Archos 10 Review

Archos has launched the new Archos 10, which is its first launch and marks its entry in the overcrowded netbook market. Archos is trying to deviate from its usual PMP offerings and expand into the very competitive netbook market. We don’t think that is a very smart decision especially as the Archos 10 is nothing new and has nothing spectacular to offer. It has the same monotonous hardware specs as every other netbook and is priced just like them – $399. That doesn’t give anyone a reason compelling enough to choose Archos over anyone else. In this review, we check out the Archos 10 and see if it proves to be a match to the current crop of netbooks floating around.

Archos 10 Specs:

• Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.4 x 1.1 inches
• Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Processor: Intel Atom N270 at 1.6 GHz, 512 KB L2 cache
• RAM: 1 GB DDR2 RAM
• Hard Drive: 160 GB SATA HDD, 5400 RPM
• Display Size: 10.2 inch LCD Display, 1024 x 600 pixels
• Chipset: Intel 945 GSE
• Graphics: Intel GMA 950 with 64 MB VRAM
• Wireless: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
• Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Home
• Ports: 3 USB v2.0 ports, Ethernet, Headphone, Kensington Lock, Microphone, VGA out, 4 in 1 card reader
• Price: $399

Design and Build Quality:

The Archos 10 has a rather standard design, it is too simple. It looks good in all black, but there are many other netbooks in the same budget range and with the same specs and features that look much better. Compared to the stellar looks of Archos’ PMPs, the Archos 10 almost looks like an outsider. The matte black lid and the black interiors have good build quality but are substantially less better looking than the competitors. On the build front, it is great, it should easily last for a couple of years with moderate usage. There is very less flex near the display and keyboard areas.

Display and Speakers:

The Archos 10 sports a 10.2 inch LCD display with a native resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. It is nice to see that Archos has adopted the older convention and gone with a 1024 x 600 pixel display instead of a 1024 x 576 one. The matte display has nice display quality. It has adequate brightness and contrast levels. The viewing angles are also pretty good, both horizontal and vertical. As it is a matte display, the visibility under direct light is superb, but the display is not as attractive as a glossy one. Also as this display has a height of 600 pixels, it is better for browsing webpages and reading long documents as you have to scroll much less.

The Archos 10 also has dual speakers near the front of the netbook. The sound quality is pretty good and the volume levels are also decent. It should easily suffice for casual movie watching and occasional music. But, if you take your music seriously, we would recommend using your own standard earphones with the Archos 10. The Archos 10 also comes with a 1.3 MP webcam.

Keyboard and Touchpad:

The Archos 10 comes with a slightly cramped keyboard which looks compressed. The keyboard is worse than most other netbooks – which by the way sport superb keyboards these days. Much o the space is wasted and the keyboard has been stuffed into a small space. The keyboard layout is standard but the key spacing is less than needed. The keys have a decent feel and provide good feedback though. The typing speeds are much less than other netbooks due to the cramped keyboard.

The touchpad, located just below the keyboard, is spacious though. It is quite big and can span the whole display in a single swipe. The touchpad has a nice surface and is nicely responsive and has just the right amount of sensitivity. It is great for navigation. The touchpad buttons are also good and have a ncie click.

Performance:

The Archos 10 is powered by a Intel Atom N270 processor clocked at 1.6 GHz. It offers 512 KB of L2 cache and has a bus speed of 533 MHz. It has become the standard in all netbooks around the world. The performance it offers is good enough for casual usage and normal office work. The main advantage it offers is superb power efficiency, having a TDP of just 2.5W. It also has 1 GB DDR 2 RAM which is quite capable of running the bundled Windows XP OS and some applications easily with some multitasking thrown in. Underneath it lies the Intel 945GSE Express chipset with the Intel GMA 950 integrated graphics with 64 MB VRAM. This can easily handle normal multimedia playback and ultra light gaming. It also has a relatively fast 160 GB HDD at 5,400 RPM which is fast and offers good read / write speeds. It runs on Windows XP Home as stated before, which is quite fast and responsive. It boots from a cold start pretty fast. It comes bundled with a lot of bloat though, which needs cleaning up.

Battery Life and Other Stuff:

The Archos 10 is powered by a standard 3 cell Lithium Ion battery. It has a substandard battery life of about 2 hrs 10 minutes. You
can extend the battery life by a further 10-15 mins by using some battery saving tips – like lowering the display brightness, switching off Wi-Fi when not in use etc. This battery life is very mediocre when compared to netbooks having battery lives of about 6 – 7 hrs and priced the same as the Archos 10. The Wi-Fi reception on the Archos 10 is good and offers decent speeds.

It is equipped with the standard range of ports like all other netbooks – 3 USB v2.0 ports, Ethernet, Headphone, Kensington Lock, Microphone, VGA out and a 4 in 1 card reader.

Pros:

• Nice Touchpad
• Good Build Quality

Cons:

• Cramped Keyboard
• Boxy looks
• Low battery Life
• Nothing new

Final Words:

The Archos 10 offers nothing new at all, and it is also low on features when compared to other netbooks in the same budget range. The Asus EEE PC 1000HE we recently reviewed is just a bit pricier, but is much better than the Archos 10. Even the Samsung NC10, Acer Aspire One and the new MSI Wind should be great alternatives. This netbook certainly won’t make a dent in the exponentially growing netbook market, thanks mainly due to the mediocre keyboard and the abysmal battery life. Good luck, Archos, for your next release.

Our Rating: 3 / 5.