Archos 605 Wi-Fi Portable Media Player (4 GB)
- The ARCHOS 605 4GB Flash & CD Slot,WiFi bridges the gap between the PC and the TV. For the first time, you can stream content from the PC or the Internet to the TV or PMP--all through a wireless home network and the ARCHOS 605 WiFi and DVR Station.
- Play all your digital entertainment: movies, TV shows, photos and music
- Record your favorite TV shows
- Stream and watch videos from your PC
- Download movies and music directly on your PMP using the ARCHOS Content Portal
Product Description
Featuring the highest quality video, touch-screen, and WiFi capabilities for streaming content either directly to the player screen or to a TV, the Archos 605 WiFi has the highest screen resolution (800x480) and the highest quality screen in a Portable Media Player (PMP). Use the touch-screen to easily operate the device with your finger or stylus. Personalize your Archos 605 WiFi to fit your unique lifestyle with an abundance of available plug-ins and accessories. Download content wirelessly and directly to your Archos 605 WiFi or stream movies, TV shows and music from your computer. With an optional Web browser plug-in, you can surf the Web and enjoy videos from online videos sites like DailyMotion and YouTube. The SD Card slot expands your memory through an SD, mini SD and micro SD memory card. Video recording - Records NTSC/PAL/SECAM in MPEG-4 AVI format with stereo sound, VGA resolution (640x480) at 30 or 25 frames per second through an optional DVR Station/DVR Travel Adapter Audio recording - Stereo line-in, WAV (IMA, ADPCM or PCM) format through an optional DVR Station/DVR Travel Adapter Optional Video Podcast plug-in - H.264 up to DVD resolution and AAC Optional Cinema Plug-in - MPEG-2 MP at ML up to 10 Mbps (up to DVD resolution) and AC3 stereo sound (5.1) Optional Internet plug-in - Opera Web browser and Adobe Flash Player for Web browsing Interfaces - USB 2.0 High-Speed Device (compatible USB 1.1), Mass Storage Class (MSC) and Media Transport Protocol (MTP) Power source - Internal Lithium-Ion Polymer battery Device automatically downloads latest firmware updates Battery life - 17 hours Music playback time, 5.5 hours Video playback time Dimensions - 4.8 x 3.2 x 0.6 (122x82x15mm) Weight - 150 grams
Amazon.com Product Description
The Archos 605 generation 5 portable media player comes with a convenient WiFi feature, an attribute that offers the fastest and easiest way to access digital entertainment. You can use the built-WiFi capabilities of the Archos to download online media content from the Archos content portal: All you need is a usable WiFi connection, and you're good to start downloading (fees may apply). With the Archos in hand, for the first time you can download favorite movies, TV shows, and music wherever you are, without being tied to the PC or Mac. Other great features include a full-color 4.3-inch touchscreen that crams in an amazing 800 x 480 picture resolution for superior picture quality, 4 GB of built-in flash memory, and multiple options for additional storage (the player accepts SD mini and SD micro memory cards). 
With the Archos in hand you can download your favorite movies, TV shows, and music wherever you are. View larger. | 
Archos media player comes with photo viewing capabilities, supporting JPEG, BMP, and PNG files. View larger. | With full Internet access, the player's Opera browser plug-in offers Adobe Flash support, which lets you access and enjoy YouTube and other Web video sites on your Archos device. By using the player, you can view and post YouTube videos wherever you are with an active wireless connection. In addition to downloading media straight from the Archos content portal, you can stream and watch videos from your home PC or laptop. You can also record live TV or schedule a recording by using the integrated TV program guide available with the compatible DVR station (sold separately). For added video playback versatility, the player is compatible with MPEG4, AVI, and WMV video files. The player features robust music playback features, too. On-board music file playback capabilities support MP3, CBR, VBR, WMA, protected WMA, and WAV files. To help round out the player's multimedia superiority, the Archos even comes with photo viewing capabilities. JPEG, BMP, and PNG files are 100 percent compatible with the player, and the player can pull up PDFs for portable review -- an ideal means to take bigger documents or e-books in PDF format on the road with you. Because of the Archos's USB 2.0 compatibility, files can be quickly transferred to the device in the absence of a WiFi network connection. Charging the device can also be accomplished with an active USB connection. An AC adapter is sold separately for additional charging options. Other great features include mass storage capabilities, automatic firmware downloads, and a 3.5-millimeter headphone jack. With an advanced Li-Poly battery, the player supports up to 17 hours of continuous music playback and 5.5 hours of continuous video playback. Weighing in at a scant 5.29 ounces, the Archos generation 5 605 measures 4.8 by 3.2 by 0.6 inches.
 New widgets for the Archos 605 include a calculator, currency converter, unit converter, news, and weather (above) as well as a note writer and data vault (below). |  |
New Free Widget Pack
Archos has launched a new widget pack that is free for the 605. A widget is a piece of software that adds new features to your player. It gives you fun, quick, and easy access to hundreds of tools, right on the device. The package contains seven widgets, including a calculator, a currency converter, a unit converter, news, weather, a note writer, and a data vault. To be able to use the widgets, you need to purchase the Web Browser plug-in (about $30). Then, you can download the free widget pack via Archos.com.
 New Dish Network plug-in for the Archos 605. |
New Dish Network Plug-in
With a new plug-in, you can transfer recorded movies and TV shows from your Dish Network set-top box directly to your Archos 605. Play back Dish Network-recorded movies and TV shows on the go or on TV--in DVD quality. Multi-language is supported. The plug-in is compatible only with Dish Network STB models 622 and 722.
What's in the Box
Archos 605 WiFi portable media player, headphones, USB cable, DVR Station Gen 5 adapter, protective pouch, quick start guide, and legal/safety notice.
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Archos 605 Wi-Fi Portable Media Player (4 GB)
- Electronics: 0 pages (2007-09-01)
- Publisher: Archos
- Label: Archos
- Studio: Archos
- Average Customer Review:
 based on 32 reviews
- Sales Rank in Electronics: #9832
Click on Product Listings for Details!
Avg. Customer Review:
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Words alone cannot describe my feelings of anger and frustration 2008-11-07
Comment: Let me preface this by saying I am a very stupid person.
I spent a few weeks researching portable video players, looking for one that would be good for watching movies and TV shows, and the Archos 605 seemed to have everything I wanted: huge screen, amazing resolution, ability to play divx videos right out of the box. I read that a lot of people were having "reliability issues" with it, but I was young and naive and I thought, "whatever, I'm tech savvy, that won't happen to me." I ball-parked the odds based on reviews here and other websites, and it looked like I had about a 15% chance of getting a bricked unit right off the bat, and then about 10-20% chance that a delivered-working unit would eventually fail within the next year. I went back and forth between this and the IPod Touch 8gb, which are pretty similar in price when you factor in a few of Archos' add-ons. The Ipod touch had a smaller screen, less resolution, seemed like it would be better for someone who would split their time between listening to music and watching video. Since I wanted something primarily for videos (going to be spending an absurd amount of time and money flying all over the country for residency interviews), I took the plunge and got ordered the Archos.
It arrived, and yeah, it was non-functional right out of the box. I immediately regretted everything. I mean, what - the heck - was I thinking?! I am such an idiot for buying this.
The problem was that my unit would not take a charge; when you try to charge it the first time, the screen is supposed to turn on and then the unit should take about ~8-12hrs to charge via the USB port. My unit's external charge light would light up, but the unit never turned on, and thus would never actually charge. Tried charging it anyway for ~36hrs, the charge light is still on, and the unit is not turning on. Tried all tricks (paper-clip resetting, holding the power button for 10 seconds, etc). Nothing worked. Contacted Archos (aw man, don't even get me started on this), and was told the unit was defective. Turns out this isn't uncommon (see Archosfans forums, google it).
So here I am. I can return this thing for another one, or I can return it for a refund and get something else. Right now, all of the complaints and widespread reports of the unit's reliability issues (in addition to Archos' abysmal customer service) are finally hitting me. Take a second right now to check out the most recent reviews of this product. See anything suspicous? A lot of 1 star / 0 star reviews? Trust me, it's not a fluke. I was an idiot to buy this thing knowing that a lot of people were having so many problems with it.
So "F" this. I'm returning this piece of garbage and getting an Ipod touch. Sure, I'm going to want to my for having to deal with ITunes, and I'll probably a few every time I have to spend hours upon hours converting my divx videos to apple's m4v format... but at least I will be fairly confident that the thing is actually going to function properly. No matter how I'll feel for buying an apple product, I think I'd feel 10x worse (and very stupid) if I decided to get another archos player and the thing craps out on me in a few months (as they seem prone to do). God, archos, why the can't your stuff just work? Arrrrgh.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: 0 Stars - DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY 2008-10-16
Comment: I bought 1 of these players for my kid's to use on trips and regret it terribly. I fought through the SD card compatibility issues, and used it a few times and liked the product.
However, it then broke during hour 1 of a 10 hour trip(stuck in recovery code...). The screen said "attached to computer to update". Well, my PC was at home so the 20 hours in the car round trip was a disaster. Most fixes require a PC, and since the player is so unstable, you'd better plan on having one nearby on trips (defeats the portability benefits).
I had to return to Archos since it was past the Amazon return period. They said to send it in for repairs...After 2-3 weeks I received a used - not new - replacement. Different serial number, a few scratches, and it didn't work right out of the box. There's NO way they tested this thing before sending it to me. I requested a refund and they refused. Now I'm going to have to try again for another USED replacement (Amazon won't help out) and see what happens. Save your time and money - STAY AWAY FROM ARCHOS - and buy a Zen.
0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Reliability Issues 2008-10-11
Comment: Positive note: Screen is large and sound quality (speaker) is much better than my iPhone. Size and weight is not much bigger as well. However:
Negatives:
Unit arrived with error "Recovery (code 102) System is damaged." as well as a code (104) error. Archos confirmed that is a drive error (hard drive or flash drive). When it did boot up, wireless connectivity was very poor (1 in 10 tries at best) even though the wireless signal was strong at 5/5 bars. Now the unit (just 1 day old) won't even boot and displayed the above code.
Amazon replaced the unit and the new one had a screen problem at first boot-up: Screen blanked out displaying streaked colors. A reboot eliminated the problem. I thought I try my luck and hope it will go away and I upgraded to the latest firmware. (Don't try this wireless as it is REALLY slow (like dialup-speed) and the file is large, about 45MB. Wireless connectivity is also very unstable and cuts you off.) The next day the screen problem was still there. On the third day, the screen blanked out again, and after a rebooted, showed an upside-down screen with a FOREIGN language. This is the final straw and I just got off the phone with Amazon to return this unit.
You also have to buy a plugin ($20) if you want to play your iPod (mp4) files. I converted my video files to AVI.
FYI: Trust all the 1-star reviews for this product. This is my first and only review on Amazon after buying hundreds of products over the past 10 years--just to give you an indication of my disappointment on this Archos.
-Victor Oct 11 2008
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Poor performance, poor service 2008-09-30
Comment: Since I have had the product, almost all the features have slowly failed to perform. I have lost the "touch" function of the player. Every computer I have tried to connect to has stopped recognizing the player and it is impossible to play video. What is most frustrating is that on three seperate occassions I have contacted the Archos service center with no response.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Nice concept - if only it worked well 2008-08-19
Comment: I have had the unit for about a month now. I purchased the 4GB SD model and a separate 16GB SD add-on card for a total of 20GB. I also purchased the DVR station and the DVR traveler.
My excuse, err reason for purchasing it was primarily to be able to do digital recordings from an infrared camera to post online. Additionally, I wanted to convert my existing 8MM camcorder tapes to digital and do DVR type recordings for entertainment.
The unit seemed to recognize the SD card just fine (I read that they were finicky with some cards). The picture is very clear, the interface and touch screen are fairly intuitive and not difficult to learn and I was able connect to my secure wireless network easily.
The unit does have a bad habit of freezing up whether the SD card is installed or not. It's been a long time since I purchased an electronic device that I had to stick a paper clip into on a regular basis to reset it. Perhaps they should have included a paperclip holder along with the stylus holder that they forgot to build into the unit.
The biggest issue that I have with the unit is that when I am recording from another device (e.g., camcorder, infrared camera, etc.) the unit will at some point decide that the source is DRM protected and restarts the recording in protected mode. These recording are effectively useless as they can't be played on anything but the Archos itself. Note that the source being recorded is original and not copy protected in any way. It takes an average of 3 attempts just to get one good recording, very frustrating when you are 2 hours into a recording when it decides to do this. This is an example where DRM adds no value and causes major headaches for consumers. You are forced to pay for something that cripples the legitmate use of the device. Because of their dumb DRM implementation, the device is nearly useless for my primary purpose for acquiring it.
On to the "DVR" station. Very wishful thinking to call this a DVR station as it has no ability to tune a station and has to rely on your cable or satellite box to set the station at the right time. The unit has an infrared emitter which is supposed to allow it to control these other device. I have no idea if it works, because you must first download programming data from the Archos website. Guess what? the Archos website doesn't work either. After trying numerous times to download programming data, I sent an inquiry to customer support. After a few days, I got a reply saying that they were having server problems and it should be back up in 1 day, 2 max. That was 3 weeks ago. Customer Service hasn't responded to my followup. So scratch this DVR concept (a TIVO it certainly is not) and consider the DVR station to be an expensive docking station / charger.
Hey, you know the other stuff that they advertise: browser functionality, video playback and widgets? Well you have to buy add-ins before you can use any of them. You cannot play back DVDs until after you purchase additional codecs from them. Given the few things that seem to work as advertised in the base unit, I'm just not very anxious to buy a bunch add-ins for functions that should work out of the box and set myself up to be disappointed even further.
Unless you really have a need to do portable digital video recording from analog sources via RCA connectors like I do, I'd say skip this and buy something else.
It's sad because the device had so much potential.
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Archos 605 Wi-Fi Portable Media Player (4 GB)
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