Archos 605 Wi-Fi Portable Media Player (160 GB)
 |   Publisher : Archos Company : Archos |
Features
- The ARCHOS 605 160GB, 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 screen resolution, highest quality video, touch screen, WiFi capabilities for streaming content to the device or a TV, the ARCHOS 605 WiFi is the top product in the line-up for flexibility, portability, features and price.Amazon.com Product Description
The Archos 605 generation 5 portable media player comes with a convenient Wi-Fi 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 Wi-Fi 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 and 160 GB of built-in memory.
The Archos 605 features a touch screen, high quality screen resolution, and Wi-Fi capabilities. View larger View bottom - View side.
Download your favorite movies, TV shows, and music, and bring it with you.
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. 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 Wi-Fi 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 9.17 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 Wi-Fi portable media player, headphones, USB cable, DVR Station Gen 5 adapter, protective pouch, quick start guide, and legal/safety notice.
The device comes with photo viewing capabilities, supporting JPEG, BMP, and PNG files.
Play any content that resides in the Windows Media Player library of your home PC or laptop.
Most Advanced PMP
Featuring the highest quality screen resolution, highest quality video, touch screen, Wi-Fi capabilities for streaming content to the device or a TV, the Archos 605 Wi-Fi is the top product in the line-up for flexibility, portability, features and price.
Touch screen
The Archos 605 Wi-Fi features the highest resolution screen (800 X 480) and highest quality screen in a PMP. Use the touch screen to easily operate the device with your finger or stylus.
Personalize your Archos
Make it yours: personalize your Archos 605 Wi-Fi to fit your unique lifestyle. Abundant plug-ins and accessories are available to customize your device to work the way you do: Go online for full Web surfing, video your friends and family in action, record your favorite TV shows and movies, and share your photos.
WiFi
- Download content wirelessly and directly to your Archos 605 Wi-Fi via the Archos Content Portal and our partners' online stores.- You can also stream movies, TV shows and music that are stored on your computer.
- Your device is Internet ready! With the optional Web browser plug-in, you can surf the Web and enjoy videos from online videos sites like DailyMotion and YouTube.
Your movies, your videos
- Store and play up to 40 movies1- Play the most popular video formats: MPEG-4, WMV, protected WMV, MPEG-2*, VOB*, and H.264* (*with optional plug-ins).
- Play the movies you shot on your camcorder.
Your photos
- Transfer your photos from a PC or most mass storage devices via the USB 2.0 high speed interface.- Store and view up to 300,000 photos1 (JPEG, PNG and BMP formats).
- Display slideshows with music and transition effects.
- Manage your files and folders directly on the device for a better mobility.
Your TV
- Record your favorite TV shows or series directly on your Archos 605 Wi-Fi with the optional DVR Station Gen 5.- Easy programming with the TV Program Guide.
- Record the most video sources such as satellite/cable box, VCR, DVD player in MPEG-4 format.
Your music
- Store and listen up to 15,000 songs1- Play the most popular music files such as MP3, WAV, WMA and protected WMA.
- Easily organize songs with the enhanced ARCLibrary.
- Customize your view by artist, album, type of music, and title, and create your playlist on the go.
Easy navigation
Through the home WiFi connection, you can enjoy the entire shared digital media library of your home PC in your living room, not just in your office.(1)On average; based on 3.5 mins/song & 64 kbits/s WMA, on 1000 kbits/s MPEG-4 audio/video encoding and 1h30/movie (for near DVD Quality), on JPEG, VGA
Customer reviews
Worst Customer Service in the World! 
My archos experience is actually the absolute worst that I have come across in 20 years of buying high tech products.
A timeline of my "Archos Experience":
1. Oct 2007: I purchase the 605 wi-fi, the dvr station and the add-on web browser and cinema plug-in. All-in cost of approximately $550.
2. Nov/Dec 2007: I am the envy of Apple crazed friends with my 605 wi-fi and I am extremely happy with the product;
3. Mid Dec 2007: The 605 will not turn on;
4. Jan 2008: I exchange emails with technical support (Ticket#: 20364895) to identify problem late January after settling into a new project overseas (Spain). Ultimately, the technician suggests contacting Archos locally to get an RMA for Europe repair;
5. Feb 2008: RMA obtained and product sent to Archos RMA # EAD-04-0801313199 in early February;
6. April 2008: 605 received back although not in working condition. After discussion with technical support, I reloaded the firmware and it recorded some programs and seemed to be in good working order. Two days later it failed to turn on and generally was in a frozen state (though different than earlier in the year);
7. July 2008: Busy with work - I just set it aside out of frustration with the option of a local RMA repair again. Contacted Archos in July and received a new RMA992305558 for USA repair;
8. September 2008: Repaired Archos now received and I pick it up and bring back to Spain only to find again that while it will turn on -there is a hard drive issue that will not allow it to record!!
There you have it. 12 months of ownership and 2 months of use. To make matters worse - the battery is now such that the most it will charge up is to 3 bars - just over half. Even if it did work - that would render it useless.
How can a company expect to possibly achieve ANYTHING if they return "repaired" products that DO NOT WORK!
I would love to try their newest product - but out of principle - I will never buy another Archos product in my lifetime and I will do everything possible to dissuade anyone else that I know from doing so.
Great product!!!!!! 
The Archos 605 is probably the best Media Player I have ever bought. Its not so much of a brick (consider that my hands are kinda small) and its more than enough capacity for me. After trying to find another option in the market I decided to go with this product because of its functionality. The battery life is a little less than expected, but I have used it for music for 12 hours straight and I havent had any problems.
The service on Amazon.com was also great. The delivery was right on time the packages were sealed and I was able to monitor my purchase all the time. It was just a breeze to buy it here.... I totally recomend this product.....
Don't Buy it.
I owned my Archos 605 WIFI for 5 weeks when some of the functions stopped working while using it. When I attempted to re-boot the system, it would not restart. After some quick research, I found that this is a very common problem with these units. They don't last long. Because I bought it from Amazon and not directly from Archos, Archos doesn't want it back. This was a very expensive toy for little more than one month of use.
Great Concept, Awful Package
I did a lot of research to figure out what player to buy and finally purchased the Archos because of its capabilities. I was fully aware of the additional expenses for the plug-ins and accessories but decided that they would be well worth it to expand the capabilities.
The Archos was a fun player and, with the plug-ins, the video quality is incredible. The browser was a bit slow and the image quality of recorded TV programs was not spectacular but the capabilities of the player were incredible.
Within 1 month of purchase, my first player's backlight went out. Nothing showed up on the screen. After navigating through customer service (which I had expected to be bad based on reviews), I was told to send the player in for repairs. Instead, I returned it to Amazon since it was within their warranty.
Amazon sent me a replacement. Within two months this second unit had completely failed. The software stopped working, the battery wouldn't charge, nothing worked. It was complete junk.
To their credit, Amazon completely refunded the price for the second unit as well as all of the accessories that I had purchased. Since I am now an Amazon customer for life, I promptly turned around and purchased an i-pod touch.
The screen on the i-pod is smaller and the video quality is slightly less, but it is indestructible and has given me no problem. This is well worth it after my ordeal with the Archos 605.
The 605 has some really cool features and the image quality is incredible but I have found it to be absolutely unreliable. The fact that the package is a piece of junk overshadows the capabilities.
