Archos 5 160 GB Internet Tablet with Android Review

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(More customer reviews)I just got my new Android 5 500GB direct from Archos yesterday and its quite a beauty. I'm upgrading from my old Archos 5 250GB, so that will be my primary point of comparison. I also have the following to compare to: iPod Touch 64GB, Archos 605, Walkman X, Samsung P2, and a host of other MP3 players large and small.
Given that my iPod Touch upgrade this year was less than astounding, I pretty much figured that this upgrade for Archos would be similarly understated. Mainly I just wanted the extra hard drive so I could backup all my laptops onto my music player. I was wrong! The new Android version seems to have a whole new feel both in form factor and the new software. I had heard that Archos was having problems with the software, but they seem to have ironed most of them out as of 1.1 firmware release. I did update my firmware immediately, and the process was quite smooth.
I'm going to rate this player on my absolute scale. I will also be making notes on the value of the upgrade from my old Archos 5. Note: I mostly use this as a media center to play music and video; secondarily as a backup drive.
Let's get to it then, these are the things I love about my new Android:
1) 500GB -- totally awesome amount of disk, I can now put just about every digital file I own on the Archos.
2) Android interface -- the overall feel of the software interface has definitively improved with the integration of Android. Effects are crisper, the esthetics are cleaner, things seem to happen faster. I especially like how easy it is to access the most recently played song or video from the main screen, pops up with a little thumbnail that you tap on and voila, resumes right where you left off!
3) Apps -- with Android we now have access to some serious app selection. Of course, nobody compares to the Apple App Store, but this comes the closest.
4) Weight -- this actually feels lighter to me than my 250GB.
5) Dock/DVR -- this popped right into my old 5 DVR and started playing right away. I still think this is the best DVR/Player combination available of all the MP3 players.
6) Video/Hi Def -- of the players I have owned, this has the best, biggest, and highest resolution screen.
7) Portrait/Landscape -- Archos has borrowed the iPhone trick of rotating the display according to orientation. I guess they have an accelerometer in there now, I dunno. Still, its fun to see this feature on an Archos. Its a lot easier to navigate playlists in portrait mode.
8) Easy and regular firmware updates -- with a WiFi connection, the firmware updates are easily performed on the unit itself. That's the easiest system I've seen of all my players. One thing I've learned about Archos over the years, they will put out a steady stream of firmware updates.
9) WMV/MTP mode-- very smooth interface to Windows for either Media Monkey or Windows Media Player.
10) Dedicated volume button -- power and volume buttons have been conveniently located onto the top edge. This is actually much easier to use when it is docked on the DVR (which is where mine spends most of its life!).
11) Sound quality is quite good, sounds great through my Klipsch speakers and seems to have more oomph than my other players.
12) WiFi/Browser -- has a good browser and WiFi connection has worked well for me. I think the keyboard is better than the Touch's, although Safari is probably the slightly superior browser. The bigger screen also helps for browsing. Overall I'm inclined to give the Archos the top ranking for browsers.
13) I just discovered Twidroid, one of many apps pre-loaded, allows me to check my Twitter in a really nice format -- love it!
14) Portability -- well there's only so much portability that can be expected with a screen and hard drive this large. This new design is smoother and rounder so its a little more comfortable in a pocket. It is very easy to carry around as a handheld device, fits nicely in my hand as I stroll about the house trying out all of the Android Apps! In any case, this is not as portable as a Touch but I think its pretty good for a small computer -- which is basically what this is.
15) No extra plug ins needed (so far!). Always in the past I've laid out another $40 for additional Archos plugins to play iPod format music and other video formats. So far I haven't had to do that -- thank you Archos :)
16) Archos will stand behind their product. I've had to send in a couple of Archos units over the years and they have always been happy to either repair or replace the unit without quibbling about it, as long as its under warranty. Note: it did take two weeks to get my unit back!
17) Multi threading: now I show my engineer/geek side. This baby can do a bunch of different stuff at the same time, unlike the iPhone/Touch which can really only do one thing at a time. The Android can be doing other stuff while you are listening music. I love the little bar on the top that you can pull down and switch to any other task that is running.
18) Built-in kickstand, very nice feature.
19) Stylus friendly touch screen -- sometimes you just get tired of trying to type a touchscreen keyboard with fat fingers! In general, this is one of my favorite touch screens. Most of the other touch screens, including iPod/iPhone, are capacitance which means stylus won't work
20) Micro USB cable plug-in: finally a standardized USB plug and you can have it resting on its kickstand while plugged in :)
Given that the Archos tops the class in several categories, and continues to be the best 500GB 5 inch screen player available I give it about a 4.7 stars out of 5 (round to 5). There are a few things I'm less than thrilled about:
1) Update: I believe you can now format your drive in a Windows friendly format on 1.7.96 version of firmware. External hard drive EXT3 -- as I understand it, Archos changed to the EXT3 hard drive format for reasons of speed and reliability. The result for me is that I can no longer simply select hard drive MSC mode, plug the Archos into a Windows machine and expect to access the drive. You have to install an Ext3 driver such as EXT2 IFS on your Windows PC. Once I did that I was able to access the hard drive and backup files to my hearts content.
2) The playlist interface didn't get much of an upgrade and its still kind of clunky. I want to simply tap my playlist and it starts playing. Often times I have to do a couple of extra taps to get the thing playing.
3) We lost the dedicated play button and removable battery a while back -- but I still miss them both! None of my favorite touch screen players has either of these features. I'm also missing the brown metallic color and the rubbery backside.
4) Finding a case for this baby is no easy trick. You're not going to find one at the local Best Buy I'm afraid. In the past I've resorted to ordering my Archos cases from European companies like I-nique and Noreve. This is generally true of any player that is not an iPod or a Zune.
5) As always with Archos, you must remember that you are dealing with a French based company. This means that they don't always provide the best support/service/upgrades to us Americans.
6) Lets face it, Archos is always playing catch up. Some of the new features aren't fully functional yet. I do have faith that Archos will fix all the little glitches with things like GPS over the course of the next 6 months. The Apps available are currently a bit limited. I expect this will improve over the coming months.
7) Keep in mind that this is not a unit for the faint of heart. This is more for the hobbyist who wants a cutting edge experience that may take some messing around to get it just the way you want it. If you want something easy that requires minimum effort then iPods are going to be more your cup of tea.
For me this is still the best player of its class -- that class being large hard drive, big screen PMP players with other fun features. Android makes for some fun possibilities, and overall I'm impressed with this as an upgrade. Once again, if you don't mind a smaller screen and you love apps I suggest you get an iPod Touch. If what you care about most is sound quality you may want to get a Walkman X. For me those are your top 3 touch screen players, it just depends on what you care about the most.
Note: 10-23-2009; I upgraded to firmware version 1.2.03 which fixes some App, Browser, and YouTube issues. Apps do seem happier now, upgrade process was very smooth. Still happily listening to tunes for about 8 hours a day with no problems :)
Update 11-7-2009: I've been running version 1.2.15 with a host of bug fixes and the unit does seem more stable in general now. Wifi is working better and USB connection seems more reliable.
Update 11-23-2009: Upgrade to firmware v 1.3.07 -- a long list of bug fixes including a few improvements that I had hoped for to control the scanning of multimedia files/ ArcLibrary. Got an AppsLib update which seems to work more reliably. There seem to be a lot more apps available now (300 ish) in AppsLib. Just keeps getting better and better! Still is playing music day in and day out with no problems and I'm backing up 2 laptops worth of files onto my 5 IT.
Update 12-18-2009: I've been on firmware 1.4.16 for over a week now. Lots of little fixes, seems even more stable now.
Update 2-11-2010: Firmware 1.7.33 (Android Donut) upgrade. The upgrade was a bit of work, I ended up reformatting the drive and starting anew. However, power saving seems to work a lot better and I haven't seen it reset itself for quite a while now. This seems to be the most solid release yet!
Update 4-8-2010: Firmware...Read more›

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Archos, award-winning for its constant technology innovation, now introduces its new Archos 5 Internet Tablet. This product combines all the multimedia know-how that Archos is famous for, with the ANDROID operating system. It offers you an uncompromised Internet, Media and TV experience in a customizable interface. In perpetual evolution with the continuous arrival of new applications, you can personalize your Archos 5 Internet Tablet to perfectly reflect your tastes and needs.


HD Multimedia
Brilliant 5-inch Touchscreen The Archos 5 features an 800 pixel-wide 5-inch touchscreen, an ultra thin design, and an accelerometer for portrait or landscape viewing. Whether enjoying media yourself or sharing with friends, it delivers outstanding image quality.
HD Video Formats Don't compromise--the Archos 5 Internet Tablet is able to handle the widest range of video formats, even at HD 720p resolution (H.264 HD, MPEG-4 HD, and WMV HD5).
Your Music Everywhere Enjoy more music formats directly on your device (MP3, WMA, WAV, AAC, AAC+, FLAC and OGG Vorbis). In addition, the unique Archos music browsing system allows you to create your playlists without using a PC. Who needs a tuner? Just plug your Archos 5 into amplified speakers and you're all set.
Experience Your Photos Browse through your photos with a simple flick of your finger or play a slideshow with music and transition effects. The high resolution screen is great for zooming in on details.
Take It All With a 160 GB Hard Drive, you won't waste time choosing what files to bring along--take your entire media library with you.

Internet
Fast & Convenient Web Surfing The Archos 5 lets you easily surf the Web. With a Wi-Fi connection (802.11 b/g/n) and the new OMAP3440 processor running at 800 MHz, you get quick and responsive Internet browsing just like on a laptop, without the endless waits for page loads. Enjoy the Web in full width thanks to the 800 pixel wide screen, with no need to zoom in or out.
3.5 G Mobile Phone Connection If you own a standard mobile phone equipped with 3.5 G & Bluetooth technology, simply pair it up to your Archos 5 Internet Tablet via Bluetooth. This will give you easy access to Internet directly on your device anytime and anywhere.
Web TV and Web Radio In less than 3 clicks, you can access nearly 1,000 Web TV channels, over 10,000 Web radio stations, and 100,000 podcasts. There's no downloading wait time. Radio and TV start streaming directly from a worldwide list of traditional and independent radio and TV stations.
Media Club The Media Club remains the easiest way to get video and music content on the go. With an even richer library with new partners and some of the biggest industry names, you'll discover a large library of movies, documentaries, music albums, and games. Buy or rent your entertainment in a couple of clicks and start watching it on your Archos 5 Internet Tablet.

GPS
Full-Featured GPS Whether you are walking or driving, you will always find your destination with the on-board GPS. The GPS includes voice assistance, points of interest, fast multiple-route calculations, and car/pedestrian/adventure modes based on the latest maps from Tele Atlas with 3D landmarks.
You can go to your account at anytime on the Archos website and purchase the available maps or cities.
3D Photo-Realistic City Navigation Find your way around cities in 3D Photo Realistic mode. With multi-angle views and four zoom levels, you'll be able to recognize places as if you had taken your own photos from the sky. This is ideal when walking and visiting large cities in the US (available Q1 2010).
Free 7-Day Trial Try the GPS for 7 days free of charge.

TV
HD TV-Out With the Optional DVR Station or HDMI Mini Dock Turn your TV into a real web-connected multimedia platform. Enjoy all the Archos functions on the big screen of your living room. Watch your movies in HD (720p), listen to your music, share your high resolution pictures, play games or surf the Web.
Record your favorite programs with the Optional DVR Station With the optional DVR Station, you have the perfect match for your Archos 5 Internet Tablet at home. Record TV shows and movies in one step using with the included remote control. Then you can enjoy your recording at home on your wide-screen TV or in the palm of your hand when you are out.

Applications

Ready to go with pre-installed applications Enjoy a selection of fun and practical applications for daily use right out of the box:
eBuddy IM: for instant messaging The multi-platform instant messaging application. Chat from one place to all your friends on the various platforms. Supports MSN, Yahoo, Gtalk, Facebook, ICQ, MySpace and AIM (AOL)
DroidIn: for connecting to LinkedIn Connect to your LinkedIn account to exchange information, ideas and opportunities. Stay informed about your contacts and industry. Find the people & knowledge you need to achieve your goals. Control your career online.
Twitroid: for instant micro-blogging Twitroid is the industry-standard Twitter client for the Android platform. Easily access the famous free social networking and micro-blogging service that enables you to send and read tweets, publish short URLs and pictures.
Deezer: for music streaming Enjoy 35 free web radio stations and the SmartRadio directly on your Archos 5 Internet Tablet.
Dailymotion: for viewing and sharing videos Browse videos by searching tags, channels or user-created groups.
QuickPedia: for access to Wikipedia Access to the free web-based and collaborative encyclopedia.
ThinkFree Mobile: for viewing Office documents This application allows you to view, edit and create Microsoft Office 97/2000/XP/2003/2007 Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF documents. You will get a free update before year-end allowing you to also edit and create documents.
E-mail & contacts Stay in contact by using the full integrated Email and contacts applications.
Moov: toggles easily between your apps Moov wraps up your search needs all in one place, so you can quickly toggle between the product's contacts, Google, Wikipedia and the remaining Applications on your product.
CraigsPhone: for access to online classified advertisements CraigsPhone is a centralized network of online communities, featuring free online classified advertisements � with sections devoted to jobs, housing, personals, for sale, services, community, gigs, r�sum�s, and discussion forums.
High Paying Jobs: for access to a list of jobs (US & Canada only) Browse through jobs lists directly on the Product. Search over 2 million jobs from all the leading jobsites.

Add-ons
DVR Station This accessory allows you to record TV, play video back to your TV and charge your Archos. Recording your favorite programs has never been so easy. You can also surf the Web or stream web video to your TV while comfortably laid back on your couch using the included remote control as a keyboard and mouse pointer.
DVR Snap-on Use our DVR Snap-on to record from almost any audio or video analog source when you are on the move.
Mini Dock Transfer your files directly from USB keys, digital cameras, or other portable media players. Quickly charge your Archos with the included charger/adapter. Play video out to your TV with video output in high quality S-Video or standard quality composite.
HDMI Mini Dock Optimize TV playback with HDMI output quality. Transfer your files directly from USB keys, digital cameras, or other portable media players from the standard USB port. Quickly charge your Archos with the included charger/adapter.
Battery Dock Transfer your files directly from USB sticks, digital cameras, or other portable media players. Quickly charge your Archos with the included charger/adapter and get extended playback with the built-in backup battery. Play video out to your TV with video output in high quality S-Video or standard quality composite.

What's in the Box Archos 5 Internet Tablet with Android (160 GB), headphones, Standard USB cable, DVR Station adapter, Quick Start Guide (QSG), legal and safety notice.

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