Archos 404/604 PMPs Looming Large

Archos

By: Jenn K. Lee on July 30, 2006 7:47 PM

Last month we gave you a sneak peek at the new line of Archos portable media players rumored for imminent release. Archos is still being fairly tight-lipped about it, but the ever-resourceful GenerationMP3 has once again come through with all the details.

The main difference between the Archos 404 and 604 is the size of their gorgeous 16-million-color TFT displays. The 404 sports a 3.5" screen (320 x 240); big brother 604, a 4.3" screen (480 x 272). This of course impacts overall dimensions and weight (404: 3.94" x 3.03" x 0.59" @ 6.7 oz; 604: 5.12" x 3.07" x 0.63" @ 9.2 oz).

Otherwise you can't really tell the devices apart. Both feature a 30GB HDD, USB 2.0 interface, text viewer (PDF), voice recorder, and built-in speaker, as well as support for MP3/WAV/WMA, JPG/BMP/PNG, and XviD/DivX/MPEG4 ASP/WMV9 file formats. GMP3 also mentions the possibility of buying plug-ins to enable compatibility with AAC, AC3, MPEG-2, VOB, and H.264.

Unlike the Archos AV series, these new players will need an optional DVR module to record from external sources such as a DVD player or VCR (anyone still have one?). Recorded video is in MPEG4-SP (DivX 5) with a max resolution of 640 x 480—great for TV output. Audio is recorded in ADPCM, which will typically require MP3 transcoding for use in most DAPs.

[GenerationMP3]

Comments

Roger767 on July 31, 2006 9:43 AM

You have to buy plugins to get the most important codecs ac3, vob and h.264, that very lame!

Louis on July 31, 2006 12:18 PM

Does it really need ten buttons to work properly?

Rich on May 16, 2007 4:13 AM

If some one would buy them (the plugins) I'd fade on some of the cost.
Via paypal . . .

=( on June 22, 2007 1:51 PM

is the 404 known to crash if the video is in a certain format???? and do the buttons light up??? do the archos ppl expect us to memorize the button placement???

Gurv on December 4, 2007 8:01 AM

I was thinking of buying the Archos 404 Camcorder to take to college because i have alot of spare time so i can watch movies and stuff
but my question is
Is it worth buying if im not going to buy the plug-ins?

Latest Articles:

abi Editor's Choice

SanDisk Sansa Clip

The Clip has a fantastic little form factor; cheap in build quality but very rugged. The interface is simple and relatively straight forward. The features on the clip are more or less average, mostly identical to the Sansa Express. However, what earns this player a spot in Editor’s Choice is the superb sound quality; you will not find another player at this size and price that can match it. Read the full review or go ahead and buy it.
Samsung P3

The Samsung P2 was a success and the P3 is a very welcome and substantial update. Samsung has paid close attention to users on P2 issues and made great strides in addressing and improving most of them. The best feature of the P3 is its native video support. Most content you thow at it will playback without conversion on the great looking screen. Stop by the Samsung P3 forums for more details or check out our indepth P3 review.
Microsoft Zune 120

Sure, many of us are not big fans of the walled garden, but there are a lot of great things going on with the Zune- sturdy hardware, ultra easy to use user interface, and a media player that is worthy of editor’s choice. The best part of the Zune is the constant firmware and software updates virtually giving you a new device at each major refresh. You can check out the latest Zune 120 & 16 review or stop by our Zune forums for the latest.
Cowon iAudio D2

The D2 is a fantastic sounding PMP with a very nice looking screen and a tone of features. One of the best features of the D2 is the SDHC slot allowing you to add another 32GB to this small wonder. The touch interface does not lend well to on the move operation, but it is not enough to keep it from being an editor’s choice. You can find usually find it at Amazon for the best price and before to check out the review.
Phonak Audéo PFE

Phonak Audéo PFE offer outstanding clarity and precision; natural, dynamic mids and treble, and decent bass for a single armature in-ear phone. They handle dense, complex music very well. The PFE work well with most acoustic and some electronic music genres, but bassheads might have to look at other alternatives. They're great for sports as well, since they fit very securely. Check out our review.