Gone are the days when the mp3 players are only for playing mp3 files. The new developments in technology have made it possible for multitasking in these players. The latest gadgets are not confined to music, but they have other flabbergasting functions too. These extra functions have gained the attraction of the people, so much that every company is now busy manufacturing mp3 players with more and more features or add-ons.

One such company is Archos. Although Archos was not that successful in satisfying its customers with the Archos Generation 5, it has suddenly popped up into the list of the top mp3 player producers when it has released the new Archos 5 Internet Tablet. It has vivified its media player by introducing more features and by making it look more stylish. The Archos 5 faces strong opposition from Apple’s iPod Nano and Microsoft’s Zune HD. But iPod Nano does not have GPS and the Zune HD had limited codec support; and the Archos 5 has both these features and also slightly cheaper than the other two. So, it will be a worthy attempt if you read the following review that explains its features as it will never cease to amaze you.

Design:

Chic and sleek:
The Archos 5 resembles a modern mobile phone or the Play Station Portable from Sony. It is very chic and also so sleek that it can easily be fitted into your pocket. It measures 5.5 inches wide, 3 inches high and an urbane thickness of 0.4 inches and 0.8 inches, for flash drive and hard drive types respectively. So, it is quite clearly very rectangular in shape. There is a stand at the back of it so that it can be placed on the table just like a photo frame. This stand is so seamlessly integrated inside the body of the player that you do not actually find it without keen observation. The only thing that might worry you is that the metallic finish retains fingerprints. So, the outer surface must be cleaned time and again. Otherwise, the design is absolutely luring.

Display:
This part of the player plays a cameo role. The 4.8” display awes you as you almost do not find such candid display in many others. The black levels are very good, second to only Apple iPhone. This is because the display is not OLED.  But no other mp3 player has such good black levels and contrast. But on the other hand, watching videos and photos is much easy and comfortable in the Archos when compared to the iPhone or the iPod. The screen resolution is 800 x 480 pixels and is of TFT resistive touchscreen type. This means that you need to press the screen a little harder than normal, for the screen is a bit harder and more resistive to touch. For scrolling, you need to press the screen a little longer and harder. But many mp3 players now are coming with a capacitive type touchscreens. Another drawback that is clearly seen here is that this player does not support multi touch. So the options like pinch and zoom are certainly absent here and if you are used to them, you will be disappointed. But, except this, the overall display is excellent.

Features:

Android OS:
Android is one of the very interesting operating systems. It looks more interesting on the Archos than on the mobile phones, on which it features more often than not. If you are already acquainted with this operating system, your work will be easier. But do not be so worried if you are not, because this is a very easy OS to get acquainted with and it is also simple to understand and use. This Android OS is a modification of Linux kernel. It was at first developed by Android but it was later purchased by Google. At present, Open Handset Alliance has all the copyrights of this operating system. Android has a few interesting features but the most important thing is that it looks cool and is easy to use.

Virtual Keyboard:
This is the feature that comes along with gadgets that have both touchscreen facility and a large display. Most smartphones and music players today are coming with this facility in order to look catchier. This Virtual Keyboard eliminates the presence of a separate keyboard that eats away more space and consequently, there is no sufficient space for the display. Here, the keys on the virtual keyboard are big enough for all and hence there are no problems with typing. Many other smartphones have smaller keys and hence there are chances that two keys are touched simultaneously. There is no such problem here. On the whole, it is very good.

HDTV Connection:
The HDTV Connection facility helps you in synchronising your Archos to a HD TV with the help of the HDMI cable and then transfer photos and videos between them. This is a cool facility. The Archos itself is a good player of HD movies. But if you want to watch the movies on the TV, then you can always connect the Archos to the TV and the watch your favourite movies and photos in HD quality and on a bigger screen.

Wireless Connectivity:
This has been one of the common features of Internet Tablets. But when you are talking about a music player, this is certainly an unprecedented feature. With wireless connection facility, you can connect your device to the internet and then browse the web. You can also search and download your favourite music and videos. The Archos 5 Internet Tablet MP3 Audio, Video Player comes with Wi-Fi facility so that it allows easy access to the internet. Also, you can keep in touch with your friends and family. You can share your pictures, videos and music with them and can also chat with them through Yahoo, Google talk or Facebook. So, this feature will prove to be one of the pluses for the Archos.

Mobile TV:
Digital TV, over the air, is supported all over Europe and the US, though there is no DVB broadcast for testing. Powered by Vtuner there is also the webTV, an application for web streaming that allows you to connect to various TV channels worldwide. You can choose the channel you would like to watch, but there are a lot of channels that are unimportant. The video quality each of these TV channels varies with the band width of that particular channel, but most of them are okay. Some of them may look hazy but that is the way it is. One option that makes this feature lively is the Archos Media Club. You can create an Archos Media Club account and then download videos of your own choice so that they can be viewed later. You may have to pay for the downloading process and the amount depends.

GPS:
Archos has provided the GPS option for the Archos 5 MP3 Player. You will see a map that is a photo satellite view version of the GPS. Each map is of 2 GB and the quality is pretty good. An important thing is that there are only maps of Europe and the maps of the US are absent. So, if you would like to take the Archos 5 outside of Europe, do not expect it to direct you to your destination. This may be another drawback in the player. Also, a fast moving 2D or 3D map is better than a slowly scrolling map because while you are driving, you need a better and a faster GPS system. This feature has a lot of options for you to customise it. A few of the options are; Map Appearance, Language, Routing Options, Traffic Options, System Options, Safety Options, General, and so on. So, you can personalise the GPS system in your own way.

Web:
Web browsing experience is pretty good at all times. The web pages are very candid and you often do not need to zoom or scroll into a page. Reading the news on the Archos 5 is fun and you will really enjoy browsing through the pages as the Archos 5 is perfectly suitable for it. Flash is otherwise supported by the device but there is no in-browser Flash support. This means that you cannot browse through YouTube or Hulu. This is definitely going to disappoint many because YouTube is very essential and everyone will miss the joy of watching videos from YouTube on the Archos. Although everything else is very good, we hope that the Flash option will be added in the near future and the web application will be complemented.
These are precisely the features that are sporting in the Archos 5. They show that this model has been developed a lot more when compared to its predecessors. All the above features are so exciting and they are also, most importantly, very useful.

Performance:

So far, you have seen the latest and the very prolific features of the Archos 5. But along with these interesting features, you also need a very good performance so that it makes your player a complete one. So, Archos has also concentrated its attention on this part of the Archos 5 and tried to improvise it. Let us see what the renovations are and how these new options fare.

Music:
Basically, since the Archos 5 is a music player, Archos has given it all the music features it possibly could. The mp3 playback is very good indeed. There are no problems at all during playing music. Over the uPNP devices like the HP Mediasmart Server, you can have your music being played without any problems. An important thing you need to notice here is that the music can be played on the background also, so you can resume to other works on the device even while listening to music.

Video:
The video, as expected, is absolutely top notch. With the magnificent 4.8” screen and excellent display that is already discussed, you can experience excellent video quality. Archos comes from a portable media world and hence you can always expect very good video quality. The Archos 5 Music Player can handle videos of 720p quality very well without any problems. So, it is recommended that you play 720p video files. Even the YouTube videos can be played well. To complement this video quality, it is recommended that you get a pair of earphones to experience the optimum sound experience. Although the speakers are very good and better than that of the Apple iPhone, it is better that you watch these videos with the earphones.

Images:
The images part of the player is also very good. The photos and pictures look awesome on the Archos 5. A simple wipe will take you to the next picture. The movement is a bit slower than normal and you would expect the pictures to just move in and out pretty smoothly. But this did not happen with the Archos 5. A bit more of GPU could have helped in rectifying the situation. Otherwise, the photos are very good on it.

App Store:
It is comparatively disappointing that the Archos 5 Flash MP3 & MP4 Player did not have a very good Application Store. The application takes a lot of time to load even simple and basic applications. Even the searches and updates are very slow and the reasons are unknown. But this is such an obvious problem and hope that it will be repaired soon. Besides being very slow, the applications are not sorted well enough to browse easily and also there are no top rated applications in the store as it is a new one. But things only get better from here since this is a starting point.

Email:
The Email facility is good and it is an easy process. You can easily configure Gmail or Yahoo mail, just like on an Android phone. All you need to do is enter the Email id and the password and then the device will configure the rest for you. There is a possibility for adding many accounts simultaneously. Again here too, the display is very good and it amplifies the Email experience. The only thing that is on the lower side is the Microsoft Exchange, which is not supported by the device, which is very surprising since the Android phone has it. But other than this, the rest of it fine.

So, on the whole, the performance part of it was very good. It is good to see the design and features, which are already pretty attractive, being well supported by an excellent performance.

Accessories:

When it comes to accessories, the Archos is very fecund. There are quite a number of them and especially, the dock is very adjuvant. You can also have a look at the Helmet Camcorder that is provided along with this tablet and also the video cables that support the Archos 5.

Battery:

The display size and the increased processor speed have accounted for the decrease in the battery life. The battery life of the Archos 5 is about 4 hours of video and 12 hours of music. This is comparatively low but the firmware update promises longer battery lives that give you 22 hours of music and 7 hours of video.  But this is only on paper and we will have to wait and see if Archos lives up to these expectations.

Warranty:

Archos provides parts and labour warranty for a period of one year from the date of purchase. This warranty is valid only in the country in which it is purchased.

Verdict:

It is a great job done by Android in providing a good Internet Tablet. The design is predominantly excellent. The features are very good and unique. Archos came up with a few options that make it look even more interesting. The overall performance is excellent, barring the App Store, which is too slow to be used. The wireless Internet facility is good it also works fine. The web experience is also very good but there is no in-browser flash option. There is a problem with the OS and many users have already complained on it. So, Archos, in view of fixing the problem, released another category of tablets with operating system as the Microsoft Windows 7. This action has resolved many issues concerning the OS.

So, the Archos 5 is an excellent Internet Tablet if it could rectify the minor errors. It will definitely lead to new revolutions in the music player market. All the successful music players in the market have had smaller screens and fewer options. But a bigger display of 4.8” only enhances the experience even though it may seem difficult to pocket it. But in total, the Archos 5 MP3 Video Player is an excellent partner for your needs of music and videos particularly when you are on the go. The cost is also pretty reasonable. While there are simple music players in the market that cost the same and do not have any extra features or options, Archos has in it many new features and options that enhance its performance and hence making it not only a great music player but also a great Internet Tablet.

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Archos 5 Internet Tablet MP3 Player – Technical Specification Table

Manufacturer Archos
Model Name Archos 5 Internet Tablet
Orientation Horizontal
Product Type MP3 Player
Dimensions (H x W x D) 3 x 5.5 x 0.4/0.8
Weight 250 grams
Display size 4.8” diagonal
Display type LCD
Enclosure colours Black
Capacity 8 GB
Capacities available Up to 60 GB
Storage type USB flash drive
Display adjustments Contrast and backlight settings
Audio formats supported MP3
Radio feature Yes, 35 free stations
Connectivity USB 2.0 for fast and easy transfer of files
Recording Voice and Radio recording with built in
Source Output Mode Stereo
Head Phones Binaural – stereo
Microphone Microphone – built-in
PC Interface Supported Hi-Speed USB
Microsoft Certification Compatible with Windows 7
Battery Enclosure Type Internal
System Requirements Microsoft Windows XP and above
Battery type Rechargeable , USB charging
Battery life 12 hours of music, 4 hours of video
Peripheral / Interface Devices USB port
Miscellaneous Cables Included:   USB cable
Warranty One year

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