14 DAY TRIAL // Zune HD 4.5 is currently cooking in Redmond, with the official release planned for the coming weeks, according to Microsoft. The next firmware release for Zune HD media players, packaged as a spring refresh, is in the final stages of baking and will make its way out of the company’s ovens soon. Microsoft has not offered a specific general availability deadline so far, but it has offered a range of details on what Zune 4.5 will bring to the table. The Redmond company had already announced a spring update for Zune HD, earlier this year, and it looks like it’s right on track with the firmware’s development. Zune HD owners will be able to take advantage of new features and functionality once the firmware update becomes available, such as Smart DJ on Zune HD.
“Zune has always been committed to helping people discover new music. We added ‘Smart DJ’ to the Zune software last fall and now we're bringing this popular music discovery feature to the Zune HD device. Smart DJ on Zune HD will let you create an instant playlist mix whenever the inspiration strikes direct from your device. Just choose a song or artist from your collection or from the Zune Marketplace catalog and press the Smart DJ icon to build a new mix based on your selection. If you have a Zune Pass music subscription it will pull music from your existing collection and the Zune Marketplace catalog to create the mix. If you don't have a Zune Pass subscription you can still use Smart DJ to build a playlist from the collection on your device,” Microsoft stated.
With the spring refresh, Picks will be offered to Zune HD devices. The music recommendation feature will outgrow the Zune software, and be offered on Zune HD media players. Picks on Zune HD will deliver the same functionality as for the Zune software, namely automatic music recommendations based on the analysis of the songs users listen to, filtered through a complex algorithm that can find connections with the music preferred by millions of other Zune users.
“Browse and Stream Music from Zune Marketplace on your TV: Using the Zune HD A/V dock, you can connect your Zune HD to your TV to play your favorite videos and music from your device on the big screen. With this software update, you'll also be able to browse and stream music from Zune Marketplace directly on your TV to find and listen to your favorite music from the comfort of your couch. You can browse New Releases, check out recommendations from your Picks page, search for a specific song or artist, or even create a new Smart DJ playlist on your big screen – a great way to make an instant soundtrack for your next party,” Microsoft added.
In addition, Zune 4.5 will also expand Video Codec support. According to details shared by Microsoft, the devices will now play nice with MPEG-4 Part 2 Advanced Simple Profile (ASP), both Xvid and AVI support. The company underlined that no transcoding would be required.