Archos 604 30 GB Ultraslim Portable Digital Media Player and Recorder (500860) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The Archos 604 Video player is wonderful piece of electronics.It is a great update of the venerable AV500 and takes care of all of the problems of its predecessors.

Package Contained
Archos 604, 1 battery, nice ear bud headphones, 1 proprietary USB 2.0 cable used to charge the device and transfer content from your computer, setup guide and legal stuff, DVR station adapter and a storage sack.

The Great
The screen is totally amazing: Big, Bright and Beautiful in a 16:9 layout. It has a 30 Gig HD which many people will think is probably on the small size, but I find it more that enough to store 8-10 movies and 8-10 TV shows leaving more than 20 gigs for music. And how much do you really need for movies and TV.These are not like music files: once you view a TV or movie a few times you will want to delete it and put newer movies and TV shows on the unit. More space would be nice, but the 30 here is more than enough for what this unit will be used for, ie watching on the go.

Viewing angle is very wide. The unit itself is well constructed and is made up of a high density plastic and metal - a nice surprise when most people are using only plastic to save money and lessen weight. Here too the 604 has really improved the surface of the metal with a very nice brushed surface that always looks clean: no fingerprints show.

Included are a few sample files to show off the 604 abilities in the video and music areas. The manual is right in the unit in a pdf file which is a very nice feature. The 604 can view most pdf files and the screen is so nice reading and viewing them is a pleasure. I bought my 604 to watch stuff on the go, and this unit is PERFECT for that.

Archos technical support is easy to call and they pickup and give advice without putting you through the ringer or automated FAQ system - another nice surprise.

The 604 has a Replaceable battery!Don't by any product where you can't replace the battery.

Battery life is wonderful for music at over 14 hours when listening to music only. When using it to play videos, I am getting 4+ hours of use before the battery is exhausted. Looking at pictures and listening to music falls somewhere between 7 and 10+ hours.

The interface looks really cool with lots of interactive items. When connected to your computer it asks you what you want to do: charge only, sync (via Windows Media 10) or mount as a hard drive. No installation discs come with the unit as they are not needed. Only thing you need to do is make sure Windows Media 10 (a free download from Microsoft) is installed if you want to use the it for syncing files, but it is not required as you can drag and drop files on the the 604 in HD mode just like any regular hard drive.

The speaker is small but actually sounds good considering its size - perfect for office or desk listening or to share video clips with friends gathered around. The built in Kickstand is extremely cool here and makes playing videos and watching them at your desk very slick.

The built in microphone works exceptionally well and picks up even the softest sounds clearly.

The photo viewer is great and and is fun to use (slide show, rotate, etc.). You can even listen to music while you view pictures which is a wonderful feature: just start listening to music before you switch over to viewing photos.

The Not So Great
Many might be disappointed that it comes with no cables to play back video on television, but again what this unit is really useful for is watching video ON THE GO. If you want a DVR for your house, get a Tivo or something similar or get the additional add-on that make the 604 a full featured DVR, but if you go this route, I would suggest getting the 504 with the bigger HD. Although there to you will pay more for the additional storage size, and you will also have to buy the cables to enable it to record live shows.

The navigation buttons take a bit of getting used to of course, but the design is really quite simple and straight forward.

Things to do when you get your unit.
Be sure to go to the archos website and get the firmware update from the download section for the Archos 604 and update it right away. It adds functionality.

The very bad
The storage bag is useless: provides no more protection than a zip-lock bag. Don't worry, there will be many people selling skins for this unit soon.

Update on 9-20-06:
I wanted to pass along a few more things since my review. I have used the Archos 604 for the past 3 weeks now and I am even more impressed then when I first wrote my review. The unit is just so light and compact for what it offers. This is not like an iPod of course, but with that you gain such a beautiful screen for doing all the things an iPod or similar just can't do. I use the Archos to workout (cardio), currently watching LOST, and the time just flies by.

I have not had any problem connecting or transferring files to the Archos 604: it just works well.

Update on October 4th, 2006:
I have played around with the display setting for brightness and have discovered that if you reduce the brightness to the minimum level (still super acceptable for viewing IMO) you can get about an extra 1 hour of viewing of videos.

Update on October 27th 2006:
The H.264 - AAC sound plug-in was released a few days ago. I downloaded it and installed it easily. The plug-in is tied to your unit so no sharing the codex. Now there is no reason to convert iPod videos for the Archos, they play perfectly with this new plug-in. The plug in was $19.99. The DVD video plug-in also works perfectly and I installed it also without problems and have watched some wonderful DVD movies without having to convert them to a different format. This plug-in was also 19.99. I wish Archos had included these in the original price.

Update on December 5th, 2006:
The Archos 604 as of this date supports the following files types (some may require a plugin: see the Archos website for details).
.divx
.xvid
.wmv
.wma
.m4v
mpeg-4
mpeg-2
.vob
.mpg
.ps
.mp4
.ac3
.acc
.mov (H264)

Summary
This is a very cool device and is certainly easy on the eyes. This blows away any other portable video player (PMP) on the market and the price is incredibly low for what it offers. The very low price will make this a must have item for watching video on the go if you can find it for sale. My 604 is just such a joy to use. I am never without high quality TV shows or DVD movies now no matter where I find myself. The size is just perfect, any larger and it would be cumbersome, and smaller and it would produce eye strain like I had with the video iPod.

Overall, I continue to be very, very happy that I bought the Archos 604.

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Product Description:
With the Archos 500860 604 30GB Ultra-Slim Portable Digital Media Player and Recorder you have all the entertainment you need at your fingertips, in a package that approaches iPod size. The perfect companion for everything from long trips to short bus rides, from going to parties to just hanging out around the house, the Archos 604 lets you not only take your favorite music, movies, and moments with you, but helps you make new favorite moments wherever you happen to be.
With a screen size surface three times that of similar size PMPs (portable media players), the Archos 604 ensures you can thoroughly enjoy movies and videos. This unit uses a bright, 4.3-inch TFT LCD display with over 16 million colors to provide you a crystal-clear, sharp picture with a 16:9 aspect ratio and 480 x 272 pixels of resolution, as well as an intuitive GUI (graphic user interface) for easy-to-use navigation. The Archos 604 not only plays your videos and movies, but lets you store up to a whopping 85 movies on its hard drive in either MPEG-4 or WMV formats at up to DVD resolution. You can also purchase and download optional plug-ins from Archos' website that will allow you to play H.264 and MPEG-2 formats up to DVD resolutions as well.
Not only is the Archos 604 a portable video and movie player, but a high-resolution photo viewer as well, complete with features such as zoom, music, and transition effects. You can easily download photos from your PC, or transfer them directly to the 604 from your digital camera via the optional docking adapter. This unit is compatible with JPEG, BMP, and PNG file formats, and can hold up to 300,000 photos at a time, depending upon file size and what else you are storing at the same time. The Archos 604 can even read and display PDF documents for on-the-fly work situations, although it may not implement all PDF features.
For those times when you can't afford the distraction of watching high-quality videos, the Archos 604 can be your music player, storing and playing up to 15,000 songs so you can keep working, walking, or doing whatever you need with your own private soundtrack. This unit displays the track, artist, album, and album cover of whatever you are playing, and supports stereo MP3 decoding from 30 to 320 kbps CBR and VBR, as well as WMA, protected WMA, and WAV (PCM/ADPCM) formats. Furthermore, the Archos 604 can play AAC music files, and AC3 stereo sound files with the additional of optional software plug-ins that can be purchased and downloaded from Archos' web site. And just in case inspiration strikes or you want to make sure you don't forget something important, this handy media player lets you make voice recordings through its built-in microphone, or via the optional DVR travel adapter or DVR station through a stereo line-in jack in WAV format.
The Archos 604 is fully compatible with DVD-quality VOD (video on demand) and online music stores, allowing you to purchase and download new music and movies directly online rather than having to transfer everything from more traditional media sources. This media player can also record directly from TV in high-quality MPEG-4 with stereo sound via the optional DVR station, so you can take your favorite television shows with you wherever you go. And if you are at home, the Archos 604 can play back any of your movies or recorded TV programs on your television itself, also through the optional DVR station.
The Archos 604 has a built-in 30 gigabyte hard disk so you have plenty of space for anything you need, and includes a high-speed USB 2.0 connection for transferring files. This unit features a 3.5-millimeter stereo headphone jack mini-jack and TV output, dedicated connectors for hooking up optional adapters or the DVR station, and a built-in kick stand for convenient table-top viewing. The 604 also features a music playback time of up to 16 hours, and a video playback time of up to five hours on its built-in LCD display, all with its internal, removable lithium-ion polymer rechargeable battery that charges via computer through its USB port, or more quickly with the optional docking adapter or DVR station. The Archos 604 is compatible with both PCs and Macs with a USB port and Linux, Windows ME or higher, or OS X or higher, and requires Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or higher and Windows Media Player 10 or higher for use with PlayForSure video and subscription services. This media player allows firmware updates to be downloaded via www.archos.com, weighs approximately 9.05 ounces, and measures approximately 5.1 x 3 x 0.65 inches (W x H x D).
What's in the Box
Archos 604 portable media player and recorder, headphones, dedicated USB 2.0 cable, DVR station adapter, pouch, quick-start guide, and legal and safety notices.

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