Amazon to take on iPod with its own music player | CNET News.com

Amazon to take on iPod with its own music player CNET News.com: "Music industry executives are enthusiastic about Amazon's entry because it might be a counterweight to Apple, which many see as having too much power in digital music.
...
One reason that the subscription services have not fared well is that the experience of using them with portable players is more difficult than using an iPod. The Microsoft software that all these services use has been awkward, and the players--made by several manufacturers like Samsung, iRiver and Creative Labs--have not been as appealing to consumers as those made by Apple.
Amazon hopes to remedy these problems by designing its own player in conjunction with a consumer electronics maker, and ensuring that the software works easily with it. The player would be discounted for customers who agreed to buy the music service for a specified period, the music executives said."

I'm surprised Amazon waited so long... Read the full article for more details. I suspect the device will run Windows Mobile.

I'm still happy with Yahoo! Music Unlimited, which I use on a desktop PC, a laptop, and a Creative Zen, but the overall user experience definitely leaves room for improvement.