Music is a huge part in my life. I enjoy both playing and listening to it. The way it can make someone feel or how in any movie it can just set the perfect mood is absolutely wondrous. To think we came from just playing those instruments to be able to now take them with us anywhere for listening is astonishing in its own. Both Apple and Microsoft have worked so hard at making some of the greatest ways to do just that. We evolved from the days of carrying around CD's and bulky CD Players to having just a single little box that can hold thousands of your favorite songs and now even pictures and video as well. Both the Zune and Ipod are very good in their own ways. I'd like to talk about them both a little.

      These pictures display just a couple of the different variations of Zune you could purchase. Although the Zune hasn't been available nearly as long as Ipod's they have come a great distance to be where they are today.

      They can come in the sizes 4, 8, 16, 80, and now 120 Gigabytes. There are also a few more colors than what are seen in the picture such as lime green, blue, and pink. If you were to order your zune off the Zune.net website you could even customize your very own with words and pictures inscribed on the back.

Overall the Zune is an amazing product. Its features include:

• Wireless Sync with connectivity to both your PC and other Zunes via Wireless Technology.
  
• An online Social Network which may even be taken offline with the availability of the Zunes wireless properties.
• An array of Games which may be played on your Zune as well as a few which could be played against another Zune user nearby wirelessly.
  
• An online Music Library with which you may download all the Music you desire through the use of the Zune Program for merely a small monthly payment or by purchasing a Zune Pass which will grant you access to the Library for a month.
• Zune Pass not only allows access to all of these songs while your account is active but allows you to keep 10 songs every month.
  

      The Ipod itself has been around for quite some time. It has therefore had the time needed to evolve into what it has today and is able to keep up with Microsoft's products.

      There are numerous kinds of Ipods that you may purchase. There is the Ipod Shuffle which comes in a 4 Gig size, Nano coming in either 8, or 16 Gigs, Classic with 120 Gigs, and Touch which comes in 8, 16, or 32 Gigs. You can get them in loads of different colors as well. The Ipod Nano comes in any color of the rainbow as well as a few extra.

      So your choices are Zune, Ipod, or Other. With Zune or Ipod you will have all the great features you should expect from both Microsoft and Apple. With getting another brand Ipod you might be fine if it suits what your needs are. That's what it all comes down to is what you need to fit what you will use it for. Personally I own a Zune 80 Gig Black MP3 Player.

      Everybody who I know with Ipods always made me want something else because I was never that fond of Ipods. When another friend of mine bought a Zune 30 Gig back when they were making those I immediately fell in love with the Zune product and have used nothing else since.

      Your first decision should be what size do you want. It'd be about 250 songs per Gig of space. You may also need to factor in videos if you plan on putting them on your MP3 Player as well. It would take roughly about one hour of video per Gig. Pictures take up alot less space and would'nt need alot of space calculated in for them. Maybe just a few Gigs kept for pictures.

      After you have your size figured out you should think about what you want to do with it. Zune and Ipod have alot of simillar features but each have its own little extras so after going through those you may like one more than the other. If so then great go get one already will ya. If either brand is still more than what you need then you can simply go with any non-brand MP3 Player as well.