Zune Thoughts: Paul Thurott Reviews Zune Services, Software & Zune HD

"But the Zune HD soldiers on with the same weird limitations as its predecessors and as Apple expands and enhances the iPod lineup and its surrounding hardware, software, and services ecosystem, the gap only widens. Today, the Zune HD is offered in only one country worldwide, the United States, and when I asked Microsoft about this, I was met with a cooler-than-usual response that offered little to no hope that the company took this product seriously enough to offer it outside its own locale."

Paul Thurott, of Win SuperSite fame, has finished up his exhaustive review of the Zune Software, Device, and Services, assigning ratings (in the form of pictures of his head) for each of the key parts. Overall he seems to like the device and software, but finds many parts lacking in a number of ways. It's a long read, but well-worth it.