TechLifeBlogged

I've been meaning to write this up for a long time. Having just passed a year of owning this device I thought I'd post my thoughts about it.
Christmas '05 I was given a Archos Gmini402 20 GB Multimedia Player. It's been over a year now and I still use it every day. Mostly I used it for podcasts and it syncs with Windows Media Player 10 or (and the mode I prefer) you can switch it to USB hard disk mode and simply drag and drop files to it like any other USB device. I like to use it with Microsoft Sync Toy to keep the files in sync.
The case that comes with the device is lame. I picked up a Lowepro Rezo 50 Camera Bag that fits it perfectly and has a pocket for the ear buds.
There are 2 wonderful features the shouldn't be over looked if you are considering one of these:
1. It can be a USB host. In a nutshell, that means you can plug your camera, card reader or other USB 2.0 device and copy that data right onto the Archos. If you want to pack light and not bring a laptop, this is the way to go. On a recent trip I was able to dump pictures form the cameras every night and free up the cards for the next day.
2. It comes with all you need for video out. There is a little adapter that doubles as an external mic adapter in addition to a cable with RCA plugs that you can then plug into your TV and view video right from the device. This works better than you would think.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the huge (in my opinion) error on Archos' part. The batteries are recharged via an included power adapter. Yep, not the USB port of your computer. So lame. newmp3technology.com sells "every Archos product imaginable". I bought a cable from them that plugs into USB and charges the device. A solution that is smaller to carry than the wall charger but still shouldn't be necessary.
If you are thinking about getting a video iPod you might want to consider an Archos. There are ones with much bigger screens but this one is great for what I need.
Gizmodo put up this YouTube video of the 402 with Camcorder which came out a couple months after I got mine. Other than the camera there have the same features. I'd get the camcorder next time if I had the choice. Sure the video isn't like having a dedicated camcorder but having an always-with-me video camera would be very cool.

Tags: review, archos, gmini, 402, gmini402, usb, video, podcasts