Portable CD MP3 Player

A review for Archos 604 WiFi was posted over at CNET. The player has received an excellent score of 8.0 out of 10.

The good: The Archos 604 WiFi gives you access to the Web and e-mail; touch-screen experience is good; vibrant widescreen display; can record audio and video with the optional kit; has a removable battery, a built-in speaker, and a built-in kickstand; sophisticated interface; can view photos and listen to music simultaneously; compatible with subscription services; it’s durable and compact for its screen size; excellent photo viewer; can be used as a wireless file server.   The bad: The Archos 604 WiFi is limited to 30GB; must purchase separate kit to record audio/video; must purchase separate kit to get a power adapter; must purchase plug-ins for certain types of video files; weak bundled accessories; proprietary USB cable; not easy to operate blindly; processor is sluggish; nowhere to store stylus without case; cannot listen to music and surf Web simultaneously; battery takes a major hit when using Wi-Fi.   The bottom line: The do-everything Archos 604 WiFi is completely stacked with awesome video playback, Web surfing, and other useful features, but the sluggish processor keeps the experience from being totally satisfying.

Engadget has also posted a review about Archos 604. They has this to say about Archos 604 30GB over at their blog.

"Archos apparently made a purposeful omission and left the DVR gear as an optional accessory, just in case some folks didn’t want to pony up the extra $100 for the at-home convenience. It was noted that the unit performed well when paired up with the Archos DVR Station, and the staff was more than satisfied with the 14+ hours of audio / 4 hours of video use reportedly on tap via the removable battery. If you haven’t caught the drift at this point, here’s the skinny: the Archos 604 is a worthy update to the respectable AV500, and if you’re looking to snap up a PMP (and maybe add recording capabilities down the road), it’s not a bad way at all to spend $350."

PCMag gave Archos 604 a very good rating, 4 out of 5.

According to them the Archos 604 is a very good portable media player, but it doesn’t quite live up to its predecessor’s high standard of sound quality. Also, many of the features that were standard on the AV500 are now optional extras, particularly the ability to record video from analog sources.

Full specifications

for Archos 604 WiFi Manufacturer: Archos Technology Inc.
Part number: 500872

General

• Device type
• Digital AV player

• Key multimedia features
• Voice recorder, Digital audio player, Digital photo viewer, Digital video player, External HDD function

• Height
• 3.1 in

• Depth
• 0.6 in

• Width
• 5.2 in

• Weight
• 10.2 oz

• Localization
• : United States

• PC interfaces
• Hi-Speed USB, IEEE 802.11b

• Included accessories
• USB cable, Carrying pouch, Stereo headphones

• Digital multimedia features
• PDF viewer, Opera web browser

• Packaged quantity
• 1

Display

• Display type
• Color - 4.3 in

• Display form factor
• Built-in

• Display (projector) image aspect ratio
• 16:9

• Display features
• Touch screen

Memory / Storage

• HDD capacity
• 30 GB

• HDD form factor
• Digital graphic

Still Images

• Supported still images formats
• BMP, PNG, JPEG

• Photo playback modes
• Zoom in, Zoom out, Auto slide show

Digital Audio

• Supported audio formats
• AAC, MP3, WAV, WMA, AC-3

• Supported bit rate
• 30 - 320Kbps

• Microphone
• Built-in microphone

• Digital audio features
• VBR, 5 band EQ

Video

• Video playback formats
• WMV, MPEG-2, MPEG-4

Connectivity

• Connections
• Hi-Speed USB -, Headphones - Mini-phone stereo 3.5 mm

Battery

• Battery required qty
• 1

• Rechargeable battery
• Rechargeable

• Battery Enclosure Type
• Internal

• Battery
• Lithium polymer Rechargeable Internal

• Battery technology
• Lithium polymer

• Battery capacity
• Internal - Rechargeable - Lithium polymer

• Battery Life Details
• 16 hours 16 hours, 5 hour(s), 16 hour(s)

• Battery life details
• Video playback - 5 hour(s), Audio playback - 16 hour(s)

System & Software Details

• Operating system support
• Linux, MS Windows ME, MS Windows XP, Apple Mac OS X, MS Windows 2000

• Firmware upgradable
• Yes