!

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What a week! The Zune Markeplace editorial team got featured in the Seattle P-I. Readers expressed their firmware thoughts, then expressed their 1.3 update thoughts; NPD January numbers came out, I apologized to NYC; and a few people won the photo contest. But MP3 Friday (my most-read post) continues on:

• First up, Mars Needs Guitars drops four different MP3s from four different artists: Folksongs for the Afterlife, Longview, Big Star, and Imperial Teen. Nice!


• Aquarium Drunkard posts music from Patti Smith, Ryan Adams, and Galaxie 500


• You Ain’t No Picasso has the new Bears’ single (Cesar’s favorite this week)


• Reader “Lord Baker” points to a page where you can download the entire Infloential EP, adding:
  “I was at their show last night at this little venue called Cat’s Cradle and they rocked the house! Toubab Krewe was the main act and had normal people acting crazy! I also saw some fellow Zune users. The social was pretty awesome last night J”


• Stereogum has an MP3 of Christopher O’Riley (classical pianist) covering Nick Drake


• Locksley, a Brooklyn band “on the up and up” rocks Cleveland.


• Rockinsider has music from Tom Brosseau and Foreign Born


• This week, Dodge has music from Chicago’s Magnolia Electric Co


• Notes from a Different Kitchen has a stream (not MP3 but as good as I can get right now) of the new MIMS single


• And last but not least, Scissorkick has a single “instrumental future pop” outfit Small Sails 

Ok folks! Enjoy the music, thanks for commenting this week, and have a great weekend!

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Finally ready to announce! Cesar has the semi-official blogosphere announcement…

http://zuneinsider.com/

Huge thanks to everyone for you patience on skipping zune marketplace content. Just…a…little…longer…

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Yesterday I had a meeting w/ James, the Zune release manager and he spilled the beans on the next firmware update. In Mid March, we’re going to release Zune Firmware Update 1.3.  Here’s what’s in the update:

• We’re fixing the skipping problem that some users were experiencing – that is, content acquired from Zune Marketplace will no longer skip when played on the device.


• Improved device and software reliability, when it comes to device detection, and improved sync’ing.


• We’ve made some changes to the FM Tuner so it no longer drains the battery when in sleep mode.

Now, for the inevitable question, “When is the *next* update coming?” or the corollary, “When do I get (insert ‘podcasting’ or another feature here)?” No specifics yet, but again, the dev team is always working on making Zune better. As we get closer to knowing what’s coming out and when, I’ll make sure and post. Also, know that some folks on the Zune team (including the Zune release manager) are reading this blog, and reading your comments. Thanks to everybody who has chimed in with ideas and suggestions (Cesar looks at John W, Tom, T, Swanlee, Rhett, and everyone who commented in yesterday’s post). You rock High five!

The specific date I heard on 1.3 was March 20, but let me double check w/ the team and get back to everybody.

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Some (very vocal) folks are wondering about firmware updates. Or at least the communication around them.I had actually chimed in a previous post. But it’s worth updating/restating here:

As far as the silence around firmware updates. I feel your pain, and I understand how frustrating the silence is. Honestly though, just because there’s no word from the me/team, doesn’t mean we’re not listening, and that the dev team isn’t working hard. Right now they’d rather be heads down and make improvements than be interrupted to talk to marketing ;). So, nothing specific (yet), but stay tuned.

Thoughts? If nothing else, this post can serve as *the* place to express your firmware thoughts. Thanks!

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