Archos 605 30GB

Archos has big plans for the 605. Already generally deemed to produce the most user-friendly and feature-packed PMPs available, the 605 will soon be host to a GPS plug-in and a TVportation for streaming live TV from home.

It’s already busy with features. Using the Wi-Fi connectivity (that’s a dream to set-up), you can surf videos through a portal from sites like Daily Motion and Euro News. Or you can just visit YouTube from its Opera browser.

Up the creak

That browser does creak into life and using the virtual keyboard can be frustrating, but once you’ve got to your destination streaming video works fine.

When it comes to supported video formats, the 605 does a sterling job, although there are significant gaps in its arsenal. It plays, DivX, MP4, MPEG, AVI and even ASF files, though oddly there’s no support for MOV files or any WMV files. We also encountered some problems with AVI files while choosing a H.264 file crashed the whole system. Oops.

What it does play it delivers from within a quite brilliant operating system. Video files are presented in a list complete with moving thumbnail. Crucially, this process doesn’t clog-up the unit’s processor.

It’s not without its problems. Some venomous double tapping is often required because the touch screen isn’t sensitive enough, while the Wi-Fi connection can occasionally drop out.

The music software provides top quality playback of MP3, WMA, AAC and WAV files, though not specialist formats like FLAC, OGG or SHN files. There’s plenty of bass and range to tunes though the supplied headphones are a little basic – as they are on all the PMPs in this test.

Just as the Touch has recently started offering widgets for stocks, weather and YouTube, the 605 – after a brief plug-is installed automatically from Archos’ website – offers currency converting, RSS news feeds and weather forecasts.

Flash the cash

With support for the new Adobe Flash Player 9, Flash games can be downloaded for cash while basic online gaming and even more video is within the 605’s reach.

Choosing the 605 is like buying into a concept rather than simply buying yet another gadget. And if you thought the Touch or the iPhone were addictive, the 605 will keep you busy 24/7. Time to dump your friends.