Forget the Zune HD; the Nokia N97 plays Zune Pass music and more

If you follow my writing on ZDNet then you probably read a few of my Zune HD posts. I have a pretty small physical music collection and thus I thrive on the Zune Pass subscription service that now give me 10 free non-DRM songs per month along with unlimited music playing on my Zune HD. I previously wrote about how the Zune Pass also works on the Nokia 5800 and Nokia E71x devices too. I recently tried out the capability on my T-Mobile Touch Pro2 and even a Microsoft device does not support this capability. I wanted to create this post to let all of you Nokia N97 owners know that the Zune Pass works just fine on this device too and with 32GB on the device and more available via microSD you can carry a ton of music and enjoy it with the N97. If you want to experience this, then enter my N97 contest to try to win a free N97 to get you started.

While I honestly love the super compact form factor, beautiful OLED display, and capacitive touch screen of my new FC Sounders etched Zune HD there are a couple of advantages the Nokia N97 has over the Zune HD. I am looking at this just in terms of media playing capability since the N97 is a full blown smartphone and should not be compared to a media player: Integrated stereo speakers: the Zune HD has none so headphones are needed to enjoy content Removable battery: you can always carry a spare and listen to music for hours Larger, higher resolution display: 3.5 inches at 360×640 pixels vs 3.3 inches at 272×480 pixels Angled display for easy video viewing FM transmitter: you can enjoy Zune Pass content wireless without an accessory Did you also know that you can enjoy Amazon Video on Demand content on the Nokia N97, just like I talked about with the Nokia 5800? This capability is awesome and one reason my N97 always travels with me on the airplane. There are VERY FEW portable Amazon VOD devices and the N97 is one of the most capable.

Now, the Zune HD has better media player software and the ability to output HD movies to your TV via the dock is pretty cool. That said, you can save yourself some money and add the Zune Pass to your N97 without picking up a Zune HD. Shoot, did I just talk myself out of my Zune HD purchase?