Product review – Microsoft Zune 80GB (hint: it doesn’t suck)

by Scott Carmichael on

Let me open right away and warn hardcore geeks to stop reading. Yeah – I know the Microsoft Zune has been out for some time, and yes – I know there is another player out there that seems to be getting most of the attention.

But for the benefit of our readers, I decided to take a Microsoft Zune for a spin to see whether I was missing something (yes, I too was guilty of being one of those geeks who ignored the Zune for too long).

A quick intro – Microsoft introduced the Zune in 2006. Interest in the player was initially very intense, but over the years things seem to have died down a little, and Zune customers seem to revolve around people who despise carrying that “other player”, or those that discovered that the Zune can actually do several things not found on most other devices.

For this product review, I decided to use the red 80GB Zune. I picked the 80GB for several reasons – the right price, plenty of storage space and a decent size screen for watching movies. I’m not going to pretend that I’m one of the first to review the Zune, so I’ll make the main focus of this review the features found on the player that can help travelers on the road.

The player looks like most other devices – you get a screen, a couple of buttons and a headphone jack. So far, nothing out of the ordinary. There are however several smart design features hidden away in the hardware. For starters, the control pad combines a 4 way button with a touch sensitive pad. This Zune Pad makes the controls surprisingly efficient.

Inside the Zune is the other innovation – WiFi. In fact, the WiFi interface is not just a second thought, it is an integral part of how you can use the Zune.

The device has a large 3.2″ color display, behind scratch resistant glass.

Included with the Zune 80 are premium noise isolating headphones, which actually sound quite amazing. They certainly are a step above the boring white things sold by that other company.

The headphones even feature small magnets on their rear to keep them together when you are not using them, preventing you from creating a tangled mess in your bag.

The Microsoft Zune does what you’d expect from a portable media player – it plays music stored in the WMA, AAC or MP3 format. Microsoft does make it very clear that “Fairplay” AAC files will not play – these files contain rights management added by the iTunes music store.

The device also supports 4 different video formats – WMV, MPEG-4, H.264 and DVR-MS (a file format used by Windows Media Center to record TV shows). One incredibly handy features is that the Zune software player will convert many video formats to a version compatible with the player.

The Zune desktop player is actually one of the parts that impressed me the most – the player is quite simply stunning. It manages to take a huge number of features and keep them all in a very easy to use and cool looking interface.

If you have ever used iTunes, you’ll know that it can be horribly confusing, and a real resource hog, using up a ton of your system memory. Even with a 17,500 song library, I had no performance issues with the Zune.

So? What makes a Zune so special, and why should you consider buying one if you are in the market for a new portable media player?

After using the Zune for close to a month, I’ve concluded that there are several very cool features that make the device my new personal recommendation for a media player in its category:

  • The Zune desktop experience – As I mentioned, the Zune software is just awesome.
  • The Zune WiFi features -WiFi is great, but if you can’t do anything cool with it, it becomes useless. Thankfully, the Zune designers have managed to implement WiFi in a way that makes it a fantastic feature. You can of course sync the device over WiFi to your desktop computer. But you can also access the Zune online service and purchase more music, or get access to the latest podcasts. Then there are of course the various Zune social features that let you do things like share a song with fellow Zune users or even play online games.
  • Zune Pass – To me, this was the most important feature of the entire Zune package – Zune Pass is a $14.99/month service that comes with all you can eat music. With this monthly subscription, you can download as many songs as you want, from the millions of available titles in the Zune Marketplace. As with most music subscription services, once you let the monthly subscription lapse, you lose the right to all the downloaded music on your player. Music from your own collection is of course not subject to this. In addition to the unlimited downloads, Zune Pass also lets you convert 10 songs a month into a DRM free track, which means they are yours to keep.
  • Video quality – The Zune 80 is the perfect balance between price, storage and screen size. The 3.2″ screen is of course smaller than your home theater, but still large enough to watch a movie on, without having to sit 4 inches away. The screen is bright, crisp and video files play extremely well. I’m also very impressed with the way the Zune desktop software converts videos – other applications (*cough*iTunes*cough) simply say “can’t transfer video” and expect you to find your own solution to converting the files.

Inside the Zune are several other features you might appreciate – not only does the device offer a well designed FM radio, but the software actually allows you to tag songs you hear on the radio for purchase in the Zune marketplace. This only works with radio stations that broadcast their track names using RDS, but the few times I found a decent sounding station RDS was enabled, and I could tag the song.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this article – I’m almost feeling guilty for ignoring the Zune for so long. For some reason I just never had the urge to take it out for a spin – something I’m now regretting.

Battery life is quite impressive – the 80GB Zune is rated for 24 hours of music playback and 4 hours of video, which of course will be cut short if you use the WiFi intensively.

Final thoughts

The Zune 80 I reviewed retails for $229, and its 120GB big brother costs $249. Each player comes with a Zune USB cable, and the 80GB version comes with a pair of premium headphones.

Yes – these retail prices are virtually the same as those of the Classic iPods, but when you look at the specifications, the Zune really does get you more for your money; a larger screen, WiFi and FM radio. I’ll refrain from comparing the Zune 80 to an iPhone or iPod touch simply because neither of those devices offer a hard drive for media storage.

It isn’t all rosy though – the Zune players suffer from a serious lack of accessories, and anyone who defects from the iTunes world will be pretty disappointed how hard it is to find affordable extras for the player.

That doesn’t mean there are no accessories, it’s just not as easy to find a $2 case or video cable on Ebay for Zune devices. The Zune site lists a decent assortment of extras, including docks, a home AV pack and an FM transmitter.

Other than that minor issue, I’m really digging the player. The features in the Zune Desktop are fantastic, the user interface on the device is cool and being able to just pay $15 a month for all the music I can handle is a much better solution than paying $1 per song (or resorting to P2P networks). The short conclusion is what I said in my title – the Zune does not suck, quite the opposite.

If you travel a lot, you’ll appreciate the good battery life, large screen and the ability to get access to the Zune Marketplace anywhere you can find an open WiFi signal.

You can learn more about the Zune players and the Zune service at Zune.net.

Product review – Clickfree Transformer instant USB backup cable

by Scott Carmichael on

The Clickfree Transformer is a very easy to use USB device that turns your USB hard drive (or memory key) into a simple backup solution.

I’m sure some of you are confused why I’d be posting this here on Gadling, so let me explain why I feel a product like this is so important – far too many people travel nowadays without paying enough attention to their data security (yeah, you know who you are!).

I’ve heard horror stories from people who took 1000 photos on their trip, copied them all onto their laptop, and through some kind of accident, lost every single file.

Making a backup is so easy to do, yet so many people simply ignore the warning signs until it is too late. This is where (in my opinion) the Clickfree Transformer can help. The cable goes between your PC and storage device, and provides an install free backup solution.

Install free means the backup software runs off the cable, and does not require you to install anything on your computer. This is especially convenient if you are traveling with a machine that is locked down, and does not allow for the installation of third party software like many corporate PC’s.
Using the Clickfree Transformer is as simple as could be – you plug it into your PC, then you plug your storage drive into the cable. After about 20 seconds, the Clickfree backup application starts, and with just a few clicks, you are already making your backup. The software recognizes over 400 different file formats.

The software does not require any “tweaking’ for basic operation, but more advanced users can still access and change a large variety of options, including the type of files backed up, and the locations of these files.

Once a backup has been completed, the next backup is incremental, which means it will only copy new or modified files, greatly saving the time it takes to make a complete backup.

Once the backup is completed, you can check the results and see an overview of all backup volumes stored on the drive. Of course, if disaster strikes, you can also instantly restore files, or extract individual files from a backup.

One additional feature that can be installed to your PC is the Clickfree scheduler – this small tray icon can schedule your backups, and provide reminders when it is time to safeguard your files again.

There really isn’t much more to say about the Clickfree Transformer, which is probably how they intended the product to work – you simply plug and play. The Clickfree Transformer costs $59.99, which is in line with the cost of many commercial backup applications.

There are several things the Clickfree Transformer can not do – it won’t make a bootable backup of your computer, and it won’t work on your Macintosh (Windows only).

The storage device can be any spare external drive you have lying around, and with the current insanely low prices of portable drives, you can put together a nice backup system for under $100.

To come to a conclusion about the product, I really need to think like a computer novice – I’m pretty sure that most experienced computer users will have their own backup solution of choice, many of which may even be free. But from the perspective of an amateur, the Clickfree Transformer seems perfect. You plug it in, it makes a backup.

You’ll find the Clickfree Transformer cable here, which is where you’ll also find an assortment of other backup solutions.

Product review – Creative Vado HD pocket high definition camcorder

by Scott Carmichael on

In this product review I’m going to introduce you to the Creative Vado HD pocket camcorder.

The Vado HD is one of a long lineup of pocket camcorders that has recently hit the market. Last year I reviewed one of the first pocket HD camcorders; the Kodak Zi6. Since then, several other manufacturers have released their own product.

Creative is no a newcomer to the consumer electronics market – they have been making audio and video products for ages, and I still have happy memories of owning my first Sound Blaster audio card back in 1989.

As far as camcorders go, the Vado HD is tiny – at just 3.9″ x 2.2″ at just 0.6″ thick and 190 grams, it is one of the smallest on the market.
On the front of the camera is a small protruding lens, and on the rear is where you’ll find its 2″ display, D-Pad control and play/delete buttons. On the side of the Vado HD is an audio/video jack and a mini-HDMI connector hidden behind a plastic dust cover.

On the bottom of the camera is a regular tripod screw port and a flip-out USB connector.

The Vado HD is powered by an internal rechargeable battery pack, rated for up to 6 hours of video recording.

Inside the camera is 8GB of storage space, which is sufficient for about 2 hours of HD+ recordings. The memory is not expandable, so you will need to move clips to your computer when you are in need of more space.

As far as recording quality goes, the Vado HD is quite simply stunning. I’ve used several of these little cameras in the past, but none really produced anything I’d consider worthy of replacing a “real” camcorder. The Vado HD does 3 things I’ve not seen from any other camera in this class:

  • Audio is impressive
  • Low light recordings are actually usable
  • Video quality really looks “high definition”

Audio is actually better than impressive – even when I used the camera in a really tough location (a large stadium with a dolphin show), it picked up all the noises brilliantly. As far as recording in low light goes – it still won’t be a replacement for a camera with night vision, but in a room with just a couple of regular lamps I was able to make a very decent recording.

The camera records video in 720p with the H.264 video codec format. When set to its highest quality setting, you’ll be able to record up to 2 hours in “HD+ and 4 hours in the regular HD format. When set to VGA (low quality), the camera can record up to 8 hours. Zoom is provided through a 2x digital zoom, which I don’t really recommend as it lowers the quality of the clips.

I’ve made several video clips showing the recording quality, and I’m sure you’ll agree that this is quite acceptable for a $230 HD video camera. I’ve seen worse from a $600 DV (non HD) camera.


Creative Vado HD Demo from Scott C on Vimeo (be sure to click the “HD” button).

(Click here for the HD version of the clip, sorry for the poor quality and stuttering, YouTube does not handle HD clips very well).

As you can see – video quality is actually very good, not “professional HD camera” good, but certainly good enough for your vacation video clips.

The Vado HD retail package makes the camera even better. Creative include a Mini HDMI cable and a silicone case as well as a USB extension cable.

The camera charges using USB, so no additional charger is required, though they do sell extra batteries and chargers if you feel you may need some more juice on the road.

Once you have made your recordings, you have several ways to watch them. The first, and easiest is to plug the camera into your TV using the included HDMI cable. Playback over HDMI is of course in HD, and you only need a single cable for video and audio. The second option is what you’ll want to use to archive and edit all your video clips – using your PC.

The first time you plug the Vado HD into your computer, it installs Vado Central, a simple video viewing application. From within Vado Central, you can instantly upload your clips to Youtube, Photobucket or Box.

The best part about Vado Central is that you do not need to install anything on your PC – which means you should be able to use it at the local Internet Cafe, airport lounge PC or restrictive work laptop. Vado Central also has the ability to grab captures of video files and turn them into photos, as the camera itself does not feature still imaging.

If viewing and uploading is not enough, you can also install a basic video editing suite, which allows you to make quick but fairly creative videos in a matter of minutes. The application offers a couple of video effects and the ability to add some background music, but it is not as flexible as a full video editing package. Naturually you can also import and edit the clips in any third party video editing package capable of working with H.264 video files.

The Creative Vado HD costs $229 and is available directly from Creative.com or your favorite electronics retailer.

Ryanair introduces in-air mobile phone calls on select routes

by Scott Carmichael on

Last year, Ryanair optimistically announced that they were just “weeks” away from launching their in-air mobile phone and data service.

It took a little longer than planned, but the first 20 planes are now equipped with the gear needed to let passengers annoy their fellow passengers with their mindnumming phone conversations.

The 20 planes are all on routes to and from Dublin, and the service allows passengers to make and receive phone calls, send and receive text messages, and transmit data.

Thankfully, the in-air prices are so high, that most people will probably keep their calls to a simple “hi mom, I’m in the air”.

Calls will cost between €2 and €3 per minute, and data is a staggering €1.50 per 100KB (about the size of a basic email). For comparison – a 3 hour broadband WiFi session on Virgin America costs under $10.

Of course, the whole thing is rather ironic, since we have been told for years that keeping your phone on may result in the plane crashing and killing everyone. That was of course until the airlines learned they could make money off your calls. Then it was suddenly no problem.

Jeffrey covered a different angle of in-flight mobile phones today; the mobile phone in the cockpit. Of course, the issue here is not interference from signals, but the interference from a ringing phone during critical portions of the flight.

I’m pretty much addicted to my mobile phone, but even I think filling a low cost carrier plane with 100 chatting passengers will eventually result in someone having to have their mobile phone surgically removed.

Product review – ZUCA Pro rolling luggage

by Scott Carmichael on

Before I introduce you to the ZÜCA Pro, let me open with an admission – I am a luggage junkie. I have a closet completely devoted to all the various bags I have collected over my many years of traveling.

Now that is out of the way, let me introduce you to something I can only describe as the coolest bag I’ve ever come across – and this is coming from someone who has often spent over $1000 on a set of matching bags.

The ZÜCA Pro is a rolling bag with a twist (several in fact). The bag is built around an aircraft grade aluminum frame, with rollerblade style shock absorbing wheels and a sturdy aluminum retracting handle.

What makes the bag different, is how the frame has been made into an integral part of the design – many bags feature some kind of metal or plastic inner frame, but the ZÜCA Pro has been designed with enough strength that you can actually use the bag as a seat. No longer will you have to battle with your fellow passengers in the departure lounge, you simply roll your bag into a nice corner, and take a seat on it.
The inside of the bag is where the design gets even better – instead of your usual empty cavernous space, the ZÜCA Pro comes complete with 5 color coded packing cubes and a TSA compliant toiletries pouch.

These packing cubes force you to pack wisely. ZÜCA even includes a helpful “how to pack” guide, recommending which garments to pack in each cube. In real life, this works amazingly well.

The largest packing cube is 9.5″x10.5″x5″, making it large enough for 3 pairs of pants or a couple of bulky sweaters. Each pouch is made of durable and nylon mesh and has a handle on the front, making it easy to pull out of the case. To put the space to a real test, I first packed what I normally would inside my usual 22″ rolling suitcase, then I repacked all the items in the ZÜCA Pro.

All my garments and toiletries fit without a hitch, though the bag did not have much space left, and adding an extra pair of shoes would have been tricky. Because of the metal frame, there is not much room for expansion. The toiletries bag fits in an elastic pouch in the top, so once you reach the checkpoint you can pull it out for inspection in a matter of seconds.

Hidden away in the front of the bag is an expandable wet garment storage pocket, which is great if you end up with a lap full of orange juice on your flight and have to make a quick change mid-trip. On the outside of the bag are several zippered pockets, and on the rear are 2 more pockets, and a name tag/business card holder, covered with a Velcro flap, to keep prying eyes off your personal information.

There is one other feature you won’t find on most other rolling cases – the entire bag can be detached from the frame, and washed. Of course, if you are like me, you want your bag to be grimy and dirty, it’s how people can tell you’ve seen some real roadwarrior action.

The bag weighs just 8.75lbs, which means it is the same weight as many other premium rolling cases. The wheels are recessed, making it easy to slide in the overhead compartment without the poor flight attendant having to use all her weight to get the bin door to lock. On the top of the case is a large handle. If the boring black wheels don’t impress you much, you can pick up a set of blinking LED wheels for just $10.

I know luggage is a really personal thing, so I’m not going to try and convince you to go out and order one of these bags, but I feel safe saying that the ZÜCA Pro is the best damn piece of luggage I have ever reviewed.

When put up against my trusty $700 Tumi rolling suitcase, the poor Tumi loses in every battle, and that is a piece of luggage that has traveled close to a million miles with me.

The ZÜCA Pro costs $285, which includes the bag, the 5 packing cubes, the toiletries bag and a nice ballistic nylon cover, which is perfect if you are forced to check the bag and want to give the poor thing a little extra protection. The ZÜCA Pro comes with a lifetime warranty.

You’ll find the ZÜCA Pro at their web site, where you can also learn more about the design. Of course, this is also where you’ll find their online store.

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