re: Considering a Zune HD Purchase

I've got a 1st generation 30GB Zune and I'm considering upgrading to a Zune HD.  Unfortunately, there's no store anywhere near I can try it out first and I have a couple of questions.

1. I like to listen to lots of podcasts and other 30+ minute files and with my current Zune if I switch to a video or the radio it no longer remembers where I paused the podcast and I have to search through the recording to find where I left off.  Is this still a problem in the HD?
2. Related to #1, how's the fast-forward/rewind on the HD?  Can you hold down a button fast-forward until you let go or do you have use the touch screen slider to skip ahead?  If it's all on the slider, how easy is it to skim forward small increments?
3. I listen to my music at work a lot and have to pause pretty quickly throughout the day when people want to talk.  Is it easy to quickly pause or do yo have to kinda dig through the controls to find it?
4. Lastly, will my current USB cables work with the HD?

Thanks for the help.

1.Podcasts are GREAT. I usually hear the whole episode in the car going to school or work but you can pause it and the next time you open it up, it will play where you left off, even after you listen to other songs and stuff.
2. The fast forwarding is pretty easy, you press the button on the left side and then hold the fast-forward button until you stop where you want to play. There's a slider for videos but I don't think for music.
3. This is one of my complaints. I want to pause and control volume with a click but I actually have to take it out of my pocket and press the pause button in the middle.
4. I doubt it will, I think it's a different type of cable but you can check that at bestbuy or something.

It's the same cable as my 80g and my 4g, 30g shouldn't be any different

Bati555 has pretty much summed it all up for the most part.

1.  I am a heavy listener to podcasts and watch quite a few videos.  So long as the audio file is synced as a podcast, the Zune HD will remember your playback progress.  If you have synced the audio file as a song, I don't believe there is a way to remember your playback progress.  And as a side note, the Zune HD also remembers video playback (at least, it has for me so far).

2.  As Bati555 said, you can just hold your finger down on the Rewind/Fast Forward buttons and it will begin to R/FF, incrementally moving faster as you continue to hold.  For podcasts and videos, tapping the R/FF buttons once will shift playback by 30 seconds.  For songs, tapping the R/FF button will change songs.  And for audiobooks (e.g. from Audible), tapping the R/FF button will skip to the previous/next chapter rather than shifting 30 seconds in playback.

3.  I listen to my Zune HD while I am at work as well.  The experience is nicer than my iPod touch, although it still is not as easy as having external controls to control playback.  The Zune HD has a side button that brings up a GUI that controls playback and volume.  Once you get use to it, it is possible to control playback without actually looking at the device thanks to the way the controls are organized.

Sliding your fingers up or down (or tapping the top or bottom zones) will control the volume and tapping in the center of the device pauses/plays the audio.

While listening to music/podcasts: sliding your finger right to left skips to the next song, left to right skips to the beginning of the current song and again will skip to the previous song.  Tapping your finger on the left or right side of device screen produces the same effect.  If you're listening to podcasts, tapping the left or right area skips 30 seconds.

It's not the most ideal situation for being able to control the device without looking at it, but I have found myself able to change songs, volume or pause my Zune HD without ever taking it out of my pocket without a problem.

4.  I have a Zune 8GB and the sync cable works with the Zune HD just fine (as far as I can tell).  If something isn't working properly, I haven't been able to notice it.  The difference you will find is if you want to stream HD video onto an HDTV.  For that you will need the new A/V dock that supports HD.  But as a personal preference, I do prefer to use the new sync cables that Microsoft ships with the Zune HD.  They do not have a locking mechanism as the older cables do (at least the one with my Zune 8GB did).  This makes plugging/unplugging my Zune a lot easier if I have headphones plugged in still.

I hope this help!  If you love your Zune 30, you won't regret buying the Zune HD!

 cgon us wrote:

...If you love your Zune 30, you won't regret buying the Zune HD!

This. The audio quality alone makes it worth the upgrade, I couldn't believe the difference, and the orignal sounded good.

Thanks for the input everyone.  I really appreciate it.