stupid Zune Tricks (or Microsoft points - what’s the point?)
So you’ve just bought your Zune and you want to buy some DRM’d tunes -
you just whip out the plastic and it’s all yours, right?
not so fast….
medialoper has an an article explaining the Zune’s token-like approach to buying tunes
from medialoper:
When the Zune Marketplace launches later this week you won’t be able to buy songs with your local currency.
That’s right, your money is no good in the Zune music store.
Instead, you’ll have to convert real money to Microsoft Points,
and then use those points to purchase songs.
Of all of the puzzling Zune “featuresâ€, this one has to be the strangest.
so what are Microsoft points, anyway?
from zunemarket:
What’s all this talk about Microsoft Points?
Microsoft Points, the coin for the Zune Marketplace realm, is a system that works across borders,
including Xbox Live® Marketplace and other Microsoft properties.
You can buy Points from the Marketplace by using a credit card
or you can pick up Microsoft Points cards at a participating retail location.
and if that’s not bad enough, Microsoft is also coming up with a Napster-like
“all you can eat rental scheme†called a Zune Pass - let’s let Microsoft describe it:
A Zune Pass is different.
With a Zune Pass, you can download as many songs as you like -
listen to them on your computer or sync them to your Zune and take them with you.
Everything you download is yours to play as much as you want while your subscription is current.
(emphasis mine)
can’t keep up the subscription? bye-bye tunes….
Will they ever learn?
Technorati Tags: annoying, frustrating, miserable failure, microsoft points, stupid human tricks, zune
Tags: observations
I just bought my Zune and actually got it on the 13th of Nov (a day before it came out.. yay).. I held off on buying an iPod because I really wanted to wait for the Zune.. The first night I got it, I unwrapped it, and signed on to Zune marketplace.. although it’s a little limited in it’s available selection (I imagine this will change), I was surprised to find CDs from artists that I haven’t been able to find in CD stores in ages.. granted, Amazon can usually uncover quite a bit of those hard-to-find artists, but I was happy… well, by day 2, I had spent over $100 buying songs and albums.. then I noticed the card that came with my Zune for the free 14 day Zune Pass.. I signed up, and now, I’ve easily aquired much more than what I bought on day 1.. for $14.95/mo? I know I spend more than that on CDs.. so, yeah.. I’ll bite.. I’ll still buy those hard-to-find cd’s on Amazon.. I love my CD collection.. but now I can rent cd’s that I normally wouldn’t buy or would be afraid to try out because I wouldn’t want to risk wasting my money.. I give it two thumbs up…
on another point of yours, however.. the MS points tricked me.. I initially saw songs at 79 points each, and thought, “Great.. cheaper than iTunes” yeah.. then I when I went to buy my points.. I realized that the exchange rate wasn’t in my favor… maybe that will fluxuate too.. I wonder what points cost in Euros?
Scott
24 Nov 06 at 1:08 am