Many of our users are also MSN TV (a.k.a. WebTV) customers because Skweezer does a pretty good job of stripping out superfluous data from any web page, especially eBay, and reformatting it for a smaller screen, in this case a low resolution standard TV screen. When this tenuous combination of MSN/eBay/Skweezer doesn’t work, however, our customer service department really hears it, and some of those things bubble up to me.
Why don’t they just buy and use a computer or a high-powered phone/PDA? Obviously MSN TV is supposed to be cheaper than a PC, but I don’t think that’s the whole story. After all, you can pick up a bargain PC at Wal-Mart nowadays for next to nothing. I think I have a partial answer. MSN TV owners don’t want a PC and all that entails; they just want to plug a cheap device into their TV, turn it on and surf the web. They don’t want to fool around with updates and plug-ins and viruses and service packs; they just want something that works like an appliance should. They’re not the most backwards computer users in the world (as if they don’t know there’s an alternative), but they are the most demanding. This is why I call them “owners” and not “users”; ownership implies that the possession serves its owner’s needs, whereas the word “user” suggests one who has adapted their own habits to suit their possessions. May we all be owners of our possessions and not merely users.
There are some that we’ve been in contact that regretfully admit that maybe they’ve been holding out too long and it’s time to consider joining the normal computing public. I ran across an MSN TV alternative today that may fit the bill for some. It’s called Zonbu, and it’s priced competitively and available right now. This article from OSWeekly.com compares Zonbu with WebTV very well. I think there’s a lot to like about a Zonbu box, especially automatic offsite backup and the fact that it’s so energy efficient, and I’d consider it carefully when thinking about upgrading/replacing a home PC or set top box like MSN TV which is only good for browsing the Internet and can’t run office applications or games or play music.
As far as I can tell, you need to get your own separate Internet connection, keyboard, monitor, and mouse in addition to this device. I’m not entirely sure why you can’t just add these things on at the Zonbu store, but maybe they want to keep it simple. Your upfront payment will be $99 for the computer + $160 for a monitor and maybe another $20 for the keyboard and mouse if you don’t already have them; let’s say $280 all together. Then you have the subscription fees, which depends on the amount of storage you want for your Zonbu box, currently between $12.95 and $19.95 a month, and also an Internet plan, like cheap DSL for about $15/month, or free if your city provides a municipal wi-fi cloud or your neighbor lets you share. I doubt that’s an option with MSN TV. Even so, less than $30/month is not bad at all. Worst case, your first year will set you back $640, or about $53/month; best case (you already have some hardware and access to free Internet) your first year will cost you $255, or about $21/month.
Barnabas, interesting article.
Do you think their businessmodel will work? In other words, who would want a PC that has a little known desktop OS, and still pay plenty over the span of several years?
Ryo, thanks for the comment. We may not be the target market for such a device/service combination, but I think a WebTV owner might be. They already eschew traditional computing models and they value utility over brand. Furthermore, many Americans live month-to-month, which is why I discussed equivalent cost per month above. Even if purchasing a low-power computer that relies on infinite service fees may not be totally financially sound (I think for the company it’s brilliant), neither are inkjet printers, payday loans, carrier-subsidized mobile phones, or auto leases, to name a few similar concepts that are selling quite well here. I think this particular device may find a toehold among a niche, but in a country of 300 million, even tiny niches are lucrative.
You make some interesting points, and the commenters have raised some good questions, especially about the business model. I decided to see if I could use the Zonbu full time as my desktop PC. You can read more about what happens, and observations about the business model and hardware in my blog:
http://mrzonbu.wordpress.com
-Mr Zonbu
For $280 i would rather just buy a brand new computer instead of this lousy device which would be obsolete in a few months.
Now what’s all this about Webtv’ers not owning computers?
I happen to be a Webtv’er and there’s 4 computers in the house so don’t tell me I’m behind the times.
There’s plenty of Webtv owners who also own a computer, some own more than just one and some of them have both Macs and Windows based computers.
I choose to own and use Webtv for it’s simplicity, easy email, quick weather lookup, etc. Now i really enjoy the feature where i sit on the couch and watch TV as i surf around. Of course, for some serious web surfing and different tasks that the Webtv won’t handle i always have my computers.
Now, let’s not forget that some Webtv owners are senior citizens and some of these folks are the ones that tend to be afraid of computers so they rely heavily on their Webtv’s. A device such as this Zonbu might fit the bill for awhile but then what if the product becomes obsolete?……Money thrown out the window!
We have seen numerous “internet set top boxes” and other devices which have all failed and i doubt there will be one that will succeed unless that product is a full blow computer.
Payazin
Mr./Ms. Payazin, thank you for your comment. I didn’t mean to imply that because WebTV is behind the times that is why it should be replaced. As you yourself said, WebTV/MSN TV is deficient for more and more modern websites, especially ones that require Adobe Flash (like YouTube) and other such technologies. From what I’ve seen, I believe that Zonbu is better understood as the best of both worlds, midway between the power of a desktop computer and the simplicity of WebTV.
I feel that Zonbu will be better for seniors than a computer because it is both easy to use and it automatically backs itself up over the Internet. Not even my $2,500 laptop does that, unless I configure and install special software. It’s better than a WebTV because they won’t need to buy anything else for serious web surfing, as you have the luxury of doing. I think the reasonable monthly price puts it within the budget of someone on a fixed income.
All products become obsolete eventually. If one was to wait for the obsolescence-resistant computer, one would never stop waiting. Zonbu seems to straddle the line between appliance and web service, however: since it is a web-connected device, I’m sure the system software can and will be updated remotely. I will follow Mr. Zonbu’s blog linked above to see if that pans out.
(Note to Zonbu marketing folks who found this via search: ignore Payazin’s objections to your peril. Most people won’t tell you why they won’t buy your product, they just don’t buy it.)