Archos 101 Android Internet Tablet: Any good?

Stev_o

Looking to grab one for Christmas as I badly need a Tablet to store a lot of media (Mostly PDF's) for general work also would possibly be looking to program some apps for it since it's Android which would come in handy. Anyone have any experience with one of these ? Quite new to the tablet market and id rather not be caught out paying for something which has a terrible reputation.

How good would these be with regards to reading documents like PDF's? I also know it has the drawback of not being flash compatibility at the moment.

Thanks

pickarooney

Is it the new G9 or the older one with virtually the same name?

Stev_o

pickarooney wrote: »

Is it the new G9 or the older one with virtually the same name?

I think it's the new G9 going by Komplett (http://komplett.ie/Komplett/product/ZKB_02TAB/01_TABLETS/productdetails/80003810/Archos_10_1_101_G9_16GB/501_862/default.aspx)

Sorta horrible finding up to date reviews for things like this.

pickarooney

I think justsomebloke mentioned he bought one recently. Check the FNAC thread.

Stev_o

Cheers. With regards to that are there any other tablets priced around the 300 mark with a similar sized screen? Im really not worried about playing loads of movies or games on this so performance doesn't have to be a major factor for me.

pickarooney

There are a fair few and there should be even more in about a month when a new batch come out for Christmas. What do you intend using it for mostly?

Stev_o

pickarooney wrote: »

There are a fair few and there should be even more in about a month when a new batch come out for Christmas. What do you intend using it for mostly?

Storing and reviewing a lot of PDF's and probably some programming since everyone and there dog is doing that now. For me a big enough screen is really key. Don't want my PDF's to be squashed in.

Stev_o

Actually if we were going to go by the above what would the be the difference between the original 101 and the new G9?

pickarooney

More memory, improved processor, better viewing angle on the screen, off the top of my head. Nothing really relevant to what you want to do with it I reckon. You might get the older one for about 100 euros on eBay if you're not bothered about buying a used product.

I'd suggest a Kindle Fire but the screen is probably too small for you.

bop1977

Just to let the OP know, I saw these on sale in HMV Galway for €150.

Luckycharm

Was about to start the same thread -they are €150 in HMV.

Getting one for my parents for Xmas they have a desktop so what do people reckon to get them a cheap Laptop or Tablet? They are not that tech savvy but reckon they could use a tablet.

Also can come you cannot get some Android apps for tablet that you can get for my phone. For example I could not find the newstalk app for the tablet but have it on my phone?

justsomebloke

truthfully for €350 I don't think I would be in any way pushed to get it. The Xoom 2 is meant to be coming at €400 before christmas and that is probably a much better bet

Padraig Mor

bop1977 wrote: »

Just to let the OP know, I saw these on sale in HMV Galway for €150.

That's not the G9 though - it's the older version which gets "mixed" reviews.

Dubwat

I have one of these Archos 101 internet tablets for about a year. I guess it's a Gen8 version. It suits me perfectly for what I want, which is mostly web browsing, email, and reading my rss feeds (google reader).

But it can do a lot more if you're happy to mess around with it. There's a website called Archos Fans that discuss things in great detail. You could have a look there (http://forum.archosfans.com/). There's a few tweaks listed on that site that are, imo, absolutely essential (eg to get google market). Also, have a look for the home screen customisations that people have posted - amazing stuff.

Looking at your requirements, you could use the kickstand to keep the screen upright, add a keyboard for typing, and use the microSD card slot to add more memory. Also, you can just connect it to your main computer with a USB cable - no messing with iTunes - and just drag stuff across. Don't know anything about programming!

Downsides? (1) With my Gen8 tablet, I believe I'm 'stuck' on an 'old' version of Android and it won't upgrade itself to the new 'Ice Cream Sandwich'-thingy. This doesn't bother me though. (2) You definitely need to add a memory card and the 'apps2SD' app because you run out of internal memory quickly (there's not enough space for the apps/programs). (3) Occasionally, if I visit a blog with lots of photos, the tablet will freeze.

I'd echo what someone else already said, other manufacturers are coming out with new versions all the time, esp with Xmas coming.