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Customer Reviews
Very good but some flaws
I like my Archos 605 wifi (160gb) it plays most video files, all mp3s and it displays PDF files (slowly if they are in color). Overall I would give it a 8.5 out of 10. The ability to display PDFs is nice but I really wish the player was better built. A highly colored PDF page can take 20-30 seconds to load. The ability to record via the DVR dock (not included) is great BUT the recorded avi's are in a DRM encoded format and cannot be viewed on a computer (I have yet to find a decoder) The wifi web browser is nice but its an extra you have to purchase. If you want the Archos 605 with all the bells and whistles expect to shell out an extra 100$ or so in add-ons. I would have preferred a "deluxe" model with everything included.love it
I've always been a user of the Apple Ipods since they first came out. I still own 3 of them! I don't really consider those portable video players. Watching movies on such a small screen? No thanks! I don't want this to turn into an Archos vs Ipod Touch review, but I have to point this out. I recently purchased an Ipod Touch 32gb version and could not even get myself to open the package. I ended up spending a ton on it and felt that for what I needed it just would not do the job and returned it. For MY use, 32gb is not enough. I understand it's expensive, because it's a flash drive and made by Apple. It's also really cool, so i'm supposed to pay more for that I guess. I know that sounds dumb, but yes, the Ipod Touch IS pretty cool. Picked up the Archos and plugged it into my Computer. No drivers to install AT ALL! Took me hours to get my music and video collection organized with Windows Media Player, but that's my own problem. It turns out that you don't even need to use Media Player to copy files over. Nice! That's what I prefer. The price isn't that good and after all the small "upgrades" of codecs you can buy, it probably comes out to a little less than a 32gb IPOD. I haven't added it all up. Yes, they do "nickle and dime" you, but it's not as if they're forcing you to buy stuff you don't need. The most annoying thing is making an XVID movie with ACC sound, only to find out that it won't play due to needing a thirty dollar codec download. Stupid thing won't even play without sound! Geez, at least play the video and disable the sound. I had to instead either A) Buy the codec or add in mp3 sound. Second most annoying thing is actually telling you in the device that you can buy a codec for playback. Charging the device via USB is a pain. It's slow. It's almost if they mean to make it slow just to get you to buy the dock charger. That's another thirty or so. The orange menu icons are ugly and the interface is a bit "clunky" as someone pointed out. At least you can change the background. They also could simplify the display by turning off certain menu items. Simple is good. Seriously, I can't possibly going into details as to how many things this thing can do. There is NO WAY EVER the Ipod Touch can match it. I could play around for hours it seems like. Here's the coolest thing I didn't know about this device before buying it. You can setup and share video on your PC with TVERSITY or Windows Media Player and connect to it with this device! 160gb not enough? You can access all your media on your PC with this device if you wanted. Now onto more negatives. The web browser is slow. It's not my connection. Browsing webpages is slow, yet playing youtube videos is perfectly fine! Another VERY BIG negative is that this doesn't seem to support any lossless audio codecs that i'm aware of. There is WAVE format, but that's a HUGE waste of space. Could they at least offer FLAC support? It's also a pain converting all my Itunes music over. For some of them, i'd have to burn them to CD and encode them to WAV and then to mp3. Not the players problems, but it is hard going without Itunes at first, but that's something i'd like to get used to. I find it funny how people who love the IPOD touch say such negative things about the Archos. The one thing they seem to mention first is the size and how it's like a huge brick. Sure, it's large, but did anyone ever complain about how portable CD players were so large and a pain to carry around? No. This can still fit in a pocket and it's not that large. Obviously, you probably wouldn't want to go running or to the gym with this thing. For that, i'd go with something else. I find this to be more of a portable video player more so than a regular music player. I do play a lot of WAVE files on this and even with a portable headphone amp, it does not seem to power my AKG 701 headphones as well as the IPOD Classic. I just wish the volume could go up a little higher. I have to mention the touch capabilities. I honestly don't use them really, so I can't comment. I just use the buttons. When playing a video, it takes 3-5 whole seconds to load. Oh Darn, better not buy this! Get an ipod, it will play them in 2! I don't know if this is for everyone. It depends on what you need. If you want a music only player, then there is no point to get this probably. I actually now like to watch movies on this. Never really did that with the IPOD classic I still have and use. Now all they need is a remote for TV usage and a Sound Dock like they do for the Ipod. 6-29-2008 UPDATE: Unfortunately I am forced to return this. I REALLY wish I didn't have to. Three times now I have turned the device on and it freezes up. Once it would scan all my files and then reboot. Turn it on and it does this again. Last night I connected it to my PC and it was not detected. Tried again and it went into an endless connected/disconnected state. Another time it shows a drive letter for the device, but will not let me access it. My PC is unchanged and not the problem. I did a factory restore of the device and now it was not even detected on any PC. It's too bad and I really liked the thing. I may just delete the review, but I haven't decided yet. So now I have a Dock and sixty dollars worth of upgrades that are useless to me now.Great toy to play with.
I thought at first it was a waste of money but the more I spent time playing with it the more fun I'm getting out of it...Enjoy it while you can
I love the Archos product line and have had various units over the last 6 years or so. I love them immensely----until they break. You are then in customer service / product support HELL!!! Archos has the worst customer service I have ever encountered. Beware. The 605 has a proprietary battery which can only be replaced by Archos. They do not tell you that if your product does manage to last for 3 years or more, you will have NO product support, including replacment of their proprietary batteries. I have this issue with an older model AV480 unit. That is insane. Why make batteries that are not removeable if you will only support them for a few years. If I had known this, I would have purchased backups! Also, I encountered the same hard drive issue as another user on the AV480 series and went through 3 units and loss of files before they finally admitted that they had a hard drive defect on many units they shipped. The bottom line is that I love the Archos product line for being on the cutting edge of pvp technology. I want to continue to buy their new releases. I am, however, getting a little gunshy given my unavoidable experiences withthe product support.The archos 605 wifi will satisfy all your needs as a PMP, and some more.
Before I received the 605, I spent the entire week reading and watching up on its features, problems, and reviews. I read many reviews on here that praised the archos, and some that were disgusted with what they got, and many that were fine but not so thrilled by what they got. For my own experience with the 605 wifi, I was extremely satisfied. I would suppose most people that voted against the archos received a faulty package. First off, When I first opened up the box, my first thought was "What the hell? It's smaller than I expected." Since I've heard many say its quite big, and the pictures online make it look ugly and big also. It's quite pleasing to the eye when its held right in your hand. Though this is just an opinon :) Second, I turned it on and instantly knew how to navigate it. It's that easy. I used the opera web browser (+$30 on archos.com) and loading pages and roaming around online was simple, and easy to do. It is pretty fast considering its 1/1000th the size of a computer and uses a wireless connection. Moreover, I was pleased with the sound quality, though many "audiophiles" were disappointed. I have to say, it doesn't play loud, but I don't listen to music "that loud" and it was perfect sound range for me. The equalizer does a good job of getting the sound you want, and it compares well with other music players. The video is where this baby really shines: it's beautiful. I have a collection of movies on my drive that I've been waiting to bring around, and this baby plays it all. It's ultra versatile compatibility with file formats makes it too easy to use. Connecting it to a TV and watching it via the DVR station (+$100) is is still beautiful. The drag and drop feature really hits home. It's ultra easy to do, and I prefer it over syncing with windows media. On a side note: so far, I've only used 3% of this massive 160 GB hard drive, though I've not even near done getting everything on it. The touch screen + combo side buttons + the DVR remote makes this player have 3 different ways on controlling it. I found that ridiculously too easy to use. The touchscreen is VERY fun to use; I love it. Things that I don't like would be the slow interface. Things take a few extra seconds to load, though I don't know if other PMPs are like this since I've never owned any other one. I got this baby on ebay for less than 400 with the DVR station and the cinema/opera browser plug-in. But when I tried to register it, I was denied since it was already registered (to install the plug-ins). So I was recommended to call archos and they solved my problems very well. I was pleased at their service. She didn't even say bye after I said I was done. Most customer service people whisk you away after you're done, but she didn't. Just my two cents. Edit- I was just wondering if anyone knew if these usb charger would work with the usb cable that came with the archos. This one: Coby CA-80 USB AC Adapter/Charger for MP3 Players and/or this one: Eforcity Universal USB Car Charger Adapter for Palm m500, m515, Tungsten T, W, C, Zire, Zire 71, Treo 600, Treo 650, HP iPaq 3100, 3700, h1935, h1940, Jornada 500 series, N series, S series, Sony Clie, O2-XDA, HTC Wizard, Apache, Cingular 8125, UTStarco...Keyword : archos
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