Every review of the new Zune MP3 player from Microsoft is the same. Mossberg, Pogue, and many others are giving pluses and minuses, but no one is presenting what they really think. The reason is that the Zune is likely to be either a bust or a run-away success and the reviewers don’t want to be wrong.

I got my first look at the Zune today, and didn’t think much of it. The Zune is thick and chunky. While the plastic encasement is durable and practical, the comparable iPod is sleek and slim. As someone who generally chooses brown over black, I thought I would love the brown Zune, but the green cast around the edges and the plastic make it look quite dull. Of course there are other considerations. Perhaps the youngsters will love the ability to wirelessly transfer music, but I don’t think the boomer generations will be impressed with that. The FM radio is a nice feature. The screen is slightly larger than the iPod, but not enough to really make a difference.

Looks to me like it will be a good music player, but I’ll wait for the next generation before I put my money down for a Zune. Perhaps Microsoft should have should have given me a reason to buy now. If they had priced it lower than the comparable iPod, I might be more inclined to purchase one. In the meantime I’ll buy the iPod video.