I’m not sure Archos can get away with adding “er” to a product that is not only the same, but in the same sub category without getting a call from SanDisk’s lawyers. Though I don't think SanDisk has much to worry about considering the faith of other screenless players near the same rock bottom price.

Archos Clipper follows the same screenless path as the Samsung Pebble or the Creative Zen Stone, but offers a clip just like, well… the Sansa Clip. The Archos Clipper sells for around $30 and comes in a 2GB capacity.

[My Memory]

Seems like everyone's jumping on the touch screen wagon lately. Samsung just updated their P2 with the P3 and Cowon's S9 is making friends all over. Archos wants in on the fun and just announced the Archos 3, a medium sized players with a 3" touch screen.

Specs wise they don't disclose much, but a 8GB storage capacity and 14 hours of battery life isn't exactly something to celebrate. Among random features they mention photo viewing, voice recording, a stopwatch and a calendar. Not a single mention of video anywhere, which isn't a good sign. Price and release date is unknown, and frankly completely uninteresting if this is all they can come up with.

[Archos via Engadget]

The last non PMP and flash based player Archos released was the 105. I have one sitting around the office but never stirred up enough gumption to write a review on it since I couldn’t stop yawning every time I used it. Not that it was bad, just nothing exciting and a bit out of date even at its release. This time around we hope that its different. At the very lease it has a nice new modern design and less clunky like the older generation Archos players.

The Archos 2 will follow the 104 and 105 with a simple candy bar form factor, sporting a 1.8” 128x160 pixel screen. This will come in 4GB and 8GB sizes. The Archos 4 is a bit more elusive at this time since we don’t have pics yet- but this will be a 4” flash player coming in 16GB and 32GB capacities. Could Archos be killing off their hard drive models? Likely not, but it appears that they are adding a healthy mix of flash.

[Amazon via ArchosLounge]

This is great news for Archos; putting Android on their devices will really bring them to the forefront. I love the latest Archos 5 hardware but the underlying OS leaves much to be desired. I recently spent some time with the G1 mobile phone and while I was not blown away by Android it is moving in the right direction. That said in its current state it still is eons above the current Archos OS. So I hope they are replacing all of their device OSes with Android.

Also keep in mind that Achos has a 3G version of the Archos 5 (called the Archos 5 IMT)- the size it won’t make for a feasible phone, but perhaps a very usable mobile tablet. Additionally, there are a few attachments like GPS and TV to add more goodies to the mix.

[Press Release via Engadget | Archos Lounge]

Amazon MP3 has finally started going international with the MP3 store coming to Amazon UK. The record companies continue whining about illegal music downloads but considering the (lack of) speed that MP3 stores are brought out (because of licensing and such) we'll prob have audio files implanted directly into our brain and have the site renamed Anything But iBrain by the time the entire world has access to MP3 stores.

After two years of disappointing customers every couple of months with no new info, Meizu is finally releasing it's M8 iPhone copy. This was announced as a competitor to the iPhone two years ago while the first gen iPhone was still hot and new. Personally I couldn't care less about this thing, but maybe there are still people out there who remember the fuzz surrounding the announcement of this thing back in 1863(ish).

The Archos 5 got a firmware update this week adding some features, bringing others out of beta and fixing some bugs.

The popular TV show "The Simpsons" had an episode last Sunday where a certain company got a bashing. Check it out if you want to know the real story behind Steve Mobs, Mapple and the Mypod.

Haier released a new version of the Rhapsody player, called the iBiza Sport. Flash memory, Wifi and Rhapsody support. The first player they released never was much of a success and I doubt this will be any different.

Many of us are tired of getting fleeced by eBay fees and ridiculous policies, so we have added an MP3 player classified section to the forums. Check it out, sell your used gear or find some great deals from others.

Noreve is a maker of fine leather cases for all kinds of portable gadgets. Andreas had a chance to check out one of their cases for the Sony A820 and was very positive about it. This is actually my first experience with a Noreve case. I’m not such a fan of cases on my gadgets since I appreciate them more in the raw, but after checking out one of Noreve’s cases I might just change my tune- especially with larger devices like the Archos 5.

Read on for my thoughts and lots of great photos.

I have owned or own a few different Archos PMPs dating back to the third generation (Now on the 6 th). They were good and very capable PMPs, but I never really got too excited about them, due mainly due to clunky hardware and haphazard interfaces. Oh - and let’s not forget about the lack-luster sound quality.

However, upon holding the new Archos in my hands, my aversion to Archos products quickly faded. The device is one of the sexier devices currently on the market, and small tweaks in the UI have made a drastic difference. If you are looking for a serious portable video player or had previously denounced Archos, please read on. Though there is still much room for improvement, there is much to like about the Archos 5.

Archos has just officially announced the their 6th generation of PMPs and even making a splash into the world of 3G connectivity. The interface if felt was a bit awkward on the last generation 605 {link}, mainly due to the fact that it couldn’t quite make up its mind to be touch screen or tactile with the side buttons. It’s not that these hybrid touch/tactile interfaces don’t work, it just didn’t work with the Archos UI. That said I’m glad to see that Archos picked a side and went all touch.

All around it looks like it’s a further refined version of the 5th generation PMPs. This is good news since I thought that the 605 was a fantastic jack of all trades PMP, but it just felt a bit rough.

As part of an entertainment upgrade on the railroads in Norway, NSB (Norwegian railroads) is said to be considering Archos players as part of the entertainment package.

The plan is to add power outlets and Internet to the trains on some routes in Norway to begin with. On top of providing Internet access there are talks of a media server on the train which will stream media (movies and so on) directly to the media players which will be possible to rent for each trip. The project is still in it's early stages and nothing is written in stone, but Archos is said to be the most likely choice for providing these devices. Archos have several WiFi capable devices and it's not clear which model will be used if Archos is chosen.

[Press Release via ITAvisen] (both links in Norwegian)

Archos is holding a press conference today in NYC (Andreas was supposed to be there but I was too cheap to pay for his $2,000 plane ticket from Norway) and Paris . Live from Paris GenerationMP3 is reporting these updates to the Archos line of PMPs. One of the more interesting updates is a GPS module for the Archos said to be selling for €100- hoping that that will translate to $100 when it hits the US shores.

There is one downside to this. The GPS unit is really only made for your car since the GPS receiver is built into a suction cup mount. So hopes of whipping out your PMP while navigating the city by foot is out of the question. Still at $100 (hopefully) it is not a bad option to your TomTom.

Video demo also showing new plugins at GenMP3 (in French).

[Archos | GenMP3]

The 605 is Archos’ new fifth generation flagship PMP that crams nearly every feature one could want into a PMP. They have even offered a few different capacities including a flash version with expandable SDHC memory that can add up to 32GB of flash memory when those capacities become available. The 800x480 pixel screen with a 24bit (16.7 million colors) screen looks fantastic at any viewing angle.

It sounds like the 605 is the ultimate PMP. Well… almost. While the 605 has a thorough feature set and performs very well, the interface needs to be completely overhauled. Archos, fire your interface designers and start over, then I may be able to call the 605 the ultimate PMP.

Read on for the details...

Further information is beginning to appear on the smallest of the Archos 5th generation of portable media players. Subsequent to its unveiling this June, the first pictures of the 105 have arrived at ArchosLounge, which exhibit red, silver, and black versions of the 2GB player. According to the latest information, WMV video playback has been increased from 15fps to 25fps.

The 105 will be available for purchase as early as the beginning of next month, as Amazon are already offering a release date for the 1st of September. Pleasing to hear, is that no change has been made to the projected $90 retail value.

[ArchosLounge | Amazon via I4U]

Archos is planning on releasing a set top DVR media player to compete directly with Apple TV and other TV media boxes. The box will come in either 80GB or 250GB sizes and be priced at $200 and $350, respectively. You'll get an assortment of all the inputs and outputs you need: component, composite, and S-video ins as well as outs. Additionally you get HDMI out, but don’t expect anything spectacular: the TV Plus will only record at standard TV resolutions (VGA) but will output 720p with downloaded and streamed content from your PC.

So I took a trip to NYC to get a firsthand look at what Archos has in store for their next generation of portable media players. Overall I was impressed with what I had a chance to play with, even though only the 605 and 405 pre-production models were available. There were many nice features and a plethora of ways to enjoy your media on each of the players, but what impressed me most were the accuracy and sharpness of the screens and the devices' price points. I am a bit worried about the lack of codec support for XviD and DivX files, though. It's something Creative has always supported and that consumers want. Yes, it supports these formats.

The 202 is getting a face lift to run with the Archos line-up of X04 portable media players. The player sports a 1.8” 262K-color screen along with a standard feature set including MP3, WAV, WMA, and WMA-DRM music files and JPEG support. Video junkies will be disappointed to find that there is no video support. The player only comes in a 20GB size but offers a slightly above average battery time of 20 hours.

This player seems a bit out of date compared to what else is on the market and the 262K-color screen seems like a waste sans video support. Regardless, we will probably see this hit the stores in the next few months. However, the US may not see it, as word on the street is that it's a European only release.

[Product Sheet (French PDF) | via generationMP3]