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Subject: Re: Help please! Rockbox work with this? It is a multimedia unit?

Re: Help please! Rockbox work with this? It is a multimedia unit?

From: TP Diffenbach <rockbox_at_diffenbach.org>
Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2003 15:48:46 -0400

Quoting Sharon <sharon25_at_cox.net>:

> Goodness, the more I learn, the more I don't know! Is this Li-ion a
> rechargeable battery? What does it mean you "couldn't change" it?
>
> That brings up another question, though....since I listen at work,
> and I can't mess around with changing batteries unless they go dead
> during a break, is there such a thing as an external battery pack
> that would work?

The FM uses a LIon battery that can only be charged when it's IN the Archos. While it can be removed, Archos does not sell replacement FM batteries, and the battery is non-standard so it can't be bought elsewhere.

So you have one battery. When it's empty, you must plug the Archos in, either to the charger or to a computer's USB port. The charger charges much faster than the USB port (the USB port doesn't provide enough charge to simulataneously charge the battery and play the Archos -- playing (or copying) while USB plugged will gradually run the battery down).

The Archos will play while charging, however, so if you can plug in at work, you'll be fine.

The Recorder (non-FM) batteries seem to last longer than the FM. I get about six hours on my FM. The time varies quite a bit, as it's a function of the quality of the MP3s you play: the higher the quality, the more bits per second, and thus the greater the disk usage (because the Archos memory holds only a certain number of bits, higher quality means the disk must be read more often, and it's disk usage that uses battery power). My MP3s are (generally) variable bit rate, averaging from (about) 160 to 224 kbps.

For e-books, presumably the MP3 quality (bits per second) can be MUCH lower than for music, so for you, both FM and Recorder runtime should be substantially longer.

With a non-FM, if the batteries run out, you can remove the batteries and replace them with fresh batteries. With the FM you can't. With the non-FM you can buy higher capacity batteries to replace the batteries that come with the Archos. With the FM you can't.

That said, the FM is smaller (I can fit it into my pants pocket) and lighter than the non-FM, because the battery is smaller and lighter and doesn't bulge out the sides.

-- 
Archos FM has a Rockbox!
Received on 2003-07-14

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