[citation][nom]jhansonxi[/nom]It didn't help that the Zune software was rather locked-down which restricted third-party developers from using the hardware to its full potential. It wasn't until OpenZDK was created that better performance could be realized but it's a bit too late now.Standalone media players are probably going to be extinct soon as the capabilities will be merged with smartphones. Consumer digital cameras and GPS devices face the same fate. Portable radios have the same problem and broadcasters are trying to get the FCC to mandate FM radio reception in smartphones in an attempt to prevent listener base decline.It won't be long before smartphones turn into tricorders.[/citation]
The scary thing is that what once would have been hyperbole is not highly plausible. I've since replaced my standalone MP3 player with a Windows Phone 7 device and it also handles 99% of my email consumption, even when at home (and that isn't a BS statistic; the only reason I open my desktop mail client now is to watch a video my phone can't handle, which is very rare).
I don't listen to the radio anymore because I always have a source of music with me and now use my phone for a function I never did before: GPS.
Pretty crazy how much technology can change in 6 years. I guess we have the late Jobs to thank for it too. Apple may not have made the best phones, mp3 players, computers, or tablets but, like Microsoft before it, they shaped the industry and facilitated rapid change.
And it's all thanks to Jobs.
Yep, that still stings coming out...