also dont like a no SD/SDHC card slot…wtf… who wants a usb port right where you are supposed to hold it..it will be sticking out… should have put the usb port on top (ya it would look kinda funny, but better position IMO for holding the unit) and also a SDHC slot that is flush on the side would be perfect…

so my ?s are if purchasing this basic model wtih 1gb ram and win 7 starter..

Is it possible to upgrade the RAM to 2GB?

Im assuming you could easily upgrade or do a fresh install to win 7 premium or ultimate… correct?

2) Granted, but should be available as an option. And maybe is.

3) A larger drive should not reduce response time unless they use a larger but slower drive. A larger drive with the same speeds should not reduce responsiveness, else our computers with 1TB drives would crawl…

4) Multitouch with GPS could be quite useful, for instance, to zoom in or out on a selected area of the map. Anyone who thinks multitouch is only for “kids” and “games” doesn’t have much imagination.

5) If Windows Home Premium only costs $9 more per device, they have no excuse not to use it. An after-purchase Anytime Upgrade costs $80.

6) The idea that a faster processor requires more memory is idiotic, as is the idea that processor speed in any way relates to the drive size. Compatibility is a non-issue if they stay in the same processor family. Battery life and thermal envelope are entirely different matters.

The main reasons for all of these is simple: Price. Hopefully they offer upgrade options. If they offer Windows Home Premium for the $9 you mention, anyone with much understanding will get it.

Next time, please make sure your “logic” is logical. Just using big terms like “thermal strain deformation” (whatever) doesn’t make you seem smarter, particularly when accompanied by numerous spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors.

1) batery life is 3 to 4 hours, and for the size of their device is very good, if a higher number of cells r used they would have to relocate the memory wich is just right by the battery, and this would make a huge air layer/gap between screen and circuitry, probably 10mm would be added.

2) The reason because harddrive is used is obvious, solid state would increase the devices cost at list by 100 dolars.

3)60 gigs ???? maybe thats the only thing archos could change. but they did try the device with a 80gb harddrive and a 100gb hard drive but the screen response decreased a lot.

4) Multitouch ??? r y kidding me ? multitouch is for kids and people that wants a cool device. archos is a deviced for you do work. if you want to play games and touch you devices with lot of fingers by an ipod.

5)windows starter is way cheaper… microsoft charges 7 dollars per device that is using windows 7 starter and 16 dolars per device using normal edition. upgrade will be available for archos users for a not confirmed price.

6)processor is kind slow i agreed, but for a 60gb hard drive it will work fine, increasing processor speed requires more baterry and 1/8 more memory for a .5ghert increase, then you gotta figure out the temperature ,thermal strain deformation, compatibily between logic families , buffers cachees and etcc.

and can the screen be changed to portrait rather than landscape?

So I will upgrade the OS, probably swap in a SSD (if possible) and upgrade RAM (if possible). If I can’t do the drive or RAM, well it will still be a fantastic improvement from what Im currently using.

The form factor is perfect for me. I currently use a great bluetooth keyboard for typing notes when possible, but have to switch to pen when writing complex formula or graphs (econ). This is easily the best slate available when I look at screen size (cant go smaller) and weight (a third of the Motions).

But:
I’m really surprised it only has a 1.1GHz Atom when the 1.6 is so popular in low-end netbooks.

I’m even more surprised that it has Windows 7 Starter. Doesn’t “Starter” inherently mean “not ready for wide use”? After all, XP and Vista Starter Editions were only even allowed in “developing markets”. OK, after some searching, I found that some are recommending the use of Starter on netbooks because it costs less. But that’s not a good reason. Users will have to pay $80 for an Anytime Upgrade to Premium to get many “normal” features.

Starter cannot backup to a network location, which would seem a valuable feature for a small, easily lost or damaged device. Starter also doesn’t support the Mobility Center which controls such features as advanced power management, despite its use for mobile units like this. Starter doesn’t support Windows touch features like multi-touch, one of the big advertised features of Windows 7. And you can’t even customize things like your wallpaper, colors, or sounds, you know, like you can even do on your phone. And you can’t play DVDs or streaming media.

They need to seriously think over the edition of Windows they are going to put on this unit. The system requirements are the same, and anything they are afraid will slow the unit down, like Aero features, can easily be deselected.

CPU Intel Atom Z515 1.2GHz
FSB 533MHz L2 512KB
CHIPSET Intel 945GSE+ICH7M
MEM 1G DDR2
HD 80.0GB SATA 5400RPM
TOUCHPAD 8.9″ TFT-LED WXGA 1024×600

Audio Intel High Definition Audio
BT
802.11b/g
10/100M ethernet
I/O
2×USB 2.0、1×VGA、1×RJ45、mic&phone
card reader
DVB-T

Zan, you forgot to add and with 10 hours of work .
It’s possible with weight 2kg .

If Archos or any other company want my business they need a “premium” version. I am happy to keep my SC3 until I find a tablet/slate device between 7-10″ with multi-touch, Gobi 3G, at least an Intel ULV processor like SU3500 or SU7300, 2GB Ram and a 128GB SSD, with nvidia/ati graphics. Sunlight readable would be nice too.