Secondly it has a power jack on the lower right hand side so you can charge it through the supplied mains adapter while you are using it. This however is rather a case of Archos giving with one hand and taking with the other as the 7, unlike the 5, cannot be charged with a USB cable.
In the vast majority of respects using the 7 is really no different from using the 5, the underlying Linux operating system, performance, capabilities and touch screen user interface being identical. When browsing the web the extra screen size really does pay dividends though, the layout and appearance feeling for more akin to an 8.9in netbook screen than a standard PMP.
The power jack is on the right-hand side, but it can't be charged with a USB cable
Tapping hyperlinks was never an issue on the 5, but on the 7 it's just that bit easier to touch the right link without having to double tap the screen to zoom in. The virtual keyboard, being larger, is even easier to use than on the 5.
Before we get deluged with yet more comments about Archos PMP's going titsup and crashing every other five minutes, it's worth stating clearly that in the week we had our 7 it didn't need resetting once.
We looked at the 5 before the arrival of the firmware update that added Ogg and Flac file support, so focussed our 7 listening tests on the new codecs. Adding Flac file support to music players is not straightforward as one might expect - some players that generate a perfectly decent sound from MP3 or AAC files can sound harsh and edgy – or “too digital” as someone in the office once complained - when playing Flac files. Not so with the 7, a Flac encoded version of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon sounding both warm and natural.
COMMENTS
Netbook FTW
I've had an AV500 for more than 2 years and I love it. I'd also love the new 5 or 7 but I simply can't justify the money when I could get high spec Netbook (Samsung NC10) for less money ... and I wouldn't have the hassle of buying extra codecs / hardware. Archos really do make great bits of kit but they're asking too much now. I'll keep my AV500 until it eventually dies but in the meantime my money is going on a netbook, not another Archos.
same old issues
i have the old 500, it's great except for a couple of issues which still have not been addressed in the new range. It can't handle AC3, or Qpel, and it can't down-size HD
i'd sat don't bother
(mine's the one with 20 Epsom in the pocket)
Beware using it as a DVR
For the third generation now, the clock still loses minutes every day. Not good when you have scheduled it to record your favourite program!
Also, still after three generations, you still cannot record back to back programs. You get awful video/audio sync problems when you try to do it.
As the DVR station is an extra £80 on top of the already expensive device, these issues really are taking the mickey and Archos seem unable to fix them (The 5 suffers from the same problems as well see www.unofgadgets.com for discussions about this)
One final thing. Archos have been promising the HiDef plug-in for a very long time now and there's still no sign of it.
Im with AC... whats wrong with a laptop?
Why would you buy this at that price when you can get a laptop down your local high street for the same price. So many more advantages.... and only the loss of battery - trains and planes now have plugs in the seats you know!
Can it..
..handle MPEG Transport Stream files? i.e. can I copy recordings off my digi HDR and play them on this?
