Archos 705 Wi-Fi Portable Media Player (160 GB)

Thanks to my purchase from Anazon I was able to get a full refund. I also purchased the Gen 5 Station to go along with the 705 and obviously. it too was returned. I purchased the 160GB Model. First things first...I absolutely loved it for its size, picture, wifi, and touch screen. BUT my main reason for it's purchase was to record DVD movies. It does by-pass the copy guard on new releases. Here is my reason for the return . . its "stutters" during playback meaning the picture freezes up, only for a minute split second as each segment is loaded for playback from the hard drive. As you watch a movies the picture "jerks/jumps" and that is very annoying. You may watch several minutes then all of a sudden th scene will stutter/skip several times!!! This is not a problem with the unit I purchased but with all 705's. I lter found this out after seeing what mine was doing and doing furthur investigation online I read allm about it from someone else. I have an older Archos Model 500 w/100GB and it is simular to the 605 and have OVER 100 movies on it and no problem. I bougt the 705 due to it's screen size being larger. With over 100 movies on my 3 year old 500 I know how to hook them up, record, etc. I gave it 2 stars: 1 for recording pictures and the other for music. I never tried the wireless or any other feature as I wanted to return it/refund within the 30 day requiremnt. So if you plan on recording movies and the jumping/flickering/sticky picture during playback is going to bother you take this into consideration.

I used this player for 2 weeks and it is dead. I paid $70 just for the Plug-ins. Called customer service and they put me on hold for 40 mins at the end they told me to return it to Amazon. This is the second product I bought from Archos and both died within 3 weeks. Stay away from Archos.

Archos knows portable media. They are the Gold Standard by which all others should be measured. This device plays DVD movies ripped in the raw .VOB format. Amazing. You have to buy the plug-in to perform this, but it's wonderful they even offer the option. Videos, photos, music, GPS or streaming media from your computer to the TV. Outstanding. I also have the Archos 605 and it has all the same functionality as the Archos 705, but the 605 is more portable. Either way, you can't go wrong. It beats the pants off of the iPod.

If you want to pay a ton of money for a product that will break within the first couple of weeks of ownership, then archos products are where it's at. If you like spending hours of time on the phone talking to incompetent representatives who say one thing, and don't follow through, then once again archos products are for you. If you are like most people, and don't want to waste your money, stay away from this company.

I purchased an Archos 705 (160GB) about two months ago and am just now getting around to leaving a review. Thus far, it has been a great product...NEARLY perfect.

The good:
Plenty of space...I have my Archos filled up with all the music, movies, photos, and games that I need.
The Archos plays nearly every file type. You are only really limited by the resolution.
The Archos is built very well. Feels sturdy in hand and can take some abuse. My Archos has fell off my bed onto a wood floor a couple times and hasn't missed a beat.
The Archos is beyond easy to use. It has a very slick dashboard and allows you to easily access your media.

Things that need to be improved:
1) This first one is HUGE in my book....Why they didn't include an external volume control is beyond me. There is an external control on the included head phones, but I like to use my noise canceling headphones so am stuck with using the clunky on-screen volume control. This BY FAR is my biggest complaint with the unit.
2) Overall volume output leaves a lot to be desired. Volume is great when using head phones, but when plugged into external speakers it lacks. It does get loud enough for a small room, but I use Bose Companion 3 Series 2 speakers to provide music in our airplane hanger and while other, smaller MP3 players (combined with the speaker volume control fill the hanger; the Archos does not.
3) The Archos does occasionally "lock-up" and needs to be restarted. I should also say that it didn't start happening until I loaded it up with flash games. It doesn't happen a lot, I would say probably once a week or so.

Overall this is a great product that I would buy again. I spend a lot of time in very remote places and the Archos allows me to relax to my own music and movies at night. I haven't got to test out the WiFi yet. I have purchased two extra Archos 704 batteries and they work for the 705 unit. If this unit had external volume control it would get 5 stars, but as is I am giving it 4.