I was actually quite surprised by the Zune I got to play with. The UI was very responsive and intuitive, the screen was very nice, and battery life was very good. If I was looking for a minimum-frills device, I'd consider it.
I only had a couple of problems with it: the construction felt cheap. It wasn't like it was going to fall apart in your hands, but it just felt second-rate. Almost like comparing leather seats in a Lexus versus a Hyundai. Nice, but not quite on the level of the higher-tier brands. Next was the color: I don't know who decided that brown looked good, but if I was looking to hide my Zune in a turd, I know that's the color I'd pick. And then there was the lack of real wifi. None of those are real dealbreakers for me, but they were enough to drop it to the "I'd consider it" list.