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Archos AV700 100GB Archos AV700 100GB |  |
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| Product Reviews from Amazon.com (Rating System 1 to 5) |
| Review | Rating | Last Updated | Good product, Poor Customer Service
I received an Archos AV700 as a gift just under a year ago. The first one had no sound output, so we called Archos "Customer Support" and were told that we should return it to them at our expense and it would take up to 6 weeks to repair. I then contacted the retailer I purchased it from and they sent a replacement.
The unit worked well for about 3 months. Then the battery died. I purchased a replacement and that worked for about 5 months.
The other day I tried to switch it on and it would not start up. No lights, nothing. Thinking it may be the battery again, I purchased another new one along with a new power supply. Unfortunately this did not solve the problem, so I begrudgingly called Archos to find out how to proceed.
Archos informed me that this model is no longer supported and that I need to purchase a newer model.
I assume that if I do purchase a newer model, that too will be obsolete in a few months!
Beware of very poor customer support! | 3 | Today | ALL ARCHOS PRODUCTS
DON'T BUY ANY ARCHOS PRODUCT IS NO TECHNICAL SUPORT AND YOU NEEDS LAT
CHRIS | 1 | Today | Quite complaining ...
When reading these reviews, be careful. There are a lot of people out there complaing that this device wasn't able to replace an entire DVD collection, or that the video isn't high enough quality to play on a TV. Quit your complaining! This device is to be used to store and play video ON THE DEVICE.
The product description never states that you can use this device to replace your DVD library, or that you'll be able to hook it up in a movie theater and watch a movie on a 30x50-foot screen.
This device was made to do what it says ... to store and play back movies ON THE DEVICE.
Now, for the actual product. Yes, you can record video directly on the device. Granted, if you hook this thing up to a VHS player, or even a DVD player, you are actually encoding analog-quality material. Yes, I will repeat myself, even if you hook up a DVD player, it will not be digital quality. If you want true digital quality, encode your DVD with your computer, and transfer the file to the Archos! You'll get better quality video and audio without sacraficing hard drive space.
If you plan on hooking this thing up to a 31" television, expect loss of video quality! It's a no brainer! Same thing happens if you take a small .gif file off the internet and try to print an 11x14 out of it. It get's pixelated.
If you're looking for a good, solid and reliable device to replace your clunky "portable" DVD player, then this is the device for you. Granted, you have to encode your collection and load it on to the device before leaving home, but that's the price you pay for the convenience of not having to lug around your DVD library.
Is the interface as thought out as an iPod? Definitely not. But let's face it, Archos is NOT Apple. Apple does what it does very well. That's why the iPod is so popular.
Look, the bottom line is, this device does what it says it does. It stores video, music and photos, and plays them back. If your looking for something solely to replace your DVD library, buy an AppleTV. If your looking for something that plays music, then buy an iPod. If you want something to store photos, buy a friggin photo album. If you want to schedule and record TV, buy a DVD recorder or a Tivo.
This device does three main things (Movies, pictures, music), and it does so pretty decently. Don't buy this if your expectations are too high. If you are buying this in hopes to replace your iPod, tablet DVD player, digital picture frame, Tivo, microwave oven, 50" plasma TV, sister-in-law, etc., then you're setting yourself up for a huge disappointment.
Buy this device, toss on it a few movies, songs and family pictures, and take that vacation you've always wanted. At least this way you'll have some entertainment to pass the time during your trip. | 3 | Today | Don't try to watch on a big screen!
I got rid of this after a few months of recording DVDs. I had hoped to replace my DVD with this digital storage, just like I did my CDs. But the resolution on the Archos is so poor (even when you set it to record on its highest resolution, which eats up considerably more storage space)that it broke down into pixels on my 27 inch LCD TV. It works great if all you intend to do is watch it on the Archos player or a tiny TV screen. I guess I should have expected this since the Archos only record thru analog. I also found the recording process very tedious. It is a simple matter of hooking it up to the DVD player and recording, but you have to wait through the 2 plus hour DVD to turn the unit off. You can set it to turn off automatically after a set amount of time, but that dead space at the end of the DVD recording while the machine waits to turn off also eats up your storage space. Overall, a great idea whose time has yet to come for replacing my DVD collection. | 3 | Today | Perfectly fits my needs
I purchased this a couple of months ago and love it. It is well made and the attention to detail that went into everything from the products design to the little things such as giving you batteries for the included remote control really sum up the feel of the product. It is well done. The video compression on the fly for recording off a VCR works great. The ability to pop in movies that one rips off a DVD and then recompress and play works well.
It holds my music, my videos. It's a super fast hard drive.
I purchased it after seeing a friend who had another archos product with a smaller screen. This one is perfect. The screen is just the right size.
Thanks Archos! And good purchasing.
Tips:
-If your on Windows, get the newest copy of VirtualDub and the DivX codec to really make your movies fly. You can use it to recompress DVDs and captured video (if you have the time)
-If your on a Mac, get Handbrake
-If your going to be displaying video on a TV that your capturing, tweak the contrast and saturation levels as well as the audio levels while viewing the "TV out" of the Archos, that way you know what your getting!
Enjoy!
| 5 | Today | my precious archos.
I began to love this item for about 4 months..I researched up everyone else's reviews and such to check on faults and other cons about it. I found none...until One day my archos's battery died completely...I even tried another spare power cable then...it just never came back on...so I sent in my player to archos support not too long ago...and hopefully they've fixed all the problems with it...
Other than the battery problem...the player was the best electronical deveice I owned...I had over 100 videos on there and 3 thousand songs...it pretty much consumed my life... | 4 | Today | No support for regular recordings
Great little machine except for the fact that it doesn't allow you to make daily or weekly recordings (think Simpsons every day).
It only support some hokey interface with Yahoo calendar. | 3 | Today | Customer Service - Unhelpful
I own an older model and have experienced battery issues. When the unit was on the market and battery concerns were mentioned and Archos said that they would replace the battery if the need arose. Well, I need a new battery and guess what they said. They suggested that I throw away my 20 gig/mp3 player/video player because they no longer support the unit because my model is not current! I can't beleive that something I bought for hundreds of dollars 2 years ago that needs a battery should be tossed.
They said if I found a battery that I would still need to find someone handy with solder. When I inquired about the specs of the battery they said they didn't have any of that info.
Not to mention that the battery is dead dead and the unit will not turn on even when plugged in. I can't access any of my files.
What a crock. I think I will buy something from someone who cares next time. Buyer beware. | 2 | Today | I love my Archos AV 700
I purchased the Archos AV 700, but with the 40GB drive a few months ago.
I travel quite abit, including overseas, and wanted something to occupy my time. This unit is fantastic, but not for those that do not like to read instruction manuals. When I first received the box the instruction manual was quite overwhelming at first. However, it is actually a very easy unit to use.
Benefits -
1) When you travel in economy class like I do, then limited space makes it very uncomfortable to open up my laptop to watch movies. The Archos, however, makes it very easy to watch movies in a very confined space.
2) having the ability to transfer shows from my TIVO is great. I record HBO movies and my favortie TV shows, then transfer them easily to my Archos. However, realize that the transfer of shows happens at real time. I.e. a 30 minute show will take 30 minutes to transfer. You have to let the show/movie play, in order for the Archos to record it. It is quite an easy process to tape and usually I do it when I am working on chores in my house or getting ready to go to bed.
3) While I do not have the advantage of the new 100GB hard drive, even 40GB is plenty of storage for lots of movies and TV shows in the supported video formats.
4) No DVD's to carry around
5) Excellent and comfortable screen size.... very good for extended viewing. I sure would hate having to watch multiple shows and movies on a tiny IPOD video.
Again, initially this unit will appear to be very complicated, however, once you start using it (and read the instruction manual) it is actually quite easy.
I find the battery life quite good, about 5 hours. What I have observed with the battery life is that it varies based on the shows that you are watching. If you are watching a show that does not require fast forwarding (i.e. shows that you transfer from your TIVO or recorded straight from TV) to bypass the commercials, the battery life is around 5 hours. However, it does drop to about 4 hours if you have to continiously fast forward through shows.
Anyway, I love this thing....so does my son, and everyone who has played with it - "I want one" will be heard often. Also, be prepared for attention on the airplane.
| 5 | Today | archos
its a neat product, looks good, has a big screen, is sexily slim and light.
But since its a mobile product, i.e something you take with you on a long drive or on a flight, its battery life of only 4 hours is a limitation. And i assume that like a laptop, battery life reduces with age. makes it a bigger problem. If i am on an international flight thats 10hrs, i cant charge it up any where midflight. Battery life is a concern. should improve, or offer an extra battery as complimentary. | 4 | Today |
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