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Archos 504 - 40GB Portable Multimedia Player
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| Price: |
Average customer review:
Product Description
ARCHOS 504 PMP 40GB UK
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #61515 in Consumer Electronics
- Brand: Archos
- Model: Archos 504 40GB
- Released on: 2006-08-29
- Dimensions: .69 pounds
- Display size: 4.3
Editorial Reviews
Manufacturer's Description
Archos 504 40GB Digital Media Player The ARCHOS 504 is the PMP with the biggest storage capacities of the Gen 4 range. Available with 40GB hard disk version, this device can store up to 4503 movies and its bright and luminous 16/9 screen brings you the best portable video experience. Hard drive capacity up to 160 GB to store 450 movies, 1.6 million photos3 or 80,000 songs. Reads all standard video formats1 in full DVD Resolution. DVD-quality video playback on TV with optional DVR Station. Records directly from TV in high-quality MPEG-4 with optional DVR station . Bright, 4.3" TFT screen with 16 million colours - ideal for watching videos and viewing photos. Extremely fast photo viewer with zoom, music and transition effects. Advanced Music player able to display track, artist, album, and album cover. Compatible with most DVD quality video and music online stores. Removable battery for extended viewing Possibilities. |  |
| Video player | ||
 | The ARCHOS 504 is the PMP with the biggest storage capacities of the Gen 4 range. Available in 80 and 160GB* versions, The ARCHOS 504 can store up to 4505 movies and its bright and luminous 16/9 screen brings you the best portable video experience. | |
| Record TV or external video sources | ||
Transform your ARCHOS 504 into a Digital Video Recorder with the optional DVR station. Record TV or most video sources such as satellite/cable box, VCR, DVD player6 or camcorder in MPEG-4 format1. Set up the DVR station by connecting it to the external video source; simply slot in your ARCHOS and record instantaneously or make scheduled recordings with the included infrared receiver that controls the external video sources. |  | |
| Turn your ARCHOS into a camcorder | ||
 | Record your personal videos. | |
| Photo Wallet | ||
Transfer your photos from a PC or most mass storage devices via the USB 2.0 high speed interface or directly from a digital camera, on the move with the optional docking adapter, or at home with the DVR station. Store and view up to 1,6 million photos5 (JPEG, PNG and BMP formats) and display slideshows with music and transition effect. Manage your files and folders directly on the device for a better mobility. |  | |
| Music Player | ||
 | Store up to 80,000 songs5 on the hard drive and play most popular music files such as MP3, WAV, WMA and protected WMA files. Easily organize songs with the enhanced ARC Library and customize your view by artist, album, type of music, title, year, and create your playlists without having to use a computer. Use the voice recorder to store notes quickly for a later use. | |
| Charge and sync | ||
Charge your ARCHOS 504 via the USB 2.0 interface or plug the device into the DVR station to get a quick charge (faster than USB). Purchase, download, subscribe to or rent protected video and music content from the Microsoft PlaysForSure™ websites. Using the high-speed USB 2.0 interface, the ARCHOS 504 will easily auto-synchronize this content with Windows Media® Player 10 each time you connect it to your PC, or convert your Windows Media® Player 10 library content to one of the many compatible formats (MP3, WMA, WAV, protected WMA, MPEG-41, WMV2 and protected Windows Media Video2). |  | |
Box Contents
Customer Reviews
Great Overall
The device worked straight away (well I had to charge it) and was so easy to use that I didn't bother with the instructions. I've already got a dvd ripper on my computer and that saves it in .avi format that works without the need for all the extra plugins. The plug ins are a bit of a rip off and should be included with the product that I payed for.
Anyway, very easy, fairly compact, brilliant sound, picture and build quility, can't fault the product but the plug ins are bad. If your going to buy one I would recomend that you get the 80gb one like I got or the 120gb one becouse I filled up over 40gb with all my stuff and i'm bound to get more that will want to go on. If you have your films in .avi format thats good, but if not get some software that will save it in that, plus anouther note, .mpeg to .avi converters files don't work on the 504 if thats a problem for you.
Overall, buy the product but don't think that the price your paying to get it is the overall price, add in all the extras aswell, dvr station, plug ins, screen protectors / cases and what not.
Can't upgrade the hard disk
This really is a great device. Only problem I have is I have bought the 40gb thinking that I could change the 2.5" HDD for a bigger one once I filled it. Unfortunately that is not the case. If you change the drive, the Archos 504 just keeps going in to HDD recovery mode. It lets you format it, but will not recognise the drive even if you copy all the old files over to the drive. Apparently the size/type of disk is locked into the ROM of the device and it fails to work if you replace the drive. Cannot find any way around this. For this reason, think carefully before going for the 40gb version as 80gb or 160gb is probably a better option.
Great device otherwise.
Easily the best on the market if this is your price range
I spend hours and hours researching what bit of kit to buy and after much deliberation I can confirm that this is the best sub £400 portable media player on the market. Love it.
Pro's: Screen is big enough and high res enough to comfortably watch a feature length film on. That's got to be the number one priority. Storage wise, the 40 or 160 GB options available on amazon still make this a better buy than the 604. I've put mine through lots of use and it hasn't let me down once. No freezing or rebooting, it's as reliable as my fridge (I downloaded the latest firmware from day one which might have helped that). You can read pdf's on it as well so if you're stuck in an airport you can alternate your episodes of 24 or Lost by catching up with all those interesting papers you come across at work but never have the time to read them.
Cons: No tactile / relief on any of the keys plus no luminous markings so very difficult to use in the dark. Menus are a bit quirky; creating a playlist is a real pain. Nothing that makes you want to throw it out the window though.
Workarounds: Buy a mains USB Charger and a cigar lighter USB charger (around [...] each) to keep the battery topped up while you're away from your PC. Download the optional codecs from day one ... add their price into your purchasing decision as you'll only be putting off the inevitable.
Summary: Plenty of storage, high res large screen and reliable. That's my big three and this gets 5 stars for being top notch in all of those.
