8 out of 8 people found this review helpful.
Awesome, compact, portable media system
Date of Review: Nov 16, 2008
The Bottom Line: A small, multi-media unit with crystal clear screen, great portablility for music and video, etc, this is a great purchase.
I bought this before a trip I took to New Zealand last summer. I wanted a device that would backup my photos in case something happened to my camera or its memory card. I looked at several products that met this purpose, and almost bought one before I saw the Archos player. I travel quite a bit, and the added features of being able to watch movies, see everything in a colorful, crystal clear screen, plus WiFi and touchscreen capabilities, I was sold.
The features are easy to use, and the touch screen is pretty self-explanatory. It's an easy USB connection to your computer, and I found that transferring files was a snap. The picture quality is excellent, and you can hold a lot of media on 80GB - I have dozens of movies on mine. It's a great travel size, works well in an RV, on the plane, and can easily attach to a TV and work sort of like a portable DVD player would.
The only real drawbacks to the Archos systems are that they don't come with ANYTHING! For example, in the box with the unit, you get the USB cable, the instruction booklet and the unit itself. You don't get any AC power plug, and you need to purchase add-ons to play movies and you need to purchase browser software to use the built in WiFi. I know the company made that decision for two reasons - 1) You can customize your system to include the components that you want, so you can make it more affordable and (2) there are a few options for choosing a power source, from the DVD dock which allows you to record from your cable box, or the mini-dock which allows you to power up when you travel and is small and compact. However, it would seem idiot proof that any modern electronic device should come with a standard power source. It would be like buying a cell phone or laptop computer and having to purchase a separate plug. Doesn't make sense. My only other complaint is that the "pen" that comes with the unit for the touchscreen purposes have no way of attaching to the unit itself. As you can imagine, a 3 1/2 inch plastic pen can find it's way in to numerous nooks and crannies around the house. I solved this by adding a small piece of velcro to the pen and the unit, and haven't lost it yet.
I actually saved quite a bit on this unit as I purchased a "refurbished" unit that came with a 6mo warranty, and paid around $200 instead of $350 or more. Definitely shop around to find the best deal.
I've read other reviews where people complain about it being too small and having a weak speaker. Well, folks, the reason that it's small is that it's easy to carry around (about the size of an iPod, but heavier) and since it is so small, the unit cannot have a large built in speaker. A good pair of headphones, and this thing works wonders on long plane trips where they only have 1 movie choice - you will be the envy of anyone sitting near you! And, yes, the wifi features are limited without a full keyboard, but it's not meant to replace a laptop, but is fantastic for a quick email check, or to send a quick note to someone, check the weather, etc., etc.
All in all, a very good purchase - I am satisfied, and still use it every time I travel.
