French company Archos today unveiled three new ‘Platinum’ series tablets running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean. You can choose from a 9.7-inch tablet with an extra high resolution 2048 x 1536 display, a 10.1 inch tablet with a 1280 x 800 screen, and a budget 8-incher.
All three tablets support 1080p HD video, are powered by an A9 1.6 GHz quad-core processor and quad-core graphics processor, and have up to 2GB of RAM. Prices are expected to range from US $200 to $300.
Archos’ new Platinum series is a early update to its previous Platinum and Titanium series tablets, which the company released last winter to a mostly tepid reception. Archos tablets have been dogged in the past for poor build quality and lack of software updates, so if those risks aren’t so important to you, you can keep on reading.
The Archos 97b Platinum HD (9.7-inch model) is clearly aimed at Apple’s most recent, 4th gen iPad. It has the same screen size, the same 2048 x 1536 resolution, and a roughly equivalent processor (the iPad runs on a 1.7 GHz Apple A6X chipset). Except in its 8-inch model, Archos has doubled down on RAM — offering 2GB instead of the iPad’s 1GB. But then these days, two gigabytes is already the standard starting size for new “high end” tablets — in fact, Microsoft’s new Surface 2 starts at 2GB and goes up to 8GB.
Archos’ 101 Platinum (10.1-inch) tablet includes GPS functionality and a 2-megapixel camera on the front, while the others have a meager 0.3-megapixel front-facing cam. All three tablets include a 2-megapixel rear camera, microUSB port, 3.5mm headset jack, microSD slot, mini HDMI output, dual band Wi-Fi,and Bluetooth wireless.
Archos claims that the newest Platinum tablets will last longer on a charge, thanks to an energy-efficient 28 nanometer processor. Although the company didn’t provide details, we’d expect to see between 8 to 11 hours on a charge, slightly better than previous Archos models.
You can get your hands on the Archos Platinum tablets in October. Although prices aren’t yet official, the 80b Platinum is expected to retail for about $200, the 97b HD model at $270, and the 101 Platinum for about $300.
Phandroid has a hands-on video and more photos of the new Archos tablets.
