Product DescriptionPlay all your digital entertainment movies, TV shows, photos and music / 7" TouchScreen / Store up to 100 movies, 800,000 photos or 47,500 songs / MP3 & 4 View, zoom photos and make slide shows with music and transition effects, for viewing on the PMP or on TV Listen to all your favorite music in more formats than in any other player Transfer photos directly from your digital camera onto your ARCHOS, using the USB 2.0 host port A/V Capacity 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.
Amazon.com Product Description With 80 GB of built-in memory, the Archos 705 Wi-Fi portable media player lets you surf, stream, download, and record movies for easy playback on its crystal clear 800 x 480 7-inch full-color touchscreen. With its Wi-Fi capabilities, the 705 Wi-Fi connects to the Internet for surfing the Web, accessing e-mail, and watching Web-based videos wherever you go. Its Opera Browser plug-in puts Adobe Flash support on your Archos, which enables access to and use of Dailymotion and other Web video sites on your Archos device. You can even view and post YouTube videos wherever you have a wireless connection and your Archos.
The Archos 705 delivers sharp visuals, Wi-Fi capabilities, and advanced audio/video playback. View larger. |
Download your favorite podcasts with the ArchosLink Software. View larger. |
To assist in finding new and exciting media, the 705 Wi-Fi comes with integrated access to Archos' content portal, a service that features thousands of movies, TV shows, and songs for downloading wirelessly to the player. The player also sports an integrated TV program guide you can use to record your favorite TV shows for later playback. And because the device supports PDF files, you can kick back with an e-book in PDF format while on the road or review important PDF documents while away from the office. The 705 Wi-Fi supports MPEG4, AVI, and WMV video files and audio files in MP3, WMA, Protected WMA, and WAV file formats. Bridging the gap between the PC and the TV, the 705 Wi-Fi allows you to stream content from a PC or the Internet directly to a TV or the 705--all through a wireless home network and an optional DVR station. It also features a sophisticated touchscreen, no-button design to ensure simple navigation with your fingertips or stylus. In the absence of a Wi-Fi network, content can be transferred to the device via USB 2.0. The player supports Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems. The 705 Wi-Fi measures 7.05 x 4.96 x 7.75 inches, weighs only 22 ounces, and features a music playback battery life of up to 25 hours and a video playback life of up to 5.5 hours.
 New widgets for the Archos 705 include a calculator, currency converter, unit converter, news, and weather (above) as well as a note writer and data vault (below). |
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New Free Widget Pack
Archos has launched a new widget pack that is free for the 705. 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 705. |
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 705. 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 705 Wi-Fi, headphones, USB 2.0 cable, USB 2.0 host adapter, DVR station saddle, two styli, remote control with built-in keyboard, power adapter and charger, protective pouch, quick start guide, and legal and safety notice. NOTE: The Archos 705 manual states that a UK/European adapter is included; however, this adapter is not included in the box. To obtain the adapter mentioned in the manual, contact Archos Customer Service at 866-489-4718--available seven days a week, 7AM to 11PM CST.
The Archos Content Portal provides easy access to the latest movies, TV shows, and music directly to your Archos device. | 
The device comes with photo-viewing capabilities, supporting JPEG, BMP, and PNG files. |
Volume is too low (Rating: 2 out of 5) I love the Archos 705 except I can't hear it. Also the fact that you have to pay extra for functionality that should come standard on a video player. I got the unit to play videos for my passengers while traveling in my car. There's an aux in on my car stereo, but when I connect the cable from the headphone out jack on the Archos to the aux in on my stereo, the sound is very very low. Both the car stereo and the Archos are turned up to max but you can barely hear the sound of the videos. Of course everything plays fine on my home equipment, there's nothing wrong with the files. --update-- I got the docking station for the Archos and it has audio outputs on it. I can power it in my car using an inverter to get 110 volt AC from the cigarette lighter socket. When I connect a cable from the audio out on the docking station to the car stereo, the volume is great! No problems at all. The volume issue is well known throughout the web if you google Archos and volume. Pretty sad to cripple such an otherwise decent device.
handy digital video player (Rating: 4 out of 5) I bought this as my job requires me to be out on oil field locations for no less than 8 hours at time with with no more to do than stay a wake with the occational knap. I work all hours of the day so I miss my shows. I got this because the convient size with a decent screen and the dvr docking station. The speakers are loud enough to not require head phones. I would recommend this to a somebody with a kid so they can watch educational programming instead of pixar movies. Just record sesame street to the dvr and get a wallet so you can hang the archos form the back of your head rest.
The only real complaint that I have is that they advertise all the things it does but you have to spend 20-40 bucks to get each option. Internet browser, dvr docking station, and random plug ins.
Fun to use and features as expected - not happy with touchscreen (Rating: 3 out of 5) I have had the Archos 705 for 6 months now and I love the compatibility with my different media files - easy to load with movies and music. Remember that you have to buy add-on software packages on the Archos side after you buy the player to use the browser and all media formats...
Battery is good - though I have issues with the touchscreen. Sometimes painful to strike the right keys and buttons and this has gotten worse over the past weeks.
Have had item for months and still can't use it (Rating: 1 out of 5) I bought the Archos 705 80 gig months ago, and still haven't been able to use it. First, it didn't work out of the box. Because I didn't open the box for a while (I thought I was going to give it away as a gift and then decided to keep it), I couldn't return it to Amazon, so had to do an RMA and return to Archos. That took a while. Then, I paid for the web browser plug in and the video plug in, and when I tried to download them, the system tells me the serial number for my Archos is not recognized, so it won't let me install the plugins. So I can't use my Archos for the purpose I bought it.
I spent over 2 hours on hold today waiting to talk to Archos technical support to deal with this latest plug in issue. But Archos "support" is notoriously bad and you are put on hold forever. I'm told this download issue is a common one. I am so angry and so sorry I ever bought this product. Had I known how terrible technical support is and read all the bad reviews out there on the web, I never would have purchased this product. I tried calling Customer Services and got what was supposed to be a Customer Service number from the web site, but when you call that number, you get a recording telling youo it is the store and you should use the website to purchase items as they would charge you an exttra $10 to buy over the phone, then they hang up on you. So there is no customer services department to call for complaints. So this product might be OK if you have no issues, but if you ever need to speak with tech support, beware. I say, it's not worth the risk, no matter how good the product looks online.
A Little Dissappointing (Rating: 3 out of 5) I was very excited when the product arrived in the mail. I was looking for a reasonably priced media player so that I could watch my favorite shows on the go or on my couch. One of the main reasons for buying this player is that it was compatible with Amazon's Unbox video.
Unfortunately I was disappointed with the product. Here are the reasons:
1. Very low volume. Most of the time I have to use earphones.
2. Low quality video. The resolution is bad and picture is grainy.
3. The unit heats up a lot. It is uncomfortable to hold because of this.
4. After about 3 hours of use I now have at least 1 dead pixel on the screen.
I give it 3 stars because it serves its purpose, and was reasonably priced. I will probably pass it along to my younger brother and try the new unit.