Wow, 20GB, Low Price, Small - Amazing iPod Replacement?
Written: Nov 09 '04 (Updated Nov 10 '04)
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Pros: Small!, Inexpensive, Stylish, 20GB, Doubles as Virtual Drive, 2.2" Screen, Easy Interface
Cons: Tech Support, Screen is a little dull
The Bottom Line: For it's price, the XS200 is an excellent choice but it might require some choosing between other new Mp3 players out there.
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| gpolice's Full Review: Archos Gmini XS 200 (20 GB) MP3 Player |
As a gadget freak, an Archos fan, and just a lover of all great budget things to have I bought the XS200 as soon as it came out (This thing just shipped, this is totally new technology here). I'm thrilled with it. For it's price tag, there is NO reason to own any other 20GB Mp3 player. It beats the iPod mini and most other Small or Low-Capacity Mp3 players. It's still only rivals the iPod. It even gives the Dell DJs a run for their money.
Pros:
- Very small! Smallest 20GB player out there
- Very inexpensive! It really shouldnt run you more than $230 ($249 Suggested Retail)
- Stylish. Sleek and cool
- 20GB, No other player this size or price range can touch that 20GB mark
- Doubles as a virtual drive (At 20GB, its not your 128mb flash drive)
- 2.2" Backlit Screen
- Easier interface than most Archos products
- ARCLibrary & Archos Browser (Nice music management software on the device)
- Supports Mp3s, WMAs, and WAVs
- USB 2.0 Interface
- Connects to stereo to play music (Need additional cable though)
- Internal lithium ion battery (Nonremovable)
Cons:
- Archos Tech Support is a disaster
- Screen is a little dull
First off, this thing is small. 2.9" x 2.3" x 0.75" Small. It weighs a little heavier than an iPod Mini, but with 16GB of extra memory and a cheaper price tag, that shouldnt be a problem. The interface is the icon 'windows 3.1' style that Archos products usually sport, although a menu interface would be fine (Theres only 4 icons anyway). Archos feels the need to use the icons. The battery life is decent and will let you use the device a whole day though.
Playing Mp3s
Getting mp3s to play isn't too complex. It's how you would expect any other device to be. The top of the screen shows the IDE Tag components (Track, Artist, Year, Album, Ect.) and the bottom shows how much time is left in the track. Of course you can change volume, goto your music folders, and edit your playlists from icons on the screen. The sound quality was surprisingly good for me since this is the first high-capacity mp3 player I own (I've used flash drives before), so the sound impressed me.
Organizing your media
The XS200 uses ARCLibrary and Archos's Browser for a very windows like experience. It's much like windows explorer. All of the folders on the device are shown on the left side of the screen and the active folder is shown on the right side. With the Browser you can move, copy, and delete files. ARCLibrary is software included with most Archos devices that lets you organize you music by sorting it through their IDE tags (Artist, Album, Ect.)
Playing your organized media (Playlists)
Like every newer mp3 player, the XS200 allows you to make on the go playlists via the Archos Browser. Its very easy to use but the screen can get a little cramped at times. Some Mp3 players make on-the-go playlist creation easier, but it's not that awful that it's unusable.
Battery Life
Archos claims the battery life to be 10 hours. So at a normal volume with normal usage you would expect to get around 9.5 or so. I got a bit more of battery power (9h45m) which is just 15 minutes off. 10 hours is enough to last through the day, if you charge every day the battery should never be a problem.
Virtual Drive
When you plug-in your XS200 it appears as a drive under My Computer. This makes putting media onto it very easy (Drag and Drop). You can store anything you want on the 20 gigs of the XS200.
Compared To... The Competition
The iPod Mini - The XS200 beats the iPod mini hands down. The XS200 is smaller, less expensive, and has 5 times the memory. Even if it's not colorful, it is stylish and sleek. The iPod Mini's touch-scroll wheel menu-based interface is nicer than the XS200's icon interface though.
The iPod - It's a tough choice. The iPod has the nice interface and touch-scroll wheel plus it carries the coveted name 'iPod.' Most Archos products aren't held in the highest esteem like the iPod. For the price, the XS200 is the better machine but if you can afford the extra $80 for the iPod, it is better and has longer battery life.
The Dell DJ - Again, this device has more battery life than the XS200. It's priced a little higher than the XS200 and is larger than the XS200. That alone pretty much makes the XS200 the best buy here.
The Dell Pocket DJ - The XS200 still reigns supreme here. With only 5GB of storage, even the lower price tag isnt enough to make the Dell DJ Pocket a better buy, For another $30 you get 15GB more storage.
The Rio Karma - These 2 Devices are very similar. Same storage, both are small, same price. The thing is that the Karma has better battery life and the buttons are more accessable that almost any other mp3 player. The Karma isn't very stylish though. If you need style get the XS200, in almost any other case the Karma is probably better.
Conclusions
The XS200 is an elite, small, and inexpensive mp3 player that you should be very excited for. It might not be the best of the best in Mp3 technology, but for it's price and storage capacity the average person can enjoy 10 hours of 20GB of mp3s.
Recommendation: Get an XS200!
If you dont need all that space also look at the "Rio Carbon"
Thanks for reading!
~ GPolice
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 232
Recommended for: Music Lovers - High Capacity Storage for an Entire Album Collection
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Epinions.com ID:
gpolice
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Member: TJ Wilkin
Location: A Dark Hole Apart The Earth
Reviews written: 23
Trusted by: 2 members
About Me:
I love Handhelds, Games, Computers, D&D, Anything fun!
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