Archos9PcTablet
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Archos puttin' on the Ritz for its Generation 9 Honeycomb tablets, coming June 23
We were expecting some news out Archos this month and sure enough, here it is. The company has just announced that it will unveil its new Generation 9 Honeycomb tablets at a Paris event, on June 23rd. The company's third Android slate, as you may recall, was originally expected to launch at September's IFA trade show, but that date was later pushed up -- meaning we'll be able to catch a glimpse of its shiny 1.6GHz ARM A9 dual-core chip and so-called "revolutionary" 3G modem in just a few weeks. Archos certainly seems to have high expectations for the device, as well, having scheduled its debut at no less a prestigious venue than the Ritz Hotel. We'll be there (in our finest threads) to cover the event as it unfolds. [Thanks, Marien]
Archos 9 reviewed: too big, too slow, too 'Starter'
We hate to be the bringers of bad news, but it looks like the Archos 9 might be serving as a bit of a morality tale, showing why and how PC hardware and software might not be quite ready for the large form factor tablet experience. That's not to say there aren't some plusses to the device pointed out by UMPC Portal in its review, like the great build quality and style of the tablet, the sensitive, flush touchscreen, and some great connectivity, but the sum seems less than its parts. The primary blame can be laid at the feet of the 1.1GHz Atom Z510 processor, which is sluggish and single-threaded, and Windows 7 Starter, which is lacking in the standard Windows 7 tablet functionality. We don't know all the reasoning at play here, but the result is a slow computer with a hacked-on touchscreen keyboard at a $550 pricepoint that doesn't the hit handheld UMPC size sweetspot and can hardly stand against a netbook in cost or utility. Sounds kind of mean when we say it like that, doesn't it?
Archos 9 pre-orders reportedly delayed until December, retail release pushed to 2010
Well, we just caught sight of it in all its dissected glory courtesy of the FCC last week, but it looks like the Archos 9 tablet / media player may not be quite so close to a release after all. According to UMPC Portal, Archos now says that the initial batch of pre-orders won't start shipping until "early December" -- well past the already-missed October 22nd launch date -- while the retail release has been pushed back all the way until sometime in the first quarter of 2010. Let's just hope the price doesn't keep going up in the meantime.
Archos 9 confirmed for October 22nd with $499 price tag
We heard the Archos 9 tablet was due alongside Windows 7, but just in case you were worried that preposition would be stretched to the limits of its definition, the company made clear at IDF that October 22nd was the target, making it day and date with Microsoft's latest OS. As for US price, it's a better-than-expected (at least as far as UK currency conversions go) $499 for the ultra-thin tablet. Mark your calendars accordingly, the diehards in the audience have less than a month to prepare their bank accounts. Now if only Archos would do something about that maladjusted resistive touchscreen... [Thanks, Anthony]
Archos 9pctablet hands-on
We wouldn't want to jump to conclusions, but Archos might just be onto something with its upcoming 9pctablet, which is due to launch alongside Windows 7. The Windows 7 bit isn't an accident, since it's really the first OS from Microsoft that makes it conceivable to use much of the OS with a finger, rather than the stylus. It's not all there, of course: Archos had to build its own touchscreen keyboard to replace Microsoft's woefully inadequate implementation, and there's an optical mouse sensor on the side of the display and a stylus buried within to pick up the slack. Overall the hardware seems very solid and astonishingly dense, and despite the recent advancements we've seen in thin and light laptops, it's pretty incredible that Archos has a full Atom-based PC running inside this thin, fanless slab. What wasn't so incredible was the resistive touchscreen, at least on the unit we were playing with. Our touches kept getting misread inexplicably as an inch below where we were tapping, and it didn't feel like a "light touch" resistive model at all -- no confusing what we felt with capacitive, though perhaps we got a faulty unit. This is probably a scenario where resistive makes sense, but we'd say Archos has a lot of work to do on the drivers or something to make this more usable. The good news is that there will be an optional, super-slim external keyboard, which should make input on the 9 a bit less of a chore.
Archos 9 Windows 7 tablet does a little hands-on time
Looks like the Archos 9 Windows 7 tablet has made it out of the labs (and controlled show floor settings) and into the hands of Crave UK, where that seemingly-amazing resistive touchscreen continues to impress -- so much so that they initially thought it was a capacitive unit. We actually pinged Crave ed Nate Lanxon to find out what was up, and the real story appears to be a mystery -- either Archos PR is mistaken in telling everyone that it's a resistive screen, or the company has somehow improved the tech to the point where it's virtually indistinguishable from a capacitive display. Given our experience with previous Archos resistive touchscreen devices that felt like mush, we've got to say we're going with Occam's Razor on this and that it's really capacitive, but we're definitely ready to be proven wrong -- hey Archos, you feel like sending us a new toy to play with?
Archos announces Archos 9 Windows 7 tablet Update: hands-on pics
Archos is currently having an event in France, and while we're still expecting some sort of Android announcement, the company's leading off with the Archos 9, a nine-inch Windows 7 tablet. It's basically a netbook in tablet form, with an Atom Z515 processor, 80GB disk, Bluetooth, and dual DVB-T antennas -- yep, Archos has brought back the UMPC. No word on pricing or availability yet, we'll let you know.Update: Sounds like a 1.2GHz processor -- not exactly a rocket, but probably adequate for a stripped-down Windows 7 build. We're also hearing September / October availability, in line with Windows 7, and a €450 ($633) pricetag.Update 2: So much for our hopes -- the event is now over and no Android announcements were made. Charbax from techvideoblog (who is at the event) says we'll see more info on September 15.Update 3: As you'd expect, ArchosLounge is on the scene and they've nabbed some hands-on pics. Check a couple after the break -- we think it looks sort of gigantic, but maybe that's what the world's been waiting for.[Via UMPC Portal]
