In Las Vegas, Nevada, this year’s CES is wrapping up. A lot of the journalists that covered the event have already left the area, heading back to wherever it is they came from. Stands are being torn down. Products being packed up. Another show down, another one to come in a year. Good times. However, there are some companies that wait until the end to announce what they’ve got behind the curtains, much like Archos did earlier today. The company waited until effectively the last minute to announce some new tablets, all running Android, and still wave that CES 2013 banner above the news.
What’s interesting though, is that these tablets aren’t all that terrible.
Archos is following along with their previous tablet plans, though. One size doesn’t fit them all, so why not just create a whole squadron of tablets to appease potential customers instead? As you can see from the image down below, Archos has a tablet ranging in size from 7-inches to 10.1-inches, and everything else in between is filled, too. They’ve covered the spectrum, which could be a bad thing if they were a bunch of terrible devices. But that doesn’t seem to be the case.
We’re basing these on paper specifications, mind you. But, we do that for many other devices, so why stop now, right? To break it down, Archos announced a new family of Android-powered tablets, called the Titanium Series. This particular family has four different tablets, so share the attention accordingly.
The only difference between each device is the size. They all run Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box, and feature things like a 1.6GHz dual-core processor, and 2MP cameras on the front and back of the tablet. They all have a quad-core GPU, for good measure. The hardware is aluminum, so if you’re into that type of device construction, these should be yelling your name.
Each of the tablets are also equipped with an IPS display, too. Starting at the bottom of the list, we’re looking at the Archos 70 Titanium, which features a 7-inch display and should go on sale soon for $119. Next, the Archos 80 Titanium, which boasts an 8-inch display and a $169 price tag. The Archos 97 Titanium packs a high-resolution 2048 x 1536 9.7-inch display, and will run you $249 to get your hands on. At the top of the list is the Archos 101 Titanium with its 10.1-inch display, and a $199 tag.
That’s not all, though. Archos has another pair of tablets that fall into their new Platinum Series. In that particular family you can choose from the Archos Platinum 80, which features an 8-inch display with a resolution of 1024 x 768. It has a 1.2GHz quad-core processor under the hood, along with a 2MP camera on the front and back. Archos says the price will stick at $199. The Archos Platinum 97 bears the same internals, with a 9.7-inch 2048 x 1536 IPS display. It should see a list price of $329. They’ll both be running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box.
If I’m judging these tablets by their looks and listed hardware, I have to say that these aren’t bad at all. Especially for the prices. And then there’s the fact that they’re running Android 4.1 Jelly Bean to boot. That’s the frosting on this beautiful cake, if you ask me. If Archos can launch all of these tablets in a coherent fashion, and not beat down potential customers with white aluminum tablets (figuratively), they could have a real shot at making a nice wave in the tablet sea.
Then again, it’s an Archos tablet. While companies like ASUS and Samsung have been reaping the rewards of fantastic consumer love for their Android tablets, everyone else has been left to hide in the shadows. This isn’t the first “batch” of Android tablets that Archos has released, but if you don’t remember those old tablets, don’t feel bad.
That was a long time ago, though, and hardware and software have come a long way since then. Has Archos come a long way in their tablet efforts, too? If we’re judging based on photos and listed specifications, I’d have to suggest that maybe, just maybe, they have. And, to be honest, I’m genuinely looking forward to getting my hands on one of these things.
But where do you stand on these new tablet offerings from Archos, Dear Reader? Are you interested in them at all? Are you planning on picking one of the Platinum models when they launch in March? If so, which one? Or has one of the Titanium models grabbed your attention? Let me know!