ARCHOS 101 Internet Tablet 16GB

This archos tablet was purchased by me one year and one month ago. about a week ago, i noticed some strange spots on the screen, and noticed that it had spots on the touch screen that it would not pick up my touch. A day or so later, the aluminum plate on the back of the device popped loose, and the spots on the screen got larger. This is when I noticed that the battery on the left side had swollen to twice it's size, and the battery on the right was beginning to bulge as well.When I contacted Archos, I was told that my warranty was expired (by a few weeks) and that there were no exceptions.The reason that I say that they must use the cheapest batteries they can find is because about 9 years ago, I had purchased an archos av340 portable media player. This device also lasted approximately a year, then stopped turning on. When I took it apart, I found that the battery had swollen so large that it could not touch the battery contacts inside. Again, it was out of warranty about a month, and there were no exceptions on it as well. I foolishly thought this was a fluke, so I trusted the brand when it came to getting a tablet.Aside from the battery problem, these tablets are sluggish, and do not have enough free memory to run more than one or two apps at a time. This becomes a problem as you install apps that do things in the background, like calendars, alarms, etc. Just booting up the app, you are forced to go into the task killer, and kill 5 or 6 apps to get it to run.A quick web search proved that I am not the only one having this problem with this tablet, and as the batteries are soldered in, and non-standard, they cannot be replaced. I tried running the tablet without the aluminum covers on the back, but the touchscreen had been damaged by the intense swelling, and was constantly pressing random places on the screen, launching and closing apps.This problem also did not result from over charging, as a lot of people seem to believe. I have a lot of battery powered devices, and I know that you have to charge and discharge to get full life out of these types of batteries. Regrettably, that didn't seem to matter.The only positive to this tablet was the built in USB host. With this, you could plug a flash drive in, and expand your storage. Of course, I owned the tablet nearly 10 months before Archos released a firmware update that fixed it, so it would actually work. But for those 3 months or so it worked, it was fantastic.This is the last Archos I will ever buy. What a disappointing experience.

***This part is the update after 2 days of use.I started finding all of my favorite apps in apps lib to my surprise, it was great. Appslib is not a bad thing like some of the reviews lead on but they are right that there's quite a bit of pornographic apps available and very visual for everyone to see, if you have young ones.The issue that made me fall out of love quickly is that my Archos started surfing ridiculously slow! I kept having to shut the browser down and try to start it over. It was very frustrating. I didn't buy this with the intent of comparing it to anything else, it was my first tablet. I realize it doesn't cost $399+ but that doesn't mean I want to have to keep shutting it down just for browsing. I could see if I'm a heavy gamer, I deleted most of the games. The screen seemed a tad less responsive too but that could have been all tied in with the browser slowing down. My amazon app just wouldn't work period and that is a must for me. I decided to return it early rather than fight with it.**********************************************************This is the initial reveiwAfter reading all of the other reviews and determining that this is a hit or miss product, I was worried. Hopeful that I did not receive a bad unit because that seems to be the biggest issue as far as I could see in the reviews posted.Well it, came before I left for work yesterday. I plugged it in to charge while I was gone. Got it in and it started right up. Everything worked as promised.I don't see why people say it's flimsy in the design. Maybe people are expecting more than they receive or doing the unspeakable and comparing it to an iPad...they're most likely not in the same class. I've used an iPad but only like once. I don't know, it doesn't look cheap or flimsy to me.The viewing angles is the biggest and most valid complaint. But to me, it's not that big of a deal. The picture is good, so far this has not bothered me but I do see the issue.I haven't tested the sound yet, I guess I don't plan to use it for music.I just started getting this "network error" when I went on the amazon app...first time. It's the only app that did that to me so far. May be a bug w/that app.Downloading flash 10.3 was easy from appsLib. I was able to follow someone's youtube instructions for getting into android market, very simple. Life is good now. Blackboard works on it. I'm using the free version of documents to go to view docs.I can't really compare it because it is my first tablet but it's not unbearably slow for me. Considering the price $255, I'm happy. I spent a little over $300 for this and I got a warranty and carrying case w/the keyboard. I'm pleased with the investment thus far.

This is quite obviously a middle tier tablet. It would not stand up to _higher end_ products now being release into the market post CES 2011. (Note that middle tier tablets just now being released are no better.)However there is little doubt that there are no other products in the same price range that are better than this wonderful gem of a tablet. We now have two 101s in our house because the first one we bought proved to be so awesome. If you're keen on saving money but still want to explore the wonderful world of Android, then get this tablet and you won't be disappointed.Couple cons first:- don't buy it for the screen quality (it won't compare to ipad)- don't compare the camera with a high end mobile phone (it's pretty bad)- no real GPS (expected since there is no cell support either obviously)Some pros:- microSD slot- full USB slot- second micro USB slot- bluetooth- HDMI out- 16 GB internal storage (plus I have 16GB microSD = 32GB storage)- pretty good sound with internal speakers- DLNA streaming built in (awesome for streaming movies off your media server or laptop, while lying in bed)- Android market (not out of the box, but check the web for easy way to install it)There are far more pluses than cons as you can see, and for the price this thing far outranks the competition.

Given the massive price range of tablets of this nature, this one is an absolute revelation. Although in no way does it pretend to be an IPad, it is almost as functional and is certainly as useful in day to day situations. It connected easily with wi-fi, set up was a doddle and, after a few questions on google, it was connected to the Android Market quickly and simply. Battery life is quite exceptional, and it feels robust and well put together. At almost a third of the price of the latest top end IPads, this is a bargain. Bought for my wife for Christmas - and she knows about these things - she is absolutley delighted with its performance thus far. Although not yet tested properly in all situations, the only area that (on first impressions) is not that good is in the quality of the camera - however this has yet to be looked at in detail. Notwithstanding the only minor blemish, the product is so impressive that (for the price) it still merits the 5* assessment regardless.

I've owned this device for about 3 months and have found it satisfactory but only just so. It is a widescreen 10 inch tablet so rather narrower than the iPad. The construction is fine although the finish leaves a little to be desired.It is very light and sits very nicely in your lap and I find it very good for browsing or casually watching a video. It is also rather good for reading documents although I've not found a good range of apps to allow that yet (see my later point on apps).The OS is somewhat glitchy rather worse than other android devices I own.My greatest criticism is the way Archos have deliberately restricted the device for their own ends; such as the lack of access to apps market although there are apparently ways around this that I have yet to try. This means, for example, that I cannot get BBC iPlayer to work thanks to the lack of flash.Overall this is a good device, I didn't expect it to be an iPad replacement and at a half the price I'm not too disappointed I didn't get one. I recommend you research it carefully before buying to see if it will really do what you want it to.Update: I've now side loaded Apps Market which allows access to a much wider range of apps like BBC iPlayer, Kindle, Comixology, Google apps and my opinion on the device has risen in direct proportion.

I purchased my Archos 10.1 (16gb) a few months back and was initially was happy with it. However I am now regretting not buying a Samsung Tablet or a I-pad as I'm experiencing more problems following increasing usage.First of all, when recently on our Crete on holiday, even though our hotel room had a Wifi router and reception area supposedly had Wifi we could only rarely connect the Archos to the internet as the Archos connectivity range is extremely frustatingly limited. At home, we have had to install a Wifi booster to be able to use the Archos around the home and not have sit on top of the Wifi Router.Secondly I continually have to reboot the Achos as it frequently hangs up when using some of my downloaded app's or when using the internet say on Facebook or on my Hotmail email, even though with my new Wifi booster the Archos is apparently showing it's receiving a good signal.The control buttons on the Archos are very sluggish and have to be touched in just the right position for them to work, Oh! your going to think, here's a guy thats not used to smart keypads. Wrong, I use smart phones with no problem even though smart phone buttons are a lot smaller.To sum up if you simply want to play the odd game, show your friends your holiday photo's or occasionally check your emails providing you are close enough to a router then the Archos 10.1 is ok. But if you want to use it as a secondary device to surf the net,or for more serious type of use then think about buying another brand of tablet.

I bought this as a Christmas present for my husband after reviewing a lot of other tablets, even the Kindle Fire HD. He wanted the Archos so I gave in with reservation. Ok, it is a lovely design as has a good feel to it... Screen sensitivity is a little clunky and you have to push quite hard sometimes...not as touch sensitive as the iPad 4. It was easy to set up home internet access - did all the work for you and viola! Hubby wanted it so that he could watch films etc and especially BBC iPlayer...well don't expect iPlayer any time soon! After multiple attempts to download the flash player for BBC iPlayer nothing worked, so googled the issue and it turns out that there could be an issue with adobe letting Archos tablet market place have the flash player for their systems. Their market place also more clunky than iTunes and not so user friendly, but it is not a bad piece of kit for the price - just don't expect it to be like an iPad.

Not a great tablet, the huge price was not reflected in build quality or usability, its akward size and huge weight only add to the many reasons not to buy this.The screen smashed while in use and left shards of glass everywhere.The kick stand was ok at first but after a couple of uses would not hold the weight of the tablet.Battery life is appaling and the touch sensitivity is terrible.I am extremely disappointed with this!