Archos announce the Gamepad 2

Archos announce the Gamepad 2
The idea behind the Archos Gamepad was and is a great one. Being able to play games on a tablet device using actual hardware gaming controls is one niche that many companies have strived to achieve success.

The original Archos Gamepad failed to bring a good enough spec for the price they decided to sell at. It basically needed to be higher spec which would obviously raise the price.

Enter the Archos Gamepad 2. A higher spec slightly redesigned version of the original. Let’s have a look at the specs first.

Tech Specs

Display • 7’’: 1280 x 800 pixels, IPS
Software• Android 4.2, “Jelly Bean”
Processor • Quad-core A9 @ 1.6GHz
GPU • Quad-core GPU Mali 400 MP4
Capacity • 8GB* or 16GB* + micro SD (compatible with cards up to 64GB)
RAM • 2GB RAM
Camera• Front webcam
Expansion• microSD (compatible with 64 GB cards formatted to FAT32)
Wireless technologies • Dual band WiFi (2.4GHz & 5GHz)
• Wireless display5
• Bluetooth
Gaming Controls • Two analogue thumb-sticks
• Directional pad
• 6 front facing buttons
• 4 shoulder buttons
Miscellaneous • Built-in stereo speakers
• G-sensor
• Built-in Microphone
• Audio Jack 3.5mm
• HDMI output (Mini HDMI / HDMI cable sold separately)
• External: Power adapter/charger
Dimensions & weight • 200.5 mm x 154 mm x 9.9 mm (7.9’’ x 6.0’’ x 0.39’’)
• 400g

So the new Archos Gamepad 2, has more RAM, a better CPU and in theory a better screen. Let’s hope it makes for a better experience.
Archos announce the Gamepad 2
Archos do have a handy button mapping tool which allows you to force a lot of games to work with the gaming controls. It ate up battery like there was no tomorrow. I could kill my battery playing Super Mario in about an hour.

As regards price and availability Archos have said that the ARCHOS GamePad2 will be available at the end of October at €179.99. So it’s going to be about the same price as last time.

If you’re interested head over to the Archos Gamepad 2 product page here where you’ll be able to pre order it soon.

Although they haven’t said which size this is for, I guess it’ll be the 8GB model which I recommend you don’t get, as it’ll only hold a few large games.
They also haven’t mentioned the exact size of the battery in the Gamepad 2 either. The battery was possibly the biggest let down with the first model, so we’ll have to see how that goes.
Archos announce the Gamepad 2
Archos announce the Gamepad 2
Archos announce the Gamepad 2