So why are we so desperate to write an Archos PMA400 review? well it meets the requisite number of gadget points in combining functions and creating a way to watch the media you want when you want it.

Wrapped in what we must say is a very attractive shell is a Linux based PDA, portable media player, wireless web device and games machine. The choice of Linux as the operating system is a smart one, not only does it give the Archos PMA400 a stable platform but it also provides access to a whole community writing plugins, new codecs and generally helping keep the device up to date.

Beating beneath the grey metallic facia lies a Texas Instruments' OMAP5910 CPU with 64mb of RAM, this memory is not protected so any power failure would see loss of data. However it is only really used to run applications as almost all data is stored on the 30gb hard drive.

The screen is a 320x240 LCD panel with touch screen interface, its bright and has a good level of contrast with black blacks which is a rarity among PMP devices, its just as well the screen is good as everything about the Archos PMA400 revolves around it.

So onto the feature review, first up its the media capture and media playback capabilities. Video capture is something that most PMP's fail on miserably so we weren't expecting much from the PMA400, opening the box revealed a rats nest of cables that look like they could convert anything to anything but in truth it can connect your PMA400 to your Satellite receiver or DVD player.

The video centre application can be set to record from any source and even control the tuner to select the right station, sadly Archos still haven't addressed the lack of an EPG which is a shame given the wireless connectivity available. So you'll have to resort to using the radio times or teletext to find the time of your broadcast before setting the PMA400 to capture MPEG 4 at up to 512 x 384 pixels at 30 frames per second which produces some of the best files we've seen to date.

Replay is very smooth and stutter free and the quality on the Archos screen is 1st class, the colours look vivid and not washed out the black are black and despite the numbers suggesting a low resolution its more than acceptable and beats most PMP's we've tested.

The PMA400 doesn't just do video apart from still images like Jpeg's it also handles MP3, WAV and WMA files with aplomb and even those pesky WMA's that use windows DRM, in fact the user interface is so slick its as good as several MP3 players we've tested although not quite up to Ipod standards. The touch screen is so useful for all the media applications making the file system easy to navigate and its clear to see thumbnails of media and to explore the contents of your hard drive.

The Archos PMA400 also has a pretty full on PDA like function as well, this combines a personal information manager (PIM) which to you and me is a calendar and address book, this can easily be synchronised with your desktop outlook using the USB or wireless connection. On top of the basic PDA features there is also an email client allowing you to work with POP3 mailboxes while on the move and a rather lightweight and speedy web browser giving full on web surfing and making the most of the screen.

These features all work well but can take a little while to load, the clock speed of the processor isn't that fast (about 150mhz) and this shows when you have a few applications open at the same time.

Perhaps the killer feature of the PMA is the connectivity, most devices would have stopped at the USB 2.0  link which is ample for transferring files and syncing your emails, but Archos give us full on WiFi 802.11b which is a very welcome extra. it allows for easy configuration including WEP encryption for use of your home or office network plus the ever growing network of wireless hotspots.

While this connection is easy to set-up and quite reliable the Archos does seem to have a limited range and was easily defeated by a few walls or about 30ft or air! in fact most of our laptops were running almost twice the distance away from the base station compared to the PMA400. Please don't get us wrong we are not looking this gift horse in the mouth just pointing out that you might have to sit at the right end of starbucks to get a connection.

The games were all pretty much ok, only the RallyPro game stood out as it showed off the Archos to the best of its ability and is a long way on since the days of Tetris and battleships, but again this is not a games device this is very much and extra.

Battery life is possible the area where improvement may be needed, we managed to get about 3.5 hours out of the device when playing video, which isn't quite enough for 2 movies but a fair few episodes of west wing! (series 5 is out this week on DVD). Playing MP3's gets up to around 10 hours (the same as a 3G Ipod), the battery can be removed so your could carry a spare, but considering the not inconsiderable 280 gram weight of the PMA400 you may not want any extras!

If you think we've gone a bit negative towards the end of the review we haven't, perhaps just a bit realistic, this is the most complete PMP / PDA we've seen and its better than many PMP's alone! But it still could do with refining a bit more, better WiFi, an EPG hook up of some kind and longer battery life.

As with most things the bottom line is would we pay £550 for a Archos PMA400 with out own money and the answer is yes.

More Archos Reviews

Published - 23/04/2005

More PMP Reviews-

[ Up ] [ iriver PMP 120 ] [ Photo Ipod 60gb ] [ Creative Portable Media Centre ] [ Archos Gmini 400 ] [ BNI Joycoder PV-380 ] [ Goodmans GPDR40 ] [ Zen Vision Review ] [ Zen Vision M ] [ Samsung YH ] [ Cowon A2 ] [ iubi Blue 2500 PMP ] [ Zen Vision W Review ] [ Archos Gmini 500 Review ] [ Archos 604 Review ] [ Archos AV500 Review ] [ Archos AV700 Review ] [ Archos PMA400 Review ] [ Hauppauge Portable Media Player MVP ] [ Archos AV400 Review ]