iPod Vs Zune

First of all, I have to warn you about one little thing - I am not crazy about any of the iPods or Zune players currently available on the market. In fact, I could go as far as saying that I hate them both. It's not because what they have, it's more about what they haven't, and some competitors have - and even for a better price, but I won't tell you more than that. The reason is obvious - today, it's a whole new iPod vs Zune day!

Yeah, can you believe Microsoft is still selling that so-called "premium wireless digital player," after being humiliated by the iPod for so long? I know what I just said before, but I am not talking about my personal opinion now, but sale numbers, because that's what really matters, after all. Speaking for myself, I must say that, while I am not happy with the array of features offered by the iPod or Microsoft Zune, when it comes to the design part, the Zune really sucks. That's it for me, so let's get to those sale numbers now...

According to the latest 10-Q filling by Microsoft, "Zune platform revenue decreased $100 million or 54% reflecting a decrease in device sales," and that's not such a big loss in terms of sheer numbers, since the Zune never had a serious market share of its own, anyway.

On the other side, Apple's iPod business just hit a new quarterly unit record, selling no less than 22.7 million units, 3% higher than the company's sales in the year ago quarter. Some may say this is because a demand of innovative products in these rough times, but I say this is only thanks to Apple's extremely strong brand, and the "snowball effect." After all, how many wouldn't feel a bit strange to be the only one in a room having another player than the iPod, or to have his friends mock him on a daily basis because his player lacks some feature their iPods have?

In the end, it's not about the reasons, and it's not about who's the best. This is all about the money, and Microsoft just got the wrong turn once again. Well, they should focus on Windows 7 now, and drop all the other irrelevant products. That doesn't include Flight Simulator but, unfortunately, it's too late to save it...