Archos Gmini XS 200 20 GB MP3 Player and Recorder

Archos Gmini XS 200 20 GB MP3 Player and Recorder

Product Description
From the Manufacturer
ARCHOS announces the new Gmini XS200 -- an extremely small 20 GB hard-drive based audio player with a competitive low price. The ultra-compact music player is just as small as most 4GB audio players available today (measures only 7,6 x 5,9 x 1,9 cm and weighs 120 grams -- 2.9" x 2.3" x 0.75" and 4.3 ounces), yet offers a huge capacity able to hold up to 300 hours of music -- that's up to 5000 songs! Geared towards the young, urban market, the Gmini XS200 features a large 2" gray-scale LCD screen with a sleek, dark gray metallic cover.

Features

The Gmini XS200 expands on ARCHOS' successful line of hard-drive based audio players with a new entry level small-size, large-capacity device that allows you to:

Play MP3, WMA, and WAV music files

Store up to 300 hours of music -- equivalent to 5000 songs!

Connect to your stereo to play music (with optional standard audio cable)

Quickly organize songs with the ARCHOS ARCLibrary and view by artist, genre, title and year (ID3 compatible)

Rename, move, copy, delete files and folders or make playlists on the move without a computer thanks to the ARCHOS Browser

Easily navigate menus using the large and intuitive 2" gray scale LCD screen

Friendly Graphical User Interface with icons ö USB 2.0 high-speed interface to download and store data files from a PC or Mac

Specifications

Capacity: 20 GB Hard Disk -- Up to 300 hours of music

Interfaces: USB 2.0 high-speed, compatible USB 1.1, PC & Mac

Music playback: Stereo MP3 decoding @ 30-320 Kbps CBR & VBR, WMA and WAV (PCM)

Display: 2" level gray scale LCD, 128 x 128 pixels. 9 lines of characters Intuitive menu with icons

Audio connections: Stereo analog Earphone/ Line Out jack

Battery Life:

Up to 10 hours

Scalability: Download firmware updates from www.archos.com

Power source: Internal: Rechargeable Li-Ion Batteries. External: AC charger/adaptor

Dimensions: Approx. 7.6 x 5.9 x 1.9 cm 2.9" x 2.3" x 0.75"

Weight: 120 grams (4.30 ounces)

Package includes: Gmini XS200, USB 2.0 cable, AC power charger adaptor, headphones, quickstart sheet (in-depth manual on Gmini XS200 HD)

Product Description:
Available storage capacity may vary.

Archos Gmini XS 200 20 GB MP3 Player and Recorder

Average customer rating:

Warranty Is Crap
Archos is superb
NEVER BUY AN ARCHOS PRODUCT!
This one's the best!
Ideal for a large CD collection

Archos Gmini XS 200 20 GB MP3 Player and Recorder

Manufacturer: Archos
ProductGroup: CE
Binding: Electronics

Audio & Video | Refurbished & Used | Special Features | Electronics Features | Electronics

Play MP3, WMA, and WAV music files
Store up to 300 hours of music -- equivalent to 5000 songs
Quickly organize songs with the ARCHOS ARCLibrary and view by artist, genre, title and year (ID3 compatible)
2-inch display level gray scale LCD, 128 x 128 pixels. 9 lines of characters Intuitive menu with icons
Package includes: Gmini XS200, USB 2.0 cable, AC power charger adaptor, headphones, quickstart sheet (in-depth manual on Gmini XS200 HD)

ASIN: B0002U0JP4

Product Description

Small 20GB Audio Player 2.9" x 2.3" x 0.75" - 4.3 Ounces / Listen to MP3, WMA, and WAV files anytime, anywhere / 2" level gray scale LCD - 128x128 pixels

Customer Reviews:

Warranty Is Crap.......2006-03-24

I love the product, but the thing started to screw up (power off on its own and the headphones would buzz when the screen was touched). This all occured by my 4th month of ownership. I admit, it was dropped on hard surfaces quite a few times. I sent it in for repairs/warranty service on February 3rd. It had arrived at their warehouse on February 6th. I was told on the phone that it would take approximately 6-10 days before I would get it back.

As of this date, I have not received my repaired MP3 player let alone any updates as to its status. It has been 45 days since Archos has had my MP3 player. I had included everything in the packing list including my receipt, signed the packing list, etc as required. After the 10th day I called their Tech Support center to inquire if my MP3 player had shipped out yet (since I had yet to receive a tracking number through e-mail).

I was told it may be another 5 days and to call back then. Five days pass, call again, told it could be 4-5 weeks so call back again. Next week rolls by, same story. So, last week on 3/13/06 I call, finally I get somewhere. They say that they will move my complaint up to the manager where they will call me personally and figure out what is going on at the warehouse. They say to expect a phone call within a day. Next day, no call. I call them on wednesday, same story, call you in the next day. Once again, I did not receive the phone call. I call on Friday, saying that they will get it out most likely by Monday and the manager will call me by monday to provide a shipping number.

Same story again, no call, no e-mail of tracking number. I call them again on tuesday, they push my request up to a manager again and to expect a call by wednesday. Of course there is no phone call AGAIN. I call them on wednesday saying that they will once again send it up to their manager. I ask is that all they can do? They tell me the story that their RMA computers were down and could not contact the warehouse. So, the best they could do was have me wait for this magical phone call again. I ask the guy if there is a office phone number he can give me so I can reach the manager directly, of course this is denied.

Well, I'am thuroughly pissed off now and I called today (thursday). I explain my situation again and finally they patch me through the manager after another 1/2 hour of being on hold. Guess what happens, I am told that for some reason the warehouse wasn't answering their phone and he can't get any information on my MP3 player. So, their only solution is to send an e-mail to another manager so they can contact me within the next day or two. I ask Martin if that is a guarantee. The answer was "Unfortunately I personally can't guarantee that as we are only human". So what the hell, I'm on the phone list again hoping to get my MP3 player back.

You know, at this point I wish I had never sent off my MP3 player, it atleast worked when I had it and the only thing bothering me was the fact it would turn off by itself. Now, all I know is they have had my MP3 player since 2/6/06 and its been sitting in their warehouse since then (3/23/06). Other than that, this is all the information they can give me.

How can a company selling high end MP3/DVR players have such crappy customer service? The funny thing is, I have to send in my AV320 to replace the LCD screen since I just broke that recently. I'm thinking that might not be so wise and I may as well buy a new one.

I love archos products but this has soured my opinion about this company.

Archos is superb.......2006-02-18

Acts just like an external hard drive - easy to quickly move songs/files between computer and Archos when linked via USB2.
Intuitive menu makes it easy to find and play songs. My CD player is gathering dust now that my Archos is hooked up to the main audio system.

NEVER BUY AN ARCHOS PRODUCT!.......2006-01-08

I had problems as soon as I opened the box. The player keeps freezing during play, data becomes corrupt, the sound is of poor quality, I tried to have it serviced just 2 months into a 1 year "warranty" and they said it was going to cost me $150.00 to repair. If you purchase this product, you will be sorry! It malfunctioned early enough to cancel the charges on my credit card!

This one's the best!.......2005-12-19

Great unit! I have no idea why this archos player isn't being sold everywhere. It's the smallest 20 GB mp3 player on the market at this time. It's a no-brainer!

Ideal for a large CD collection.......2005-11-15

I have owned the XS 200 for six months now, and I am delighted with it. 20 GB of memory for just over $200 is a steal. I am in my 30's so I have a large CD collection. The XS 200 comfortably took all 4,500 of my songs. All it took was a simple copy and paste from the C: drive of my computer into the Gemini's drive (my music files were originally burned on to my computer using 128 kbp WMA files - so average about 4 mb's a song). After your songs are pasted into the Gemini you need to update the ArcLibrary, which is a very simple process and only takes a minute. You just need to remember to do this every time that you add a new album or song to your player. Like I said, it's very quick so it's not much of an inconvenience.

The MP3 player is very sturdy and small. It looks and feels like it would take a lot to damage it. I bought the Case Logic MPC7 case for it which is a perfect fit, and the whole thing fits in a pants pocket. My favorite feature is the shuffle function, where you can listen to any group, album, year or your entire collection randomly. Another good feature is Resume, where your music will begin from where you last turned off the player. There is also a handy pause, move volume up or down, and skip song function on a large button on the front of the player. It is not as easy to jump around as on an Ipod, but it is relatively straight forward once you get the hang of it. The sound quality to my ears seems very good, though I do not use the headphones that came with the player. The player comes with a plug that allows you recharge in North America and Europe. This is a fantastic feature, which I wish more MP3, camera and phone companies would do.

So what's bad with the player. It does have the tendency to suddenly not play a song every few hundred songs. This is no big deal though - just hit song skip and it immediately plays the next song. The player's battery life is not as good as many other players. You probably get six hours, which I don't have a problem with, but it could bother some. It does not have a radio, but you can use it as a hard drive to save documents and the such like.

To sum up, this is a perfect MP3 player if you have a large record collection and wish to listen to it while out and about. There is no problem jogging or cycling with it either. This player I believe does not play protected songs, but the next model up, the XS202, plays protected WMA files, so if you think you are going to purchase songs, the 202 might be a better fit. Apparently it also has a longer battery life. I have no problem recommending this player. It might not be glamourous but it is one of the best MP3 players out there.

Electronics:

Electronics

electronics

Recommended Consumer Electronics:

Thin Bezel 21 Inches Tft LCD Blk 1680X1050 Dig/analog

29IN/27V CRT 68MM 1024X76875HZ

Lexar Media 128MB Memory Stick Duo MSD128-281

Canon - EOS Rebel GII SLR Camera with Sigma 2 Lens Bonus Outfit

PalmOne Zire 31 Handheld

Baby Blue soft Pouch for LG 1010

IBM E 54 - Display - CRT - 15'' - 1280 x 1024 / 60 Hz - 0.28 mm - VGA (HD-15) - white, pearl

Panasonic DMR-E75VS Progressive-Scan DVD Recorder/VCR Combo

XIMETA NetDisk 120GB Portable Storage ( NDU10-120 )

Toshiba Satellite 2530CDS - P MMX 300 MHz - RAM : 32 MB - HD : 4.3 GB - CD - Win98 - 13" TFT 800 x 600 ( SVGA )

Monster Cable AI-AIRCHG-IP iAirPlay Charger for iPod