Wow, using the Zune to watch TV on the MINI's NAV screen... how cool is that? I use Total Video Converter to create Zune videos of Top Gear, Fifth, Dr. Who and some other shows. You can store an entire season on the 30gb version easily. I have not tried using a video cable to connect the Zune yet, but I did flash mine with the new OS and it does look neat. Does the wireless sync work on older Zunes?

 

Yes it does as long as you're are using the new Zune software on your PC as well.

 

First off, I didn't come here to pick a fight. I love all my MINI friends, no pun intended. Second, I don't care how long you have been on here, or how many posts you have made. It looked suspiciously like a Zune infomercial. "The new Zune units are amazing little audio/video players, which IMHO are quite a bit better than the new iPods" "...the result is simply stunning." Looks very much like a commercial, and it has nothing to do with how many posts you have, or how long you have been on here.
Second, I have had two friends buy Zunes, only to take them back and get iPods. They had NOTHING positive to say about them whatsoever. They hated the interface. They hated the Microsoft music store. They hated the feel of it. They hated it would only work with PCs. Doesn't make me a Apple fanboy, although I do like their products. I like stuff that works well and looks good, and I have never found a Microsoft product that did that. That doesn't mean I have an Apple logo tattooed to my bum. If something works good, it works good, doesn't matter who makes it.
Third, I never said anything derogatory about you in my post. It did, and does look like a commercial. So you're "get a life" comment is not only unmerited, but unappreciated. I have nothing against you whatsoever, and can appreciate we all have different opinions on things. That's what makes this community unique. We can have so much not in common, but have so much IN common at the same time. So there. Hope I cleared that up....

 

To each his/her own. If you don't like my posts (and feel that they are worded to sound like an infomercial) then please don't read them (and certainly don't respond to them).

I spend LOTS of my time on these forums trying to help other MINI owners out with various information and feedback. If you don't feel that my post helped you out any (or if you feel that I'm trying to sell you on something that you don't want/need) then I'm sorry for that.

Let's just say that we agree to disagree on this one and move on as I'm completely over this now. Just remember my user name (and I'll do the same for yours) and please do try and avoid any threads I'm involved with in the future as you most certainly won't get any help from me (not knowingly anyway).

Have a nice life my MINI owning friend.

 

1QukMINI - part of the disconnect here may be that your friend tried to use the 1st generation of Zune. TOM's glowing comments are specifically related to the newer 2nd Gen Zunes. The "PC only" aspect is a relevant point, however.

TheOfficeMaven - your "get a life" comment was probably a bit much, but I can understand why you felt slighted by 1QukMINI's original post.

While I can see how some that don't know you might have mistook your original post as "commercial-y", I would also caution people to keep in mind that many of us here are passionate about products and technology we love... whether they be MINIs, iPods, Zunes, Macs or anything else.

We should all be cautious not to pre-judge people's enthusiasm!

 

Agreed and my apologies to 1QukMINI on that one.

Believe me when I say that I have no more love for Microsoft than I do for Apple. Although, I'm a Windows programmer by trade and so M$ does put food on my table in an indirect manner so to speak (whereas Apple sues me and tries to take the clothes off my back ).

Let's not even get started on the PC vs. Mac debate.

Thanks for the moderation Edge.

 

Ah, so now the truth comes out. Like I said, nothing but love, and there may be a time when I need the other wisdom you possess. And I will continue to read your posts with no ill feelings. So there.

 

FWIW, if TOM works for every company who's products he raves about, he's got a lot of jobs. He has been an amazing resource and an innovator for all sorts of Nav/screen related products for the MINI.

+1

 

I have a Zune primarily for the wireless sync I dont need to bring my Zune in from the MINI just pull in the garage and update my play list. While the model I have doesnt have the scroll wheel of the ipod trust me it works just fine. I have owned Ipods, Creative, and Zune players and right now the features and speed of player the Zune is winning.

I am not a 100% microsoft fanboi but this product they are on the right track and they provided the wireless sync to the old players free (apple should learn this model of customer support)!

 

Thanks for the support guys. I know I'm a bit over zealous at times when I find something new and cool, but my intentions are really only to share it with the MINI community and not to do any harm.

I guess I'm still just like a kid in a candy shop when it comes to my MINI. It's three years old now, but it still excites me just like the day it was first driven off the dealer's lot. I can't say that for any other car I've ever owned.

Also, as you can see from the Intravee thread I started, I really like the iPod too. I'm actually torn between the iPod and the Zune. Right now, I have them both installed in my MINI. I use the iPod Classic with my Intravee setup to listen to music and I use the Zune to watch all my videos. The best of both worlds I guess.

 

TOM, I still love ya. In a brotherly sorta way, let's make sure that's understood! ;-)

 

you can laser-engrave MINI Rulz on your Zune for free ;-)

http://www.engadget.com/2007/11/29/z...r-80gb-models/

 

 

Here's a PC Magazine video review of the new Zune players for anyone interested:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEAXDrR3Gbw

In their view, the Zune 80 pulls ahead of the iPod Classic 80, but the 4 and 8 GB flash-based Zunes loose to the iPod nano Video. Of course, the iPod Touch is in a league of its own as you would expect.

 

I have to say, as I mentioned in another post, that the iPod classic is slooooow! I just replaced my 30 GB w/ video (less than a year old) with the new classic, and the menus are horrendously slow. It's like a computer with 256 MB of RAM.

They tried to make the menus too fancy...or not even that fancy, but the software can't keep up with the animations on the menus now. It's horrible. It takes a couple of minutes for it to "warm up" before it even starts working properly. Pretty disappointed with my 5th iPod.

Maybe I'll learn my lesson and start buying Zunes. Though, I'm admittedly not a fan of Microsoft (See also XBox 360 problems...three returns in 2 years) OR Apple (see also 5 iPods in 4 years because they all die). I take very good care of my electronics too

 

noles825 - have you tried the new 1.0.3 firmware for the iPod Classics that came out yesterday? So far I've read good reports on it (both here from TOM and on other sites).

I'm holding off on buying an iPod Classic until I am confident the problems are fixed... (problems that I too have experienced on the in-store models I played with) I am very interested in hearing more feedback on the firmware update!

 

Indeed. While my iPod Classic never was too bad as far as menu speed is concerned, the new 1.0.3 firmware update does seem to be quite an improvement (especially with the Cover Flow). It would be interesting to hear what you think of it since you seem to be way more affected by the slow menus than I am (maybe I just don't have enough albums/songs on mine yet???).

 

My alternative to the Ipod. A Macbook pro, when I get my Aux imput I am going to play my music through it on long trips. Its got the Apple remote, and all so set in on a play list and go

 

Did I just read that Apple knowingly released these iPod Classics with flawed software that doesn't work like it was supposed to?

Sounds like they're taking pages out of Microsoft's play book!

 

I have a 30Gb iPod, a 4Gb Nano (red), and a new Shuffle, and haven't had the same slow problems experienced by the new Classic. So, I can't speak for those, I only speak for the ones I have now, and the ones I had before. I had a 4Gb iPod Mini, a 40Gb iPod monochrome, and a 40 Gb iPod Photo, so I have certainly seen the gammut, except the new ones. I do have an iPhone that I love, and a phone service I hate.

 

LOL - AT&T is the only reason I didn't buy an iPhone. I would have jumped on it otherwise. I scratched my head in disbelief when they announced the 5 year exclusive contract between Apple & AT&T. I said to myself... how stupid of Apple! 5 years is an eternity in the tech industry! AT&T definitely won out on that deal.

Unless of course there's a loophole, and the exclusivity contract does not apply to an iPhone 2.

I was excited about the idea of buying an iPod with just the Wi-Fi connectivity in it... but the iPod Touch fell short too - not enough capacity.

I still hold out hope they'll finally shove a hard drive into the next generation of the iPod Touch designs, so I can have the best of all worlds.

 

The 1.0.3 made a difference, but it still takes about 5 seconds to even start responding to commands after to switch to cover flow.

TOM, I thought that you would just eat this article up when I saw it today:
http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/hughes/21050

 

Yes indeed that's a pretty good read. Thanks for the link.

BTW, for those taking a peek at the Zune, it's great that Microsoft added backwards compatibility to their new firmware and software for the older v1 Zunes (giving all the older v1 Zunes the same cool new look as the new v2 Zunes), but even with the steep discounts you can find on the older Zune 30 models, I'd still take the new Zune 80 and pay a little more. The reason for this is that the new Zune 80 has ...

1) a much larger 3.2" display.

2) the ability to natively play H.264 encoded MP4 videos (up to 720x480 dpi at 30 fps).

3) the new Squircle touch pad (which is really nice once you get used to it - I like it way better than the iPod's Click-Wheel).

4) quite a bit smaller size (1/3 smaller I believe) and is much lighter.

5) a significantly better battery life (apparently there are reports of battery life issues with the current v2.2 firmware but I'm sure that Microsoft will get those problems fixed in the next firmware update - I personally haven't noticed any problems in that area though).

 

So...here's my 2 cents. Who gives a crap where OfficeMavin works. Who cares who likes what player. He got a Zune playing via the NAV screen! Party on! The fact that he posted pics up and what he did on his install...even better. I'm not bitter, but seriously...take a look at where this discussion started, and then where it went. The only relavant part is OfficeMavin did something cool, and he shared it with us. We are fortunate!

 

Thanks for the support flingger. I guess we're all just passionate about our different toys (and their manufacturers). You are right in that the big deal (at least to me and you anyway ) is indeed that the Zune's UI looks super cool when displayed via the MINI's factory nav display. I get a real kick out of it every time I see the large album artwork being displayed along with the dynamic song information (the videos are pretty darn cool too ).