Scoble: Zune lacks essential "killer features"
updated 04:15 pm EDT, Fri October 27, 2006
Robert Scoble on Zune
While Microsoft is heavily promoting the Zune as a revolutionary device, former Microsoft technology evangelist and now podcasting expert Robert Scoble has criticized the player today in his blog, pointing to the media player's lack of appeal to the technology-driven early adopters that often determine new electronics' long-term success.
"As an edge case, IE, someone who tries all the latest stuff and gets excited about a lot of it, the Zune abjectly fails [for me]. It does not have a killer feature. Sorry, Microsoft, sharing songs is not it," he says.
In particular, Scoble cites the Zune's lack of easy integration with podcasts as a critical flaw, describing it as out of step with iPod owners' more advanced listening habits. "Apple gets this trend, Microsoft doesn’t," he writes. While defending the Zune against unfair criticism of its design, Scoble notes that the player's initial form is often merely adequate relative to the iPod and doesn't provide the necessary motivation to convert potential buyers.
