[thoughts] Zune Pass, yea or nay?

S

shadowed_hero

So I've been seriously considering buying a ZuneHD, not cause I love the hardware (although I do) or cause the firmware is that much nicer than the ipod touch (although it is), but because I'm liking the idea of subscription-based music. everywhere i've gone has said that the selection has "millions of songs" and all that jazz, but does anyone here have experience with it?

basically, i'm wondering if the selection is just shitty pop music or if there's actual depth to it? i listen to lots of different kinds of music, but occasionally i'll come across something obscure that catches my ear and i like to be able to drill down and find more music by that artist.

also, how is the recommendation engine? i remember hearing things about it recommending similar music, how does it compare to something like pandora? and does streaming over wifi to the zuneHD itself work?
 
I've had the Zune pass since it originally came out, and I'm overall happy with it. Here's what I don't like:

The recommendations are not good.
Some songs are not available, which is annoying.

However, other than that I've liked it. Plus you get 10 free song downloads for the stuff that isn't available with the Zune pass.
 
It really seems like a pretty sweet deal, I would do it if I cared about listening to new music all the time.
 
The 10 songs to keep deal is the only good thing about that subscription. If you cancel your pass, you lose all the music you downloaded that wasn't for keeps.
 
Let's see, 10 songs a month to keep AND all of the music you can download while subscribed vs paying $1.29 a song on iTunes/Amazon. It's definitely worth it.
 
Do people just do this because they don't know how to illegally download music anymore? Or is it honestly about feeling good?

Most of the people I know who take advantage of the Zune Pass are in the first category.
 
Also, can't you just remove the DRM and keep the rented music? Or just convert it to another format, for that matter...
 
[MG]Wh0reTT said:
Let's see, 10 songs a month to keep AND all of the music you can download while subscribed vs paying $1.29 a song on iTunes/Amazon. It's definitely worth it.
Click to expand...
of course from an economic perspective it's worth it, but only if there are actually songs on the service that are worth listening to. that's why i was wondering about depth of selection.

also, is there any way besides the zune software to get music onto a zune (non-zunepass music, obviously)
 
I understand the concept, and I subscribe to it, I'm just genuinely curious about some people's intentions.
 
Spexx said:
Do people just do this because they don't know how to illegally download music anymore? Or is it honestly about feeling good?

Most of the people I know who take advantage of the Zune Pass are in the first category.
Click to expand...
it's a combination for me. i don't mind supporting artists (or record companies, to be honest- they provide me music), and i don't really have the patience to deal with finding music online.

it's not that it's hard to find, cause it's clearly not. the value for me is in the recommendation engine. i'm bad at finding MUSIC, not music FILES. once i know what song or artist i like then sure, i can download it for free no problem, but it's the finding of that song that's so difficult (which is why a lot of the time i end up listening to the same 4 or 5 cds for stupidly long periods of time and get sick of them). i figure that's why apps like pandora got huge so quick, so i'm kinda hoping this is like pandora but with being able to actually choose songs to listen to.
 
shadowed_hero said:
of course from an economic perspective it's worth it, but only if there are actually songs on the service that are worth listening to. that's why i was wondering about depth of selection.

also, is there any way besides the zune software to get music onto a zune (non-zunepass music, obviously)
Click to expand...

I haven't had any issues with music not being on there, besides some of the Dutch hip hop that I like. That's pretty understandable though. I also am not into a lot of indie bands though. It's worth it to try it out for a month, IMHO.
 
Spexx said:
I understand the concept, and I subscribe to it, I'm just genuinely curious about some people's intentions.
Click to expand...

I know how to find and download music, I have before but I just found that I am more comfortable actually obtaining it legally.
 
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