With the launch of the Zune HD and the CEDIA show just around the corner, hope has been this could mean an all new integrated future for Windows Media Center and other Microsoft platforms. Don't hold your breath. The corrected spec sheet received from Microsoft indicated HDTV and protected Windows Media Center DVR-MS (the files used by Vista Media center) recordings were not supported. This is what Microsoft's response was in this:
"Zune HD, and the forthcoming Zune 4.0 PC software, will support and transcode Windows Media Center recorded TV file formats from Windows Vista or Windows 7 that contain MPEG-2 video, in either the DVR-MS or WTV formats. Support is limited to unencrypted SD and HD recordings. HD Files with AC3 audio are not supported by Zune."
As you may or may not be aware, in the U.S. any high definition broadcasts you snag from antenna, ClearQAM or otherwise use Dolby Digital AC-3 audio, meaning the Zune software won't be able to convert them. Current workarounds for bringing Media Center recordings on the go should still be a go, but all we can see is the missed opportunity to tie the two platforms together with easy one click transcoding support. Hopefully Microsoft still has something up its sleeve to pull together Zune and Windows 7 Media Center, but portable DVR recordings ain't it.
The Zune HD's screen, although gorgeous, is horrible in sunlight.
The Zune lacks the app store which is a colossal flaw in their compettition with the iPod touch.
The Zune HD is Windows only.
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