Microsoft has officially killed the Zune media player. The tech company announced today that it will no longer produce the Zune but Microsoft will, however, continue to offer support for existing Zune customers.

Microsoft said on Zune.net:

“We recently announced that, going forward, Windows Phone will be the focus of our mobile music and video strategy, and that we will no longer be producing Zune players. So what does this mean for our current Zune users? Absolutely nothing. Your device will continue to work with Zune services just as it does today.”

PC Magazine reports that Microsoft will continue to honor warranties for people who already own a Zune.

Microsoft said:

“We will continue to honor the warranties of all devices for both current owners and those who buy our very last devices. Customer service has been, and will remain a top priority for us.”

PC World notes that the Zune may not be the only MP3 player getting the ax. With phones becoming the go to device for portable music, once hot products like the iPhone Classic could soon be phased out.

The Zune was popular among critics but the device was never able to gain a fan base.

PC Mag writes:

“Software is Microsoft’s strength, and while the Zune HD was an excellent device, it simply didn’t matter because Apple’s iPod lineup virtually devoured the entire MP3 player/portable media player market.”

Will you miss the Zune? Did you ever use one?

The Zune is Dead; Microsoft Shifts Focus to Windows Phone is a post from: The Inquisitr

Got Hotmail problems today?

Apparently you’re not alone, as users across the internet are reporting issues logging in to Hotmail and related services like Windows Live Messenger. MSNBC says the issue is resolved now, and that it is unknown how many users were affected although it’s believed that tens of people still using Hotmail were unable to access their accounts this morning.

In a statement, Microsoft said the outage was brief and is now resolved:

“This morning, around 9:30am PST, the Windows Live ID sign-in service experienced a partial outage that caused some customers to not be able to sign into services using Windows Live ID for approximately one hour,” Microsoft said in a statement. “The service is now restored to normal. Microsoft apologizes for any inconvenience this has caused customers.”

Users with login difficulties generally received the same error message:

“We are experiencing higher than normal volume and are therefore unable to service your request at this time.”

The outage was thought to be sparked by Live ID authentification, and Zune and XBox Live users were also affected when the Live.com domain was inaccessible.

Hotmail, Windows Live Messenger were down, reportedly back up is a post from: The Inquisitr

Microsoft is about to pull an Apple and Google by hoping full force into the phone market, at least that’s the report that recently surfaced from MuyComputer which is reporting that the Zune Phone will appear at MWC in Barcelona this month and will feature a Nvidia Tegra setup.

According to Gizmodo, MuyComputer DirectorJ avier Pérez Cortijo said

“the Zune Phone presentation at Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress 2010 is 100% confirmed.”

According to that same report, the Zune Phone will offer a screen resolution of 480 x 272, although no size has been announced, plus HDMI video out and Windows 7.  It will also weight around 2.45 ounces. Just realize that the picture in this post is nothing more than an artists own rendering of what they think the Zune Phone will look like.

The image is a mockup, not the real thing

Zune Phone To Make Official Debut At MWC, Feature NVIDIA Tegra is a post from: The Inquisitr

Rumors are beginning to bubble to the surface – again – about Microsoft coming out with their own branded phone. Some suggest that Project Pink will see the Zune media device re-purposed into a hot new phone gadget running Windows Mobile 7. Others suggest that HTC and Microsoft will be responsible for the new Windows Phone.

The window for this announcement is being placed either at the Mobile World Conference, Feb 15-18, or at CITA in Las Vegas in March. Regardless of when and what is announced you can be guaranteed of one thing – no matter how good the product is it will be panned by the majority of tech writers and analysts.

It’s not Microsoft’s fault really. It is just an extension of the opinion that nothing Microsoft does is good enough. It will never be as cool as the iPhone and it will never be as good as the Android based phones.

There well be long diatribes about how Microsoft is too late to market and will never catch-up regardless of how good or cool their product is. Screeds will be written prognosticating just how a Windows Phone is going to fail.

Personally I hope that if they are going down this road they come out with a killer product that will make more than a few people eat some humble pie. Chances are though even if they do launch a great phone everyone will find some reason to say it stinks and that Microsoft is a company out of step.

No matter how good the Zune ‘Pink’ Phone is it will stink is a post from: The Inquisitr

The good news, though: The Zune freeze quickly dubbed “Z2K” is finally finished. At least in theory.

Zune’s Leap Year Bug

A “bug in the internal clock driver related to the way the device handles a leap year” led to all 30GB Zunes freezing on the loading screen with the logo stuck on screen, the company says. The issue should supposedly now have resolved itself.

Frozen Zune Fix

If your Zune is still experiencing problems, Microsoft suggests you take the following steps:

1. Disconnect your Zune from USB and AC power sources.
2. Because the player is frozen, its battery will drain-this is good. Wait until the battery is empty and the screen goes black. If the battery was fully charged, this might take a couple of hours.
3. Wait until after noon GMT on January 1, 2009 (that’s 7 a.m. Eastern or 4 a.m. Pacific time).
4. Connect your Zune to either a USB port on the back or your computer or to AC power using the Zune AC Adapter and let it charge. Once the battery has sufficient power, the player should start normally.

You may also have to resync your Zune with your computer to restore any DRM files after completing that fix.

Zune Battery Disconnect

Microsoft mentions that some Zune users followed advice in the Zune forums and disconnected their device’s battery. If you did this, Microsoft recommends the following procedure to get your Zune back in working order:

• Wait 24 hours from the time that you reset the Zune and then sync with your computer to refresh the usage rights; or
• Delete the player’s content using the Zune software (go to Settings, Device, Sync Options, Erase All Content), then re-sync it from your collection.

Zune Freeze: Leap Year to Blame, Microsoft Says is a post from: The Inquisitr

Users of Microsoft’s media player are finding their Zunes frozen and stuck on the loading screens. The widespread Zune failure is already being dubbed Z2K or Z2K9.

Zune Freeze: What’s Up?

The Zune freeze appears to be affecting the Zune 30GB models. It started right after midnight this New Year’s Eve. The Zune problems cause the devices to become stuck with the logo on screen and nothing else happening. A regular Zune reset or hard reset does nothing to solve the problem.

Microsoft Zune: Zune Troubleshooting

Microsoft has acknowledged the Zune problems and has issued the following statement:

“We are aware that customers with the Zune 30GB are experiencing issues with their Zune device. We are actively working now to isolate the issue and develop a solution to address it. We will keep customers informed on next steps via the support page on zune.net.”

You can access that Zune support page here. As of the time of this publication, the Zune news section has the following Zune help message:

“Customers with 30GB Zune devices may experience issues when booting their Zune hardware. We’re aware of the problem and are working to correct it. The Zune Social might be slow or inaccessible. Sorry for the inconvenience, and thanks for your patience!”

Zune Forums

You can communicate with other Microsoft Zune users about the issues in the official Microsoft Zune Forums here.

Zune Problems: Why Is My Zune Frozen? is a post from: The Inquisitr

Funny things happen at Christmas. I was researching the top gifts this year for Christmas based on Google searches and I was in for a big surprise. Along with hits for Rock Band, Guitar Hero World Tour Cheats and the obligatory iTunes references, one particular search stood out from pack.

Searches for the much derided Microsoft Zune music player.

Zune related searches peaked in the top 20 most searched for terms Christmas morning (in the US) on Google then settled mid range at 40-50 as it came off its peak.

Search terms included zune software, zune, zune.net/setup, zune.net, zune.com and www.zune.net/setup.

The volume to rank in the top search terms on Google is large, so any mention in the top 100 shows a surprisingly large number of people looking for Zune information.

The data can mean two things: lots of people were given Zunes for Christmas, and/ or those that received Zunes had no idea how to use them; the latter isn’t improbable given you need to authenticate a Zune before you can use it, the software to sync music has to been downloaded (you can’t use iTunes with a Zune), and you also can’t easily use a Zune with a Mac (the Zune client itself is Windows only).

Either way, Microsoft won’t be disappointed. The latest generation of Zune’s have received better reviews than their predecessors, and Microsoft has been aggressively pricing them compared to iPods, making them more affordable in an economy where people are looking to save money.

Merry Christmas Microsoft.

If you are looking to set up your Zune, click here.

The Zune may have been a surprise hit for Microsoft this Christmas is a post from: The Inquisitr

The software giant has announced it’ll offer downloads of programs from NBC, MTV, Comedy Central, VH1, and Nickelodeon, among other networks. It’ll also have Ultimate Fighting Championship matches up for grabs starting today.

“Consumers want more than the traditional transactional model of an online music store plus portable device,” Zune Global Marketing Manager Chris Stephenson explained.

The new service will sell shows for about two bucks a pop, paid for in proprietary “Microsoft Points” purchased on the site. Shows for sale include hits like “The Office,” “30 Rock,” “Rock of Love,” and — you guessed it — “The Hills.”

The announcement comes just months after NBC decided to pull its programming from competitor iTunes over a pricing dispute. The network wanted to raise its prices to $4.99 an episode, according to Apple. Though the Zune pricing starts at $1.99, the company has indicated it may offer “premium content” for a higher fee after the initial launch.

“Partnering with Zune will allow us to develop innovative content offerings for their customers, including flexible pricing and packaging options beginning this fall,” said NBC executive JB Perrette.

“The Hills” Are Alive With The Sound Of Microsoft is a post from: The Inquisitr