tidmutt

I'm sorry if this has been asked before, but I've searched and been unable to find a definitive answer.

Is there an adapter available that will connect the Zune to the Bose 6-CD Head Unit in a 2007 RX8 and provide the majority of the following functionality?

- Track Selection, fast forward etc. from head unit controls (preferably steering wheel too)
- Power to the Zune to keep the battery charged
- Retaining last song played, time index etc. would be good, but I could live without it.

I know it's unlikely, given how few Zunes there are compared to IPODs, but you never know. I've read you can connect them via USB to some adapters, but does that give you the capabilities listed above?

I would suck it up and just get an IPOD, but I really like the idea of having wireless sync on the Zune 80 so my car will automatically sync with my PC in the house.

Anyone have any thoughts/ideas?


Sorry. Just realized this should probably be in the Interior Audio/Electronics forum.

champi0n

iTrader: (1)

wtf is zune.

CarAndDriver

You bought a Zune???

Icemark

an Ipod for people that want music and videos without having to have crappy apple software and crappy apple reliability.

tidmutt

Well, there are plenty of arguments about that elsewhere. I have heard that the Zune has better sound quality, but I'm sure plenty of people can argue points in the Ipods favor. However, the Zune is the only player that I know of that supports Wireless Sync.

So does anyone know anything about Zune adapters that support the features I mentioned in the original post?

Thanks in advance.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Nope, no adapters for Zune.

Its not even popular. I know that the new Zune made a lot of sales, and from my point of view its better than ipod (finally).

but the original Zune's bad reputation ...

and all the Apple zealots army out there ... they just buy whatever garbage Apple has , phone, music player, computers, OS, whatever ... Apple is just garbage. but oh well.

No adapter.

The Overman

Folks at SoundGate are preparing one version. And it couldn't come soon enough...

http://www.soundgate.com/index.php?r...ategoryid=263&

I'll keep my eye open on that. Anyone here with experience in SoundGate products? Are they any good?

Generic Zune comments below:

There are obviously a critical mass of iPod owners out there. But something tells me that the 2 Million + Zune users (so far) are probably much more eager to consume whatever comes in their direction than the other folks.

I'm one of those... I'm a sucker for accessories with Zune logo. Arm band, cristal case, leather case, quick charger, desk dock with speakers, premium headphones (those are really good, btw), FM transmitter (works ok... But a little shallow in range and you can't really guarantee a clean reception everywhere).
You name it and I probably have, or want badly

All other Zune guys I've met have the same addiction for accessories too. I think it's the "niche" syndrome: You don't buy a Zune just because everybody else is buying. You read about, compare, test and decide it is a better player than the rest on your POV (bold text is to avoid Apple fanboys automatically generated rants/pseudo jokes or other "me too" expressions of smuggness ).
You invested time in buying it. It's now more than simply an MP3 player.
You also probably set up your profile online, searched for some friends, checked what they've been listening too and, more often than not, decided to get the ZunePass so you can share playlists with the other folks without the annoying 30secs clips... It's much more attachment than you'd create for any other mp3 player in the market.
And for the accessories company, it's a premium consumer. Not a mass-market ordinary guy.

If this is a typical Zune owner (and I'm guessing it is pretty close), it actually can turn the 2M Zune users into a potentialy much bigger market, taking into consideration the consumption of accessories per capita.
I'd say that 2M Zune users could easily "consume" in average as many accessories as 4M or more of iPod users. If not for the niche syndrome, at least because it's a "virgin market": You can't buy something if it doesn't exist yet... Perfect competitive scenario for a newcommer company.

Think about that!

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

/sarcasm
yeah... apple does suck. Out of all 3 ipods I've owned, none of them have broken so my only reason to buy a new one was to upgrade... which was a touch choice to make. It especially sucked those few times they froze so I thought I would get a new one, but then I reset it and nothing was wrong . It's kind of a pain having 3 working ipods... the only way I know which one to choose is by using the one that has my most up to date songs (unless one of my older ones has something old that I dont have on my computer anymore). They've been too damn reliable... and they wouldnt even give me a refund cause of it!

Now for the software... that stuff is a pain. I havent even been able to use the "help" option. Just when I think I might not get how something works, all of a sudden I notice how easy it was to use. I mean wtf? Why even have the help option?

I wish I had a zune though... I never get to listen to the radio with my ipod... I'm left with listening to all the songs I like and no songs in between that I really dont like... (ok, I'll admit for -some- people, the radio feature might be useful... I honestly dont listen to radio though).
/end sarcasm

Unfortunately, I havnt heard of an adapter for the zune... there might be one, but I've only seen iPod adapters.

edits:
-my comment written but submitted after the post above me talking about the new adapter coming out...

-disclaimer: I do realize that not everyone will have or has had the same experience with apple products... I hear a lot of fans of microsoft complain about apple reliability. Equally so, I hear complaints of microsoft issues from apple fans. Neither product is perfect... pick your poison!

btw... the new linux mp3 player will be the best!

RyanX-8

iTrader: (1)

I would have to disagree with all of you on the "apples suck." I will never buy a PC again.... NEVER.

CyberPitz

Apple is great for editing video and such....

That's all I give them credit for.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

Apple is great because it looks pretty and idiot proof to use.

but when it comes to Security, Reliability, and price. Apple simply failed.

There was a time that people said Apple employees can **** in the box and people will still buy them, thats how *loyal/stupid* apple fans are.

iPod is the worst when it comes to reliability, my cousin got thru 5 iPods in about 6 years, he doesnt care because 5 of them were *gifts*, and all give up the ghost shortly after the warranty is over.

I dont have anything from Apple, Thank god.

Mister Man

Puh-lease. When Apple introduced the iPod it was preemptively seen as a colossal failure. That was how many years ago?

Sheep mentality or not, they are clearly doing (or have done) something right.

The Zune is quickly becoming the status symbol for those who don't want to have a status symbol. If Zune Rev. 1 had come out looking like the current Zune it might have a larger "following" and thus make it less appealing to the segment who want to look like they aren't doing what everyone else is doing.

That reminds me. We all drive a different type of car then most. Interesting.

Why was the Zune rushed to market anyway? Oh yeah. What is known as Microsoft Mentaility: Get it out so people can see it and make changes as we go to make it work. It's worked for them so far so why change it?

I've also never understood "platform" or "fanboy" bashing in instances like this. Buy what works for you and leave everyone else to their own devices (pun intended). Even worse is when you actually buy a "popular" product because you realize it will do everything you need it to do, only to be accused of following the trends. What? Isn't that a form of prejudice? Well, a mild form anyway. We shouldn't have to explain our purchasing decisions to anyone.

Oh look. I've rambled.

climacus

It's the Volvo C30 of MP3 player.

superglue

nycgps,

I suppose everything from Microsoft works flawlessly, never breaks/freezes, and isn't rushed to the market before it's ready. That's never the case. I'm just some *** that likes to buy small, overpriced shiny things so I can feel 1337

The Overman

I don't think it does. I do hear lots of annedoctal tales of iPods breaking and software glitches, but I tend to believe (as it's the case with PC users and their problems) that people are more vocal when they have a problem than otherwise.

After all, if things are working, people don't have time to go to forums and spend time ranting or praising... They spend their time using their gadgets, oblivious to the suffering of other folks with problems...
(hummm. That does raise some questions on why Mac users have so much idle time to swamp online forums for the sake of bashing PC... But that's a different story ).

But I sincerely believe Zune is a better product overall. Feature packed (some really compeling, like the wireless sync, which allows me to never take my Zune from my car. It's always up-to-date when I go for a ride. Really sweet) and very nicely built (Gen 2, it is). Zune software is to iTunes what OSX is to Windows: really simple, straight forward, clean and beautiful. Makes iTunes look like some old-school spreadsheet.

Whether the Zune Gen 1 failed to achieve this good experience is irrelevant for someone buying a mp3 player right now (other than the customer having to disregard some preconceptions and go look at things by himself...). The fact is that Zune IS currently a better choice. If only accessorie companies would make their move...

And in all fairness, I don't feel shortchanged with my Gen 1 because they brought ALL its functionalities up to date with their firmware updates... This is what Apple typically does in their OSes but failed to do on the iPods so far...

Ironic how in Zune vs iPod, MS and Apple positions are almost totally inverted from the PC vs Mac case...

superglue

The market share is reversed. When you have a small market share like the MS Zune does vs ipod/everything else, then they had to do something to differentiate and attack the ipod shortcommings. Add to that the cheap price of a Zune and you have a desirable product, but MS came way too late into the game. I think a lot of people view it as just a "me too" product.

The Overman

True, very true. It's somehow easier to be on the challenger position.

But it's shortsighted to think about that as a "me too" product. If you play with Zune Social (the online community) you see that it extends a lot beyond being a simple MP3 player where it counts the most, which is to be a feasible way of discovering new songs and artists. Most of the artists I love now have little to no space in radios and media. I got to them via friends suggestions and favorite playlists. And that's really cool!
Apple is trying to extend its scope also, for example, with the iPod Touch wireless capabilities. But so far it created only additional ways for them to get more money from customers (Starbucks integration + iTunes store, for instance. Not a single iPod Touch or iPhone user I know has ever used that). They do that instead of really adding value for the consumer by extending the reach of the initial product (I hate to repeat myself, but wireless sync is more powerful than one could imagine at first. Zune 80 + video dock + Wireless sync = most of what Apple TV does - without the mods - but much cheaper...)

Preemptive defense: yeap, I do have too much time in my hands today... Sick day sucks big time... Back to bed now...

Rootski

iTrader: (1)

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

LMFAO! my g/f heard me laugh at that across my apartment!

As for the fanboy stuff, I am an Apple fan, I do give them a little bit of an edge when I'm considering buying a product. But that's about as far as I take it. I've had nothing but good experiences with Apple therefore I have no reason to switch for now. That doesn't mean that I wont ever buy a microsoft product. I used to be a huge fan of the playstations and nintendo but of the most recent consoles, I only own nintendo and microsoft. For me, my fanboy-ness(?) is more of a slight bias, but not really a huge dedication to the product. For me it's worked, when it doesn't, or I think the other one works better, I will switch.

Pretty much -everyone- is a conformist. Even those "anti-conformists" conform to the standards of being "anti-conformist", therefore making them conformist. Everyone knows that. So if you buy a zune because it makes you different from everyone else, then that's just stupid.

ruru

I think ipods suck bad [but I have never played with a zune] I would most likely buy neither - first itunes sucks - even hardcore ipod users have to admit that point - second - u cannot just plug into a comp and get music - I mean I can plug any self-respecting mp3 player into any windows machine and just drag songs onto it - u would think this would be a must but marketing rules the day for the masses. If ipods sounded best then I would understand - but from what I understand from most audiophiles they do not. And converting music a second time is dumb - u always lose something......

ipods for my step-daughter I can understand - all her friends have one and it makes her kewl in middle school - any person on internet forums I have to say - "hey are u sure marketing did not just get u". I have three ipods at home - my gf's and my step daughters - they are awful - just horrible products forcing a consumer to work around the ipods nuances over fitting in better with the consumers.

That said ipod vs zune - I have no idea- I have heard some awful things about zune stability - I have a sirius stiletto 2 and my bro has a creative something or another which sounds great [I would say better than the ipod]. so really I cannot help with the argument - but anyone touting the ipod as even close to the number one mp3 player is sadly mistaken - and since I would say my usb thumb drive has more functionality than two of the ipods in my home, I see that as more fact than opinion.

Also, in reality what audiophile would be listening to mp3's [not even mentioning apple's conversion] - anyone that cares about sound quality uses more space to just play wavs or is getting into mp3's of hd quality, which sites are starting to spring up with mp3s ripped in like over 1000 instead of the hi being 370 or whatever.

The Overman

That was a funny joke... But it's SOOO last year!
Zune 2.0 firmware has been out for almost 6 months now and brought all the guys in the cartoon asked for and more... 2.5, even more (gapless play on the fly anyone?)

I know, I'm spoiling the fun being too accurate with facts. It's easier to just go with the pack...

But look at that as a friendly advise to not look too uninformed in the future when you decide to use the same joke again... If you preemt that with something like "I know it's out of date, but here's a joke I like" than you'll look better in front of your audience...

Icemark

well since you are replying to a post made over half a year ago, I'll reply to you anyway but must ask if that is typical of an apple owner?... replying to the past?

Anyway, I am glad your Ipods work fine... I guess you are not part of the battery class action suit or the hard drive class action suit from Ipod owners against Apple for their crappy product.
Yep, there are 3 companies that make crappy *** bloated software that gets into everything and makes running any normal program a pain in the ***:

Apple with it's horrible Quicktime
AOL with it's AIM
Real Player with its crappy *** player. (I guess that is why you never see Real Player anymore, because people got sick of it).

Those 3 all just suck and tend to get write every where on your 'puter and clog up everything. It would be different if you could use an Ipod without having to download the latest QT patch from Apple or pay for the premium version but the last I saw, you can't. And then the minute you do down load QT, then it writes itself to load every time you turn on your computer even if you are not using it, or go in and edit the program so that it stays where it should. And QT can't even remember what volume it last played something at... so it turns the volume up to full every time it starts. What kind of crappy software is that???

So I simply won't waste my money on something that uses any of those lame *** programs.

So I guess if you need a computer that is an appliance and you don't care if there is QT running 24/7, then an Ipod or Mac is fine for you (but then that asks: why are you here, because an appliance of a car like a Camry or Civic would probably be more appropriate than a RX from Mazda).

superglue

^^^^^

My Quicktime program isn't running right now, maybe different for Windows? Besides, when I had a PC, I had anywhere from 30-40 programs trying to run on start up. I had to go in and change half of them so they quit loading on start up.

Also, that batter class action suit is so old. It's been settled and Apple has fixed the problem years ago (2005). I'm not aware of a hard drive lawsuit, don't hard drives all crap out after about 4~5 years anyway?

Besides, how many TSBs has the RX-8 been through, and how about that drop in horsepower rating? Must be a crappy product.

8 Maniac

iTrader: (1)

While you do make small point for some of your arguments... the have not caused issues for me...

As for the past comment, I didn't check the post date. And since you still hold the same opinion, why does it matter? I must ask, is it typical of a non-apple owner to make an argument that is neither a cohesive point nor a point relevant to the topic at hand? If you mean to say that since my experience is after the date you posted, then you are wrong. I had 2 ipods well over a year before that post. I will admit the battery on my first one probably only has about half the life that it used to, but still works if I needed it to... but it's also 6 or 7 years old.

My laptop is my school and media computer (my PC being mostly gaming) and I've had no issues with itunes or quicktime getting in the way of things. In fact, it isnt running on my computer now. It might be different for PC users... but if you know anything about computers, you can find it and click the thing that says "end process" and be done with it. And as superglue said... you're paying thousands and thousands more for a car that has had an engine recall with multiple updates in software due to issues that we all knew about before it was fixed by mazda. And I'm sorry, but the whole mulligan thing wasn't exactly Mazda's, or our, proudest moment (as mazda owners).

I do however agree about real player... I hate that program and everytime I see a .rm file, I get annoyed. I'm apathetic towards AIM.

RyanX-8

iTrader: (1)

wow, this thread has reached pathetic status.