Today, Microsoft released the 2.3 firmware for Zune. This release is a minor release that does not add new features but fixes a battery problem. Many users, including me, have experienced a draining battery even when the player is “turned off” by holding the Play button.

After upgrading, other than the fix for the battery issue, there is also a very apparent increase in performance. The player tends to freeze up much less often and the animations are a lot smoother.

~DC

I got to say, the launch of the new Zune lineup came with a lot more to be impressed about. Along with the Zune 80, 4 and 8 came a visually-stunning, redesigned Zune.net website, the Zune Social, and the new Zune software. Microsoft seriously put the visual appeal factor in all of these. I am especially impressed with the smoothness and the visual effects of the Zune software. It has the functionality of iTunes with more flashy animations but is far less of a resource hog.

Equally amazing is the 2.2 firmware upgrade for the Zune 30. The new firmware is undoubtedly more animated but also runs a lot smoother than the 1.x firmware which tended to lag very frequently. However, there is one mystery I have yet to figure out. Apparently there are preview images for videos but somehow, they are not appearing. This may be resolved through the desktop software but I will need to eventually get a new comp first.

Screenshots to follow…eventually.

~DC