Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Because no local retailers had a model for examination, it was necessary to rely on the online blurbs on whether to buy this or not. I had expected something that looked and felt like a portable game player, but I took the plunge and ordered one. I was pleasantly surprised by the solid and professional look and feel of it. The case is metallic, not plastic. The picture is sharp and clear and the sound is excellent with headphones. The built-in speaker, being quite small, is not something that I'll use much, but it's nice to have it available.
The recording capacity is what Dish Network said, namely, a gigabyte per hour. Downloading from a Dish Network DVR requires about 6 1/2 minutes per hour, and is about as easy as it can be. Connecting the two via USB cable brings up a dialog on the DVR for downloading recorded programs, which is very user-friendly. Note that HD programs will not download. Programming can also be obtained in real time from any composite (RCA) video source. However, the player will not record from copy-protected media. That fact, though not surprising, has caused me to search my house for all video cassettes and DVD's that are not copy-protected. I use S-Video for this, but composite video is also an option. You should get significantly more than a gigabyte per hour if the original picture quality is not high.
I bought my player to have something decent to listen to during my commute to work, since there are no radio stations in my area (Salt Lake City) that I care to listen to, and I get tired of the same MP3's all the time. I have my DVR record Squawk Box on CNBC in the early morning, and before I leave for work, I download the program to the player. There is also the option of setting time record on the player to directly record Squawk Box in real time via the composite interface, but it takes only 11 minutes to download the hour and a half that I capture.
In the week that I have used the player, I have discovered that it gives me more freedom to watch or listen to shows anywhere in my house as I do my activities.
I have found only one problem with the player: it crashed and turned off when it reached a particular part in one of the programs.
I have not used the player to hold MP3's or photos because I already have an audio player for that, and I want to use the disk space on Pocket Dish just for videos.
The player is easy to use, and takes only about five seconds to power up. You can bookmark your place on each program so you can start from where you were, but you need to remember to set the bookmark before you get out of the program. There is a handy resume feature, though, that will start where you left off, if you exited the program by powering down the player.
The screen has a 16 X 9 aspect ratio, and if desired, you can stretch a 4 X 3 picture to fill the frame.
The battery charge lasts four hours, which I found adequate for a day's use.
The player has fully met my expectations and I am glad I got it.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Pocket Dish Archos AV500E 30GB Multimedia Player and DVR w/4" LCD Display
Capacity: 30 GB* Hard driveStore up to 30 hours of DISH Network satellite TV programming, 15,000 songs or 300,000 photosDisplay: 4" LCD 480x272 pixels, 262 000 colors and TV outputVideo Recording: MPEG-46 SP and stereo sound, optimised resolution for TV up to 640x480 @ 30 f/s, in AVI format.Video Playback: MPEG-47 SP with B-Frames with stereo sound. Near DVD quality up to 720x480 @ 30 f/s (NTSC), 720x576 @ 25 f/s (PAL), AVI file format (including WMV9 SP protected files) up to 352x288 @ 30 f/s and 800 KbitsMusic Recording: From an analog source in stereo sound for WAV (PCM & ADPCM) formatMusic Playback: Stereo MP3 decoding @ 30-320 kb/s CBR & VBR, WMA (including protected WMA files), WAV (PCM & ADPCM)Photo Viewer: JPEG (except progressives) or BMP.Download photos from computer through USB 2.0 port.Transfer photos from digital camera3 through USB Host port.AV Connections: Earphones / Audio & Video line out.Docking station with video pass through, AV in & out cables and IR emitter cable for tuner control of VCR, cable box or satellite receiver.Speakers: Built-in speaker.Built-in microphone.Interfaces: USB 2.0 high-speed device, compatible USB 1.1, PC & Mac. USB Host port compatible Mass Storage Device.Battery Life: Up to 12 hours6 for music.Up to 4.0 hoursPower Source: Internal: Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery.External: AC charger/adapter.Minimum System Requirements: For TV, VCR, Cable box, or satellite receiver connection: Audio & video in/out RCA jacks (connection TV cable(s) provided in box) For computer connection: Minimum computer configuration: PC with Windows? ME, or 2000, and USB 2.0 port. Macintosh? G3 with MAC OS v10.2.4 or higher, Macintosh? G3 and USB 2.0 port. Package Includes: USB 2.0 cable, USB host adapter, AC adapter & charger, stereoheadphones, protective carrying case, User's Guide, docking station,remote control (with batteries), audio/video cable
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