[Nubgoblin]

That's odd. I would think the design works like tihs. The real time clock (RTC) sits on a separate power domain and the CPU on another. 2 things can happen.

1) The CPU is running full bore in the while loop until the power supply drops so low that it can't run, most likely it gets gently switched off by some mechanism. The device looks like it is off but the RTC keeps ticking. If you start up again on the 31st, the CPU will get the date from the RTC and enter the loop and hang again. If you wait for a day and let the RTC tick past the 31st the device should start up. Patience does it.

2) CPU is again running full bore, but this time the power ot the RTC also disapears and the RTC stops ticking, but somehow remembers its state. The device looks like it is powered off. If you wait a day or two and then plug in the power the RTC will still think it is the 31st and the device will hang again. I would guess that if you leave the device connected to the PC or charger in this state then 24 hours later the RTC would tick past the 31st (device is still in the infinite loop), but now a reset will reboot the device, the CPU will now get a valid date and the device should work again. This does mean that you will have to let the device sit charging while in the frozen state for 24h+, but it should work. Patience does it.

I can't think of a situation where it would not recover.

[SkateNY]

It's not like Microsoft truly needed to go out of its way to demonstrate that the Zune sucks. But they did anyway.

[Nubgoblin]

@SkateNY


An insightful comment. Could you please quantify you point of view?

Here are some data to oppose you view:

bq. CNET review where Zune vs. Ipod is a draw: reviews.cnet.com/zune-vs-ipod/ Tweakxpert review where Zune vs. Ipod is a draw: [http://www.tweakxpert.com/2008/01/zune-vs-ipod-which-is-better/]
For any level minded person the devices and PC client that goes with them are pretty much on par . Of course if you belong to the "Apple Akbar" crowd the world looks different, but rest assured, it is only your world that looks different.

[SkateNY]

Two reviews represent "some data?" And the best you could do was find that, according to two people, the comparison is a "draw?" Wow, was I ever wrong.

[Nubgoblin]

I'm curious, do you have a Zune?

[SkateNY]

No, I don't have a Zune. Besides playing with one for a short period of time, I only know about the Zune what I read about the Zune: that it's clunky, has a relatively complicated UI, that -- compared alternatives -- very few people buy them, and that it bricked on New Year's Eve.

I won an iPod touch. It's sleek, elegant, and has a seamless UI. It works so well with iTunes that people tend to for up iTunes with just to experience the ease-of-use that so many people talk about. I can access the Internet -- with true, full-paged browsing, email, and just about anything else I want to do with it, in large part due to the 10,000+ applications on the app store. That means, if I want to, I can make it cut and paste, make it a radio, a recorder, a game-player, and on and on...

In short, my iPod touch is a pocket PC that also happens to play music very well. I'm not locked into any music format by Apple, though there are record companies that make it difficult for me to change their formats. I have the power and speed of Wi-Fi, and I can do just about anything I want on my touch that I can do on my desktop.

If the Zune can do all that, then Microsoft has hit a home run. Even if the Zune can't do all that, for those who like it, that's good enough for me and should be good enough for anyone else.

What I do object to is people who bash the iPod by using misinformation. In my mind, if you need to lie about something, then it most certainly indicates you're very afraid to tell the truth.

[chokwlee]

My Creative Zen works fine .... oh, wait ... its not Zune .... =D

[MarioJP]

Apparently Zunes are not alone with this problem

www.engadget.com/2009/01/03/y28-zune-quirk-really-a-freescale-bug/

Sounds like the driver that is responsible for the system clock is not from MS. It came from Freescale that has the bug.

[Nubgoblin]

I think there is a misunderstanding here. You are comparing the Zune to the Touch, they are two different devices; not an apples to apples comparisson. You should compare the Zune to the iPod classic, same specs and same price.

Nobody is debating that Apple has been very innovative with the Touch and iPhone, they pulled the pants down on everybody with those. But if you compare Zune8G vs. Nano and Zune80/120G vs. Classic, they come out even.

I would be surprised if MS does not put out a device that is on par with the Touch, in fact I'm disappointed that they haven't done it already, but they probably don't have the resources to update the HW that fast.

[SkateNY]

I agree.

A big part of the problem is that everyone else is playing catch-up. As soon as an iPod competitor catches up, Apple has already been in the process of advancing.

It isn't so much a question of better or worse, as much as it is how does someone catch up with someone who is already so far ahead?

[MarioJP]

Whether its apple or other company. This is where the future is going. It does not take a genius that eventually people are going to want something that can be manipulated on the screen with a touch of a finger. Only difference is apple is the first to start it all. Won't be surprised to see touchscreen monitors and such. So who isn't thinking this type of technology??.

[SkateNY]

I agree that the touch screen is big, but the app store is the game breaker. So far, no one even comes close. With an iPod Touch and the thousands of applications available, this product is awesome.