Zune v iPod - Technical Specs
Friday 17th November 2006Side by side, how do the players compare? As the Zune is not yet available in the UK prices are listed both in US dollars and pounds for comparison purposes.
|
Category
|
Zune
|
iPod
|
iPod Nano | iPod Shuffle |
|
Price (US)
|
$249
|
$249 (30GB)
|
$149 (2 GB) | $79 |
| Price (UK) | N/A | £189 | £99 | £55 |
|
Storage
|
30 GB
|
30 GB - 80 GB
|
2 GB - 8 GB | 1 GB |
|
Wi-Fi
|
Limited
|
no
|
no | no |
|
File
Sharing
|
Limited
|
no
|
no | no |
|
FM Tuner
|
YES
|
Optional
|
no | no |
|
Battery Life
|
13 hrs
|
14 hrs
|
24 hrs | 12 hrs |
|
Custom
Background
|
YES
|
no
|
no | N/A |
|
Gapless
Playback
|
no
|
YES
|
YES | YES |
|
Screen
Size
|
3"
|
2.5"
|
1.5" | N/A |
| Video | YES | YES | no | no |
| Photos | YES | YES | YES | no |
|
Colours
|
White, Black, Brown
|
White, Black
|
Various | White, silver |
|
Scroll
Wheel
|
no
|
YES
|
YES | no |
|
Tactile
Control
|
YES
|
no
|
no | YES |
|
Online
Service
|
Zune Market
place |
iTunes
|
iTunes | iTunes |
|
Subscription
|
$14.99 /month
|
no
|
no | no |
|
Podcast
Playback
|
YES
|
YES
|
YES | YES |
|
3rd Party
Accessories
|
YES
|
YES | YES | |
|
Social
Networking
|
Limited
|
no
|
no | no |
|
Weight
|
5.6 ounces
|
4.8 ounces
|
1.4 ounces | 0.5 ounces |
|
Width
|
2.4"
|
2.4"
|
1.6" | 1.62" |
|
Height
|
4.4"
|
4.1"
|
3.5" | 1.07" |
|
Depth
|
0.58"
|
0.43"
|
0.25" | 0.4" |
|
Compatibility
|
PC (XP Only)
|
Mac, PC
|
Mac, PC | Mac, PC |
|
User
Replaceable
Batteries
|
no
|
no
|
no | no |
|
Available
in UK
|
no
|
YES
|
YES | YES |
What capacity do I need?
The 30GB iPod and Zune can store approx 7,500 songs. If you have a larger music collection or plan to hold a lot of videos the 80GB iPod can hold up to 20,000 songs.The iPod Nano comes in three different capacities. The 2GB model can hold up to 500 songs, the 4GB model holds up to 1,000 songs and the 8GB model holds up to 2,000 songs.
The iPod shuffle is available as 1 GB only and can hold 240 songs.
Size Comparison
Various iPod models side by side (these pictures are from the Apple store, sorry about the size):
iPod Shuffle (left), iPod Nano (centre), iPod (right)
The Zune (left, only available in 30 GB model) alongside the iPod 30GB (right):
IN DEPTH: iPod
IN DEPTH: Zune