Zune 2 rumours have been doing the rounds for months now, the most recent instalment was the revelation of supposed product pics from a Microsoft insider.

Well, it seems that these pics are in fact the real deal, and the new models will launch in the States in October, or in words of ZuneScene's deep throat informer: "We are gunning for Oct 16th".

There will be two main versions of the player, a flash-based device in 4GB and 8GB and a larger HDD model offering 80GB capacity.

Colour choices will be pink, red and black throughout the range with an army Jeep green making an appearance for the flash model too.

One major design change is the navigation button being replaced with a new raised "squircle" shaped button, which is a square with rounded edges that users can push from any side to navigate the controls.

Currently in "product validation" stage according to the source, it seems Microsoft are looking to launch these in the wake of the Halo 3 launch, perhaps hoping for some goodwill purchases for what otherwise looks like fairly standard devices.

There is no word on whether these new players, unlike the current US-only models, will see a launch outside the US.

>> Via - Gizmodo
>> And - ZuneScene