Archos’ recently-announced AV500 will combine a Personal Video Player and a handheld computer. [Brighthand]
When will Apple just go for it. Why is Archos the pushing the boundaries of what you can carry in a single multimedia powerhouse device. Perhaps Cupertino is just waiting and watching to make it that much easier (and therefore better) to use… ala iPod.
Multimedia
The AV500 will include a 704-by-480-pixel screen capable of displaying DivX and MPEG4 video at 30 FPS. Of course, it will be able to record in these formats as well. It will also support Microsoft DRM for WMA and WMV9 video. It will include a video-out port so it can be hooked to a TV.
It won’t just be a video player. Users will also be able to play and record MP3s.
All these multimedia files will take up a lot of room, so there will be one version of the AV500 with a built-in 20 GB hard drive, and a second with a 40 GB one.
To make it easy to transfer pictures from a digital camera, this device can act as a USB 2.0 host.
PDA
The Qtopia environment is an icon-based graphical user interface for handhelds. It is used by a good number of Linux models, including Sharp’s Zaurus line. It is bundled with a suite of PIM software that can be synchronized with Microsoft Outlook.
Qtopia usually comes with a Microsoft Office-compatible word processor and spreadsheet, though there has been no word yet if the AV500 will include these. It will definitely come with email software and a web browser.
It is not clear at this point what type of memory card slot this model will have, but PC Card and CompactFlash are strong possibilities, as Archos has said users will be able to add Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, GSM/GPRS to this device via removable cards.
1) Battery power: so many IC, HDD, LCD….. Can it run over 1 hour!!!???
2) Price: I am afraid this one will sell over US1000.
Anyway, it’s easy to let people love it, but difficult to let everybody afford to buy.
I hear you… no idea yet. Have not seen too much on availablity
I recently contacted Archos to ask them the status of the AV500, since it obviously was not released in December as anticipated. They told me that the AV500 has been renamed the Archos Pocket Media Assistant PMA400. It will have all the features before mentioned. They will announce the release the PMA400 at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The PMA400 will hit store shelves around the end of January.
-Steve
KB1iPD
Very cool – thanks for the update!
I’ve been wondering where it went. There was only reference lately to other products, but nothing close to what this might be when it makes it to market.