I have had a Zune 30 since nearly the beginning. My wife got it for me for Father's Day that year. It was a Target exclusive at the time ans was supposed to be red, but it is really watermellon pink. I kept it, but I am ready for a new one. I have the 120 and the 16 on my Christmas List. But Engadget can make my Chrsitmas dreams come true and save my wife some money. Honestly I will probablly not get one unless I win this one. I love my Zune. I have paid for The Marketplace every month faithfully for years now. Please Zune bounty please.

Begs, a loyal Engadget reader for years.

My 30 is running longer on a charge as well, even with WiFi left running I get the same type of battery life that I had before the firmware update. My issue is with the Desktop software jacking up Meta Data, other wise I love the new soft and firm ware. I am begging for an 8 for Christmas and I will switch my 30 to purely a Video Device.

Current CDMA Technology is at it's limit. WCDMA, UMTS all that new stuff is NEW stuff, based on old stuff. Still all better than GSM in which case the new generations to come will be based on CDMA. Like you said hard to break it all down.

A quick break down of what is going on as I understand it.
Verizon and Vodaphone agreed to use the same G4 technology. The story also claimed it is GSM based.

So here is what this means for us now...
NOTHING, not a darn thing!! G4 is so far of it isn't even funny. Guestimates are at least four years, likelyhood is more..

Either way GSM as we know it is dead!!! The carriers in America already killed it, the current network Is Actually GPRS.. And UMTS which is the 3G highspeed version of GPRS is in actuallity a CDMA based technology.

Now here is the funny thing.. CDMA which is the Siuperior technology by all acounts is running out of time. Currently with EVDO Rev A, CDMA is WAY faster than GPRS and of course the Voice quality is better, but there is only so much faster or better that you can make CDMA so the carriers have been looking for alternatives for a while now. You don't hear about it, because carriers do not want the people worried about the future. Truth is people are so affraid to embrace change that the future we should have had by now will never come as quickly as it could have, (but I digress). So any way in a few years all current technolgy will be dead and I just hope all carriers can finally start agreeing to make technology that works together. Eventually all Communiation devices will work off of a Wireless Internet backbone anyway. It is just a matter of what wireless signals are used to do that. All the carriers know that things need to change, technolgy needs to change. It is just a matter of how and when, but do NOT expect it to happen any time soon. We were reading about 3G in 93 and it has only become ubiquitus over the last few years and even then only on CDMA. The GSM/GPRS carriers have yet to fully role out 3G. Heck T-Mobile may never even do it.

yES xBOX 360. pLEASE AND tHANKYOU.

What I would want out of a Dream Zune

1. WiFi that works, not fully just able to do Marketplace and Sync over WiFi.
2. Ability to enter a security key E.G. Wep to connect to WiFi
3. A little less restriction on sharing. Add a feature where “Family” Zunes get unlimited plays from a shared file. Idea there is that devices in the same household would have access to the original files anyway, but sometimes like on the road or out and about it is easier just to share the files between devices.
4. Same big screen but a bit higher resolution.
5. Slimmer device.
6. Allow higher resolution album art.
7. Allow Video Backgrounds
8. More control over Playlists from the Zune
9. Able to delete from the Zune
10. Optional Picture Rotation
11. Optional Video Rotation
12. Ability to edit Metadata through the Zune Desktop Software or at least assign files to categories E.G> TV, Movie, Shorts etc. (this is huge!)
13. Some people say bigger hard drive, this would be nice but not essential
14. BLUETOOTH!! I want to be able to sync to a computer with BT, I want to be able to use BT Stereo Headphones with control of my Zune.
15. More Industry support, in things like car stereos, and home audio.
16. More eye Catching Colors!! Love the double shot, but give me like Rust Orange or a better red maybe a grayish purple..

I want to say that we have two Zunes in my household. I have the gay Red Color (will be getting a skin for it) and my daughter has the Pink. We both lover our Zunes. Except for the gripes I listed above the interface on the device is easy to navigate. It is intuitive and flows well. If you notice MOST of my desires are in the software not the hardware it’s self. My big hardware is issue is no Bluetooth. I love the housings on the Zune and can not wait to see new colors. I personally love the buttons and layout! I am sure going forward that the buttons will not have so much give in them. I LOVE the subscription model of the Zune Marketplace and I will continue to pay every month. 2 Zunes for 15 bucks a month is not bad at all.

Now there is testing and there is marketing and then there is beating the horse until it's head is split open, brains are leaking out and you can not tell it is a horse.

Here lately that is Verizon's testing process there are so many phones that VZW has been sitting on for well over half a year. VZW did not lose customers to the iPhone, it lost customers due to inaction.

Top Phone looks mysteriously like the yet to be officially anounced for Verizon U740. THe other two phones yet other brand new models. Will each carrier get their own version? Sign me up for a Verizon Simpsons phone!

Look Altell merger or buy out talks have been around for years. I work in WIreless. I used to work in Kansas where most of it was Altell and only some Eastern cities Verizon. I can tell you that many many people on both side in that state would love to see a merge. Every carrier has it's bad and good. People bash for all kinds of reasons. I do not like some of the Verizon policies, but it is by for a better carreir than about anyother out there.

That being said who really cares!?!?!

It will either happen or not. THe only carrier out there that really has the money and the means to make something happen is Verizon. They will also do better at taking care of the Altell customers than any other carrier out there, just based on track record.

At the same time I do not see a merge happening. If it does there will be divestitures based on the areas where the merged company would form a monopoly.

WE will see what happens.

I still haven't figured out why no manufacturer realizes that w/just a few tweaks you can add Windows Mobile to any flip phone. It is a Mobile Phone OS. I am salivating at the idea of say the LG 8600 with A little bigger internal screen and Windows Mobile for Smartphones or say a slightly snazier LG 9900 (enV) with Windows Mobile for Smartphone. Comeon!!!!