Hands-on with Archos’ two iPad lookalike tablets, the Archos Platinum 97 and 80
Posted in: Today's Chili 
What to make of two Archos-branded tablets that look almost exactly like Apple’s ubiquitous iPad and iPad Mini? We weren’t quite sure, honestly, but after spending some brief time with both Archos’ Platinum 97 and 80, it’s easy to understand why Archos went with that look — the two Android tablets are beautiful, simple, and sleek. But looks only go so far, and when we actually spent some time using the device, we were a bit less impressed. While the 9.7 and 8-inch IPS touchscreens are perfectly serviceable, the physical buttons on each device feels junky and unresponsive. It’s not for a lack of power: both tablets feature a quad-core 1.2GHz CPU and an unnamed “eight core GPU,” pushing 2048 x 1536 resolution on the 97 and 1024 x 768 on the 80 Platinum. Jumping from application to application was quick and slick, but we couldn’t help but remain disappointed by a power button that chose to work only sometimes and some relatively low-grade front- and rear-facing cameras: just 2MP apiece. Of course, we’ll reserve our full judgment until the Archos Platinum line arrives at retail in March (and in our hands); the Platinum 97 runs $329, while the 80 costs $199.
Continue reading Hands-on with Archos’ two iPad lookalike tablets, the Archos Platinum 97 and 80
French consumer electronics company, Archos, has just unveiled its upcoming tablet that “attempts” to challenge Apple’s iPad. It’s officially called the Archos 97 Titanium HD, and, similar to the iPad 4, it also features a 9.7-inch IPS display with a 2,048 x 1,536 resolution. Under the hood is a 1.6GHz dual-core A9 processor and a Quad-core GPU Mali 400 MP4. All of that power is supported by a 1GB RAM and an 8GB internal memory. 
The Archos GamePad, touted to be the first (and true, whatever that meant in the press release) Android-powered games console that is portable, will merge powerful tablet hardware alongside revolutionary gaming software. The big question is this – will it be able to go up against the likes of the Nintendo 3DS when it comes to the portable gaming market, let alone make a dent in the number of Sony PS Vitas sold? Only time will tell, but let us dive into its hardware specifications.
