ARCHOS Android Tablets Spied Early

archos-android-tablet

Can’t wait until the Sept. 15 ARCHOS event to see what’s coming from France? You may not have to, thanks to the Federal Communications Commission. It spilled the beans on two small tablets — the ARCHOS A5S and A5H. Engadget eye-spied pics galore from the FCC labs, which show a thin pad with a screen sized at, or just under, 5″. Without any physical keyboard, there’s no doubt it’s a touchscreen device, just like the very similar ARCHOS 5. The interface appears to be a heavily customized version of Android, but it’s difficult to tell. It’s quite obvious that the FCC needs to get a new testing table, though — the wooden one is looking pretty beat up, so I’m all for using a few of our tax dollars at the nearest Home Depot.

There’s not much else to go on just yet although Engadget points out which radios were tested. Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 +EDR, and an FM transmitter and receiver are inside. I also see a microSD slot and some USB ports — possibly an HDMI jack, but the FCC camera needs an upgrade right after the new table is purchased. Either that, or we should be investing in better lab lighting. All should become clear in a few short weeks, but with mention of 3G in one of the user manuals, one of these handhelds could make for a nice portable media player and web device.

Comments have been disabled for this post