[berniebennybernard]

I recently bought the NWZA728B, and although I haven't done much testing on it, the Zune 8 has caught my attention. It looks great and from reading some replies, sounds just as good.

Now my question is, how does the Zune 8 duke against the current line of Sony Walkmans? Is the build quality good/worse, audio/video quality, etc.

I never really paid much attention to the Zune because it never came to Canada (apparently it's making its debut in mid-June) and the first generation was another "meh" product from what I read.

Thanks

 

[Ricardo Dawkins]

Some features/points of the Zune 8 over the Sony A7xx series
- Gapless playback on all supported codecs
- The UI on device and software integration
- The Social thing, TV shows, podcasts support and online service
- Gaming support
- Future firmware updates
- Ecosystem

I think the Sony wins with its superior SQ and included earphones. Everything else like picture viewing, video support is the same on both players.

 

[tstarn06]

Excellent analysis above, I have both and while I do enjoy the Sony SQ and EQ options, I still love the Zune80 (not the 8), and the latest software is finally working for me, as I have retagged all my problem files with it (using the edit function), and now I'm a happy camper with the Zune. I use them both, in different ways and at different times. Another commonality? Neither has an available LOD yet, so using them with a portable amp means using the HP out. Bummer.

 

[berniebennybernard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricardo Dawkins /img/forum/go_quote.gif Some features/points of the Zune 8 over the Sony A7xx series - Gapless playback on all supported codecs - The UI on device and software integration - The Social thing, TV shows, podcasts support and online service - Gaming support - Future firmware updates - Ecosystem I think the Sony wins with its superior SQ and included earphones. Everything else like picture viewing, video support is the same on both players.

So from an audiophile standpart, Sony > Zune? I went from an iPod Touch to my new Sony NWZA728B because of the better SQ/EQ options, so it would sound hypocritical if I got a Zune since all those bonus features the Z has sounds like the jailbroken addons on the Touch.

 

[tstarn06]

I would say if you are staying at the 8GB limit, then the Sony is the better option audio-wise, since I bought the Zune for the 80GB capacity, and the Sony for the SQ.

 

[Oya?]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ricardo Dawkins /img/forum/go_quote.gif Some features/points of the Zune 8 over the Sony A7xx series - Gapless playback on all supported codecs - The UI on device and software integration - The Social thing, TV shows, podcasts support and online service - Gaming support - Future firmware updates - Ecosystem I think the Sony wins with its superior SQ and included earphones. Everything else like picture viewing, video support is the same on both players.

This really piqued my interest, I didn't know Zune 8 could do gapless! A Google search didn't prove too fruitful, could you point me towards some further reading?

More gapless DAP options is always a good thing.

EDIT: lol, should've checked a few threads down (I didn't see the discussion about the new firmware update). I guess I should keep Zunes in mind next time I break my iPod.