Microsoft Releasing Multitouch Zune HD And Its Sexy

Microsoft will release a Web-surfing, HD-video-playing, multitouch Zune in the fall to compete with the iPod touch — and the hardware actually looks pretty cool. But as Apple well knows, the gagdet is one thing, the software and services are another.

Sporting a sexy metal case, the Zune HD will have a 3.3-inch, 480 x 272 OLED capacitive touchscreen display; a built-in HD Radio receiver, and HD video output via a cradle — not onboard.

“There’s a lot here that MSFT is doing well, especially when it comes to the hardware,” said Interpret analyst Michael Gartenberg on his blog.

Announced at the D7 conference, M$ offered no other details — CPU, storage, or most crucially, the software and services it will run. M$ promises more details at the E3 game show in Los Angeles next week.

According to the company, at E3 “attendees will see first-hand how Zune integrates into Xbox LIVE creating a game-changing entertainment experience.”

Yeah, right.

Microsoft is promising multitouch apps and games, plus a custom Web browser based on Internet Explorer — and there’s the first nail in its coffin right there! M$ says the Zune HD will offer better Xbox integration and a Zune marketplace, presumably something akin to Apple’s iTunes Music Store for buying apps, media and games.

But there’s the rub: M$ might be able to produce nice-looking hardware, but the iPod experience it is competing with is much more than a sleek gadget. It’s an App Store with tens of thousands of carefully-veted apps, a well-stocked media store, and an integrated hardware/software platform that is robust and reliable.

Apple has sold 13 million iPod touches since its debut in 2007 and December 2009.

This article is copyright Cultomedia Corp.