Archos does a cannonball into the Internet tablet pool with the release of three new devices: the Archos 5, the Archos 5g, and the Archos 7. These are the same devices that we wrote about late last week.
The company is boasting the “Internet Media Tablet” as a new concept even though these devices have a lot in common with gadgets like the Nokia Internet tablets. However, Archos has thrown the word “media” in between “Internet” and “tablet” so let’s see what all the fuss is about.
Archos 5
The Archos 5 is the flagship product of the new series. It’s got an ARM Cortex processor, 4.8-inch 800×480 touchscreen, Flash 9/MPEG-4/WMV/MPEG-2/H.264 and 720p video support (with an optional $20 plug-in), 802.11b/g wireless, built-in speaker, full e-mail client, and capacities between 60GB and 250GB.
Video playback is rated at 4 hours, audio at 12 hours. It’ll be available in September for $350 (60GB), $400 (120GB), or $450 (250GB).
Archos 5g
The Archos 5g is basically an Archos 5 with a 30GB hard drive and an internal 3.5G HSDPA antenna for connecting to cellular data networks. It’ll be available sometime in December for $550.
Archos 7
The Archos 7 will come in two capacities: 160GB and 250GB. Each features a 7-inch 800×480 screen, support for Flash video/WMV/MPEG-4/H.264 and optional $20 720p plug-in, 802.11b/g wireless, built-in speaker, and built-in e-mail client. We’ll see the 7 series in October for $450 (160GB) and $550 (320GB).
DVR Station
Each device will be compatible with the $99 docking station, which will allow you to record TV, play back HD content, charge your device faster, stream content from your PC to your docked device via Wi-Fi, and more.
ARCHOS Internet Media Tablets [Archos.com]