Archos recently upgraded the Archos 5 to the Archos 5 Android. It can be purchased with up to a 500 GB hard drive, and includes new features and bluetooth.

Features

The Archos 5 features hard drive sizes of 60 GB, 120 GB, 160 GB, and 250 GB. This player has a ARM Cortex A8 Texas Instruments OMAP3 Processor. Additionally the player has added format support (some through plug-ins that require payment) and includes the updated Opera web browser with Adobe Flash 9 support, web radio, and web TV plug-in for free with registration, whereas it had to be purchased as a bundle for the fifth generation players.

The Archos 5g offers a 30GB size. The Archos 5 and 5g have similar appearances and technical specifications, but the Archos 5g adds 3.5G HSDPA wireless connectivity in addition to the WiFi which the entire series has. It requires a SIM card with an available 3G or 3.5G data service. In Europe, it is possible to get a subsidized Archos 5g with a data-service contract.

The Review

Archos 5 Specs

Storage : 60 GB, 120 GB, 160GB, 250 GB

Display: WVGA resolution, 24-bit color palette, 4.8″ TFT LCD touchscreen

Video: MPEG-4 AVI, MJPEG, WMV, with plug-in: H.264, AAC, MPEG-2, WMV HD, MPEG-4 HD

Audio: MP3, WMA, Protected WMA, WMA 5.1, WAV, OGG, FLAC, with plug-in: AAC3, AAC+, AC3

Photo viewer: JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF

PDF viewer: Reads PDF documents

Video recording: with DVR Station/Travel Adapter. Records NTSC/PAL/SECAM in MPEG-4 AVI with VGA resolution @ 30 or 25 fps

Audio recording: with DVR Station/Travel Adapter: Stereo line-in, WAV

Interfaces: connects through USB in either MSC or MTP, WiFi (802.11g)

Connections: 3.5 mm Audio, Proprietary dock port

Battery life: Music playback: 22 hrs, Video playback: 7 hrs. External Battery available

Charge : USB, DVR Station, optional Wall outlet

Dimensions & weight: For 60GB models 127.5 x 78.3 x 12.9 mm – 250g / For 120/250GB models 127 x 78,8 x 19,4 mm – 300g