Somehow, Zune has slipped in under the radar. According to reports from a few months ago (From NPD, I believe), Zune’s managed to slip into 3rd place in overall mp3 player sales - surpassing Creative. And they managed to do so without the player even being availble outside of the U.S.
Truth is, Zune can play up their features all day long and not make too much of a dent against iPod. I believe Zune knows that and so does Apple. For example, I hear iPod users (such as myself) always complaining that they can’t remove music from their devices and put it back on their computers. Zunes allow you to do so… among other things not allowed by iPods. However, in order to grab even the tiniest bit of iPod market share, the Zune team seems to be trying to focus on saavy marketing and building good word-of-mouth. After all, considering how few features most iPods have, marketing is primarily what’s selling them.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Zune slip into a distant, but respectable 2nd place once they go international. (Although, getting the rights to share songs between devices internationally is tough, which is one reason why Zunes aren’t available as widely.)
Also, what’s up with Mac support, Zune?! 