Today Microsoft made one of their now-famous “soft announcements” – an evasive answer to a call-out that signals something more significant – regarding their personal media player, the Zune. In response to a leak that there would be no further development of the iPod Me-Too, Redmond issued their standard sleight-of-hand response. From Bloomberg:

“We have nothing to announce about another Zune device — but most recently have introduced Zune HD to Canada via the Zune Originals store and remain committed to supporting our devices in North America,”

Translation: “We’re not making another Zune. We feel the vision of mediocrity for our music players is more compatible with our shitty smartphones. And we hate Canadians.”

Microsoft’s consumer electronics are faceplanting with the frequency of an X-Games highlight reel, and are just about as fun to watch.