So the Zune HD is out, Windows Mobile 6.5 is starting to come out, Windows Mobile 7 will come out end of next year, and all of this relates to project Pink and new rumors of device code-names Pure and Turtle, and a Surface-related tablet just how exactly?

Sigh. Microsoft is like that cousin that we just know could be great but somehow keeps getting turned around, lost, and otherwise just not-quite delivering on it's amazing potential. Imagine if they had one division, making one platform, and all that effort and integration went into delivering a killer XboxPhone in time for the holidays this year? And don't hate on us for saying that, even our sibling site WMExperts is pounding the integration drum.

Back in the real world, however, Microsoft is said to be using a 2-prong strategy, Windows Mobile 6.5 now to compete with Android, and Windows Mobile 7 next year to compete with the iPhone (which, if Apple keeps up with their own roadmap, will be on its 4th hardware revision and running iPhone OS 4.0 -- a moving target indeed).

The Zune HD meanwhile is positioned somewhere between the original and current iPod touch.

Microsoft is also rumored to be working on a tablet, based on their big-@$$ Surface table, to market against Apple's still unannounced iTablet/iPad. Surface uses infrared camera technology, and required a huge basin to house all that hardware, so no doubt this will be Surface in name only (because who wants a 4 foot thick tablet, right?)

And on top of that, Microsoft is still working on Project Pink, which is a giant unknown, except it might be using Danger (makers of the Sidekick, bought out by Microsoft), and might be a Microsoft phone (though Microsoft swears they aren't making a phone -- just like Steve Jobs said no one wanted video on an iPod).

Pure and Turtle would then be these Danger-developed, Sidekick-like handsets running Windows Mobile 7, with on-board Zune software to handle the media layer?

Yeah, we don't know either. Would that -- Sidekick hardware running WinMo7 and Zune HD interface -- be competitive with an 4th gen iPhone running iPhone 4.0?

We're only a year away from knowing....

[Via WMExperts via 9to5mac]

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Updated with iPhone friendly video from WMExperts (irony!).

Would you watch un-skippable ads on your mobile device in exchange for free apps and games? That's the question we're pondering in light of Zune HD doing just that. You pay your hundreds of dollars for the device, and Microsoft provides a few extra games/apps, but sometimes an ad will play before the app launches, and you can't skip them. See the video above for an example (apologies to those on the iPhone, we didn't make the video, so have no control over the iPhone-unfriendly format).

We first heard about this from Matt Miller, editor of NokiaExperts.com and last night during iPhone Live! We discussed it with special guest, Phil Nickinson of WMExperts. At first Phil said he'd never seen one, but then lo and behold, right there live, one of those Kia car commercials began to play when he tried to launch and app.

Of course, watching commercials in exchange for free content is how broadcast TV works, but does that model translate to mobile devices?

Personally, I'm okay with it as long as I know about it up front and I have the option of paying something to get a commercial-free version in case my time (and, frankly, tolerance for seeing the same commercials over and over every time I launch an app) is worth more to me than a few dollars.

iPhone apps, since the beginning with Twitterrific have provided free (ad supported) and paid (no ads) versions, though even then the ads were far less intrusive than full screen video, un-skippable TV style commercials.

What do you think? More free apps the better, or can commercial monetization go too far? And is it more acceptable to put a commercial before a game than it would be, say, to put it before something more vital like the music player, web browser, or email client?

Our equal and opposite, Phil Nickinson over at WMExperts, has just provided the equal and opposite to our just-posted iPod touch G3 hardware review -- a hands-on with the Microsoft Zune HD.

It's my first foray into the Zune ecosystem, so I have a bit of a learning curve, and bear with me. But without giving away the farm, I'll say this: If this is the direction in which Windows Mobile is moving, we all have much to look forward to.

Part 1 covers the desktop software, Quickplay (think genius), the apps, Zune marketplace, what's in the box, the hardware, the screen, and teases Part 2 (of course).

Check it out, then remember to join us for iPhone Live! tonight, as Phil will be our special guest, and we'll take the Zune HD one on one with the great one -- the iPod touch.

So, today's the day. Everyone who works for Microsoft is up bright and early, on their way to lineup at their local Microsoft Store for a chance to scoop up a brand new, shiny Zune HD before they sell out. If you're in line, shoot our sibling site WMExperts a pic and let them know if you manage to snag one of Ballmer's new beauties.

Speaking of sarcasm, for an even harsher look at the Zune HD, check out AppleInsider, who we're not sure have had a hands on yet, but certainly give it a pounding. (Even we said, "ouch!")

And then join us back here tomorrow night at 8pm ET for iPhone Live! where WMExperts own news editor, Phil Nickinson will be joining us for a special edition smackdown, Zune HD vs. iPod touch G3.

Will OLED blind our iSight, or will 64GB prove size does matter? Get to the chat room early tomorrow, the place might just burn down!

On the eve of Microsoft releasing its new Zune HD platform (the one targeted at competing with the iPod touch), Windows Super-siter, Paul Thurrott is reporting that the still nascent plain vanilla Zune platform (the one targeted at competing with the iPod touch and classic) is being abandoned. (Shades of PlaysForSure?)

Likewise, the Wall Street Journal breaks word that Microsoft's general manager of Zune marketing, Chris Stephenson is also being discontinued, leaving to take a position at Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records.

The Zune HD admittedly looks like a more-than-compelling competitor to the 2007 iPod touch (the 2009 model, well have to see), and has bloggers strangely enthused, but it's curious Microsoft is cutting support for previous players at the same time. Though Apple also believes them to be a dwindling market, rumor has it we'll see camera-sporting iPod nano and classic come next Wednesday.

Could this actually be a sign of Microsoft gaining some much-needed focus? And will the logical, and still denied, ZunePhone be next? (And what would that mean for current Windows Mobile ODMs?)

(We're still hoping for an XboxPhone instead!)

[Via Daring Fireball]

Can the iPhone 3GS play back 720p and even 1080p source videos, perhaps even output them to an HDTV? Looks like it might, according to WeiPhone.com who claim to have gotten just such functionality working via the FileAid app.

Of course, we've heard the iPhone 3GS chipset was capable of recording in 720p before. Hey, this time last year we even heard the older, less-powerful iPhone 3G might be able to handle 1080p.

So, while not surprising, it's important to remember that the iPhone 3GS has a 320p (480x320 to be exact) display, so actually playing the files on the device -- aside from heat and battery life concerns -- would result in downscaling to such an extent that it's pretty much pointless (perhaps why Apple doesn't surface it as a feature at this point?)

It is interesting to consider, however, that Apple has another music event just a couple weeks away, and that Microsoft is making noise about the Zune HD outputting 720p to an external display. If Apple could flip a switch in iPhone 3.1 and enable 720p or 1080p overkill out via AV cables (better yet -- HDMI cable!) then that's one less checkbox in competitors' corner, and one more feature for iPhone and iPod touch users to enjoy.

(Of course, bigger video means more storage, like 32GB in an iPhone and 64GB in a presumed third-gen iPhone touch... Hmm... Maybe I was only partially crazy to predict an iPhone HD last year?)

[via iLounge]

UPDATE: XNA Game Studio is the Zune SDK? B'okay...

Has Microsoft been approaching successful iPhone developers, offering "a bucket of money" for them to port their popular apps over to the new Zune HD platform? That's what Daring Fireball is hearing:

I got an email from the developer of an iPhone Twitter client. He was contacted by Microsoft a few months ago, with an offer to port his app to the Zune in exchange for “a bucket of money”. He turned them down, but assumes, as I do, that Microsoft reached out to the developers of multiple popular iPhone apps.

There's no way of knowing how many iPhone devs have gone "Zune for pay" at this point, but it's a smart move by Microsoft, since they're trying to compete directly with the iPod touch and apps are a huge part of the iPod touch's appeal.

The iPod touch, however, has had a public SDK and apps since version OS 2.0 was announced and subsequently released over a year ago. Apple's platform therefore has a huge lead and Microsoft is again left more competitive with previous years' offerings. In any event, here's hoping Microsoft does release a public Zune HD SDK of their own at some point -- and that they finally, finally, decide to share a consistent platform between Zune and Windows Mobile 7...

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Will the third generation iPod touch, widely expected to be released at Apple's next Music Event in September, weigh in at 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB, and be position at $199/$299/$399?

Whether Daring Fireball is making the logical assumption based on Apple's previous behavior and iPod touch price points, or they're privy to something a little more concrete, that's what Gruber is saying in response to the Zune HD's pricing of 16GB/32GB for $219/$289.

(Though currently the second gen 8GB iPod touch is $229, not $199...?)

Since the iPod touch has two NAND Flash slots for the iPhone's one, it typically gets double the upper-range of storage for the same year's iPhone. Thus, the 32GB iPhone 3GS almost certainly means a 64GB iPod touch this September.

If accurate, then, there goes Microsoft's purported pricing advantage, storage-wise. (If the iPod touch does indeed have built in camera and video capability, or other so-far-unleaked features, it could again be a case of Microsoft shipping a spectacular Zune, 1 or 2 years too late...)

WMExperts (via Crunchgear and Gizmodo) rounds up the latest on Zune HD, linking up the above hands-on video, and news that it might just drop at $100 lower than the iPod touch. In other words, Microsoft to Apple: "it's broughtn'ed".

Now, there's no getting around the Zune HD being an OLED iPod touch two years too late, much as the original Zune was a Wi-Fi squirting iPod classic two years too late. At even $100 discount, can Microsoft compete with a 3rd generation iPod touch, rumored to include a camera, perhaps video recording and sharing, and a 65,000+ strong App Store?

Meh. They'll get some iPod rebels and budget conscious adaption, no doubt, and that's probably all they intend. A strong #2 in the music player market, much like they're going for against Google in the search/advertising space, is likely enough for them now. Understandable, to be sure, but we'd still rather see a mind-blowing Windows Mobile Phone with Zune-like interface and hardware specs, Mobile Xbox gaming, and awesome Windows integration.

But we've been wanting that for years...

Despite frequent, repeated denials from Microsoft that they aren't making a Zune Phone to pit against Apple's iPhone juggernaut, our sibling site WMExperts keeps compiling evidence that Microsoft might be doing just that.

The latest is that Pink (as it's code-named) has an ad agency, will be based on Windows Mobile 7 but have it's own proprietary UI layer, should be available next year-ish, and provide Zune, My Phone, and Windows Marketplace for Mobiles functionality.

So have Microsoft's previous denials been based on crossed fingers and the "truthiness" of actually making a Zune HD Phone? Or as TiPb has been predicting, an Xbox Phone?

Let's face it, Microsoft would be negligent and borderline daft not to integrate the technologies and leverage the brand of Xbox.

Oh, wait...

So, two and a half years ago Microsoft released what was basically their version of the 2005 video iPod. Now, some two years after Apple released the iPod touch, WMExperts (via Engagdet and CNET) tells us Microsoft has confirmed... the Zune HD, a wide screen, capacitive, solid-state media player.

At 272x480, it's not quite as wide as the iPhone's 320x480, much less the high-end Windows Mobile handsets like the Touch HD's 480x800. But like we said, it is capacitive (which is strangely still unsupported by WinPho) and what pixels it has are OLED, which will hopefully motivate Apple to give the next generation iPhone the same treatment.

Other features include HD radio support and something nobody can believe they didn't do from the outset: integrate it with the Xbox product line.

We're still left wondering, however, is this really a business Microsoft needs to be in? Wouldn't Zune resources have been better used to get Windows Mobile 7 out last year instead of next when it could be, you know, competitive?!

Personally, I still think Microsoft's only hope at this point is an XboxPhone, but what do I know, I don't run the largest, richest, most talent-laden software company in the world... that runs itself, and everything it produces, into the ground due to paralyzing politics and committee. So, excuse me if I'm nonplussed by the rumors of a new Zune HD, which while not an iPhone clone, or even an iPod classic or nano clone, looks to be positioned exactly opposite the iPod touch. A strategy which has proven so successful for Microsoft thus far...

Dear Steve Ballmer: Please, scorch the earth, start from scratch. Stop worrying so much about Apple and Google and start investing in Microsoft. Start making wonderful experiences for customers all your own. Build an integrated ecosystem from the ground up where Server, Windows, Xbox Windows Phone, and Zune all share a single unified brand and delightful cross-compatibility. Take a lesson from Palm. Spend your years in the desert if you have to, but at least walk in a single, considered direction.

Kthxbai

[Via Engadget]