Archos has been the go to company for WiFi and touchscreen goodness on a DAP. That is, until Apple invaded their turf. Now the two must settle their disputes in the digital ring. In this corner, making his way from France and weighing in at 6.7 ounces, the reigning champion, the Archos 605 WiFi!. And in this corner, hailing from Cupertino, California, with a weight of 4.2 ounces, the undisputed #1 contender, the iPod touch! The fight is sponsored by Cnet, and will be judged ringside by editors Jasmine France, Donald Bell, and Nicole Lee. The Bout is scheduled for 5 glorious rounds. Without any further delay, Let's Get Ready to Rumbleeee!

Round 1 - Navigation: Despite having two types of controls (touch and tactile), the 605 WiFi lost this round by a nose due to its lack of simplicity.

Round 2 - Sexiness: I think Stevie Wonder could tell you who won this round, but let's see what the judges thought. Nicole found the 605 WiFi to be both "bulky" and "clunky" while Donald thought it was "definitely pimp", whatever the hell that means. This round goes to the touch. Shocking I know.

Round 3 - Compatibility: It looks like Apple's locked in strategy has backfired in this prizefight. The judges were enamored with the variety of codecs and subscription support the 605 had. Archos wins this round!

Round 4 - Sound and Science: The term Sound and Science is a little strange. I get the Sound part, but what falls under "Science"? Apparently everything else not mentioned so far, including build quality, interface, battery life, and extra features. Maybe think of a better word than Science next time, k Cnet? This battle was remarkably close. The 605 has great video playback and is built like a tank, but the touch holds its own in the interface department. In the end, the 605 WiFi came out on top on the scorecard.

Round 5 - Wallet Factor: The 5th and final round was the easiest to judge, with 605 WiFi winning. But was it really a fair judgment? Jasmine compared the price per GB for each player, stating the touch costs 27.50 more per GB. An unfair comparison due to the difference in pricing between flash and HD. Still on paper, you can get a 160GB model for the same price as a 16GB. That type of value is hard to dismiss.


And the winner is..the Archos 605 WiFi! It was a very good Free-Per-View match and I can't wait till the rematch next generation.

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