Firstly I want to say i could wait to get mine and i sold my old archos to get this one. The main feactures that this mp4 player has are, video, audio, voice recoding, internet/network browsing, file server, video in and out, touch screen, video recording, and some more. the video quality is very good and perfectley acceptable to watch. i know when I had the AV700 i wasnt at all satisfied with the resolution at all and this is a great improvement. On the 604 wifi it also gives you the option to run in widscreen, fullscreen or normal modes wich is very useful for different sized videos. the frame rate is also very good though not as good as the ipod. i would on the other hand like to point out that unless your eyes are extremly good, you wont be able to see the difference between them.
The next is the audio. the way that the audio is set out is very easy to use ( espsially with the syleus) and it is easy to tranfer music in and out of the playlist. Also like the ipod you can view all your music as you are lisining to a track. also like on your computer
you can rate all your songs to put into the 5 ratings playlists. although this is great when done if you have alot of music this can be tidius and very irritating. it would be bettter if the ratings that you had given the songs on the computer could be transfered as well. i dont no, this may be possible but not to my knowlage.
The voice recording i see as more of a novelty as the microphone isnt of the best quality but can be good fun. or maybe if you needed to remeber something or write a note.
The wifi functins. There is alot to be said about these. first of all great idea and i totally agree for it to be there. the searching for networks can take a little time but is very useful when transfering files or accessing work files for example at a school or university. unfortutley in some caces i have found that it doesnt work. for example i havent yet been able to get onto my school network yet though i have to my private LAN. the internet browsing is also a good idea and has come into a lot of use. because of the lack of internet caperbilities it has ( like no java or certain other sites) I mainly use it for looking at emails or searching stuff up on wikipedia/google. or if you are into computer gadets i have made a number of practical jokes via my 604 wifi. infortuatly everything thats good usally has a downside and that would be the batery life. but only while using wifi. wile watching video the batery usally last bout 5 hours and audio lasts about 15 hours but that is cut significantley while using wifi. also beacuse of the processer speed being failry slow it often takes a longer time to load. the keybord fucntion is also very easy to use. One thing that i was very unsure on before i bought it was how to type cos i found no info on it at all or pictures. so il explain it. basically when ever you touch a text box the keybord takes up half the screen and then you can just hit the letters and they type up. its very easy to use and you dont need to get used to it. one function that i would have like to have seen (altho the batery and proceser would have strugled even more) would be the ability to listen to music as you surf the web.
Although this product can act as a file server you would have to have it plugged in at most times due to the drain of battery also the 30gb hard drive would limit the use of this function. the touch screen is amazing, the balence of sensitivity is great and with the syleus near pin point accuracy is obtained ( good for wen surfing the web) another usfull functing is the fact you can view PDF files. Easy to use and you can zoom into the page to all nessasary magnifications. unfortuatley i would have also liked to see a text veiwer to show word documents or such wise and then use the touch key bord to edit them but that isnt included.
The next part is all about the accessories. the amount of accessories is great and you can find anything you may want from leads to camcorders to spare batteries but they all come at a price....... a large one. the DVR station is basically a must have. it combines all video out and in ( for all the ports including s-video,av, and many more. in fact there are 11 ports on the back not including the one to charge) it also comes with a handy remote if you arnt close ( due to the fact that it is next to your Tv beacuse the cables arent long) but at around £60 it is an expensive must have. its a must have beacuse you cannot use the video out caperbility which means no recording from a video source (like TV) ( other products are availibe but do not carry out the function nearly as well)
The video recording fuction is very usful and complex but at the same time difficult to operate untill you get used to it and its set up with the channel. the scedular is usfull and you can schedual many programs acroos a roange of channels at a range of times. so if you have the time to set it up its definatley a functing you want to cheak out.
Another big con is the fact that some file types WILL NOT WORK unless you pay Archos even more money. and video or audio files with the audio fomat being in either AAC or Mpeg-4 will have to pay around £14 to be able to view each. another factor you may want to think about is the hard drive size. at only 30gb it holds little compared to the 160gb archos 504. but it depends whether you will be mainley watching vids or listning to tunes.
The file transfer from the computer is ok. i cant say the speed of transfer is great but it isnt bad. its about the same as transfering files between computers or HDD's. though i will say its ten times better than the ipod beacuse when plugged into the computer it acts like a removable dirve and you are able to drag files across instead of having to use the contraversial program Itunes.
Last little notes. It comes with a spare sylus though which would be usful as a replacement, The cover is sleek and stylish, The size of the model is definatley big enough to have a good size screen 4.3 inch and small enough to fit into your pocket, Customisable background Being able to look at slideshows of your pictures, and a good photo viewer. clock quick recharge time of just 1 to 3 hours (depending on what you charge it from. the DVR station being the fastest.
I would definatley recomend this item. it has to be the best MP4/MP3 player around with more functions than on any other mp4 player. And i say it Beats Ipod any day.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
(+) Great screen quality and size, built in speaker and stand. (-) The only downside is that it is fragile, and can be hard to get used to the on screen keyboard.
Jan 11th, 2007
very helpful by (100%):
