Archos Announces a new Android Based 7-inch Gaming Device called the GamePad

[dgstorm]

Archos just announced an intriguing new product. They have a new Android 4.0-based 7-inch gaming tablet with built-in controls that basically is a giant gamepad. They are calling it, the GamePad. As you can see from the picture above, the concept is fairly impressive. Here's a breakdown of the known specs at this time:

• 7-inch capacitive touchscreen of unknown resolution
• Dual-core 1.5 GHz processor
• Quad-core Mali 400 GPU
• 8 GB of built-in storage space
• A microSD slot
• An HDMI out
• Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich

Those specs are all well and good, but how's the game support you might ask (especially with the controller)? Here's a quote with some details,

[ICS] OS version natively supports the gaming buttons, but Archos has also worked with game makers to ensure that about 1,000 well-known games work perfectly with the new setup. And even if your fave game dev hasn’t done anything about this, Archos has you covered by enabling you to map any virtual in-game controls to the physical buttons.

That's pretty slick. The GamePad will first go on sale in Europe in October for €149.

Feel free to check out our dedicated Archos GamePad section over at AndroidTablets.net, here: Welcome to the Archos GamePad Forum!

Source: UnWiredView

 

[WildcatRudy]

Wow, that's slick! I'm not as much of a gamer as I used to be, but this looks to be a better way to play some of the Android-based games. We'll have to wait and see if it offers GPS--it would be neat to use it as a regular tablet in addition to having game-specific controls built in.