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Archos 35 Smart Home Phone
Skype savvy Android DECT set
Market forces
Inside the Archos 35 Smart Home Phone is a 1GHz TI OMAP 3630 chip with 256MB of RAM running Android 2.2. File storage is a generous 8GB. Interrogate the system and you will see that there is actually only 6.6GB of file and 270MB of system storage but that’s still not a bad specification for a home phone. Extra file storage is available courtesy of a MicroSD card slot.
Dect and Skype choices, also the Go dialler alternative in action
The only legit source for the 35 Smartie apps is Archos’ owns AppsLib, which is now apparently 30,000 titles strong and include Angry Birds and Skype. However, AppsLib also contains an app called ArcTools which will instal the Android Market app and other Google apps at the touch of a button.
The odd screen size means a lot of apps simply don’t appear in the Market but all the ones I side-loaded including Facebook, Twitter and Dropbox worked perfectly.
Performs well as a PMP too
Happily, once I’d installed the Market app and signed into my Google account, all my Gmail contacts synchronised. Make a call from a contact entry and so long as you have Skype open you will be given a choice of dialling over DECT or VOIP.
How does it all work? Rather well. The handset connected immediately to the supplied base station as well as to my own cheap-as-chips Tesco branded unit. Call quality was good too, over both my Virgin land line and through Skype. And in keeping with Archos' 28/32/43 devices, the Home Phone makes a fine little media player too.