Archos are back in the Game (pad)

An unexpected hit last year, Archos have refreshed their Gamepad for a second outing. The Archos Gamepad 2 is a gaming tablet that features a built-in physical controller, reasonably decent specs and a price tag of $200 in the United States, €212.36 for those in Europe. No price has been announced in the UK.

The Gamepad packs a quad-core ARM Cortex-A9 CPU, 2GB RAM, a 7-inch IPS display with a 1280 x 800 resolution, 8GB storage, microSD, HDMI, Wi-Fi and runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

Archos is even partnering up with Gameloft to give you two full games out of the box, Asphalt 8: Airborne and Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour to show off the power of the device. Check the press below:

ARCHOS GamePad 2 Announced

A hybrid tablet made for gamers; the GamePad 2 features a faster Quad-Core CPU, a 7″ IPS HD screen and the proprietary ARCHOS Game Mapping Tool

London, October 9th, 2013 – ARCHOS, a pioneer in Android™ devices, is proud to announce its second generation tablet made for Gamers – the ARCHOS GamePad 2 available in Europe at the end of October at £179.99.

“Following the success of the GamePad 1, we knew that we could take the gaming-tablet concept further. With our GamePad 2 we have included an HD screen, better controls, a larger battery and a faster processor,” said Loic Poirier ARCHOS CEO, “We’re excited to be working with a leading games company like Gameloft to pre-install two visually stunning titles for an amazing gaming experience.”

The ARCHOS GamePad 2 includes complete versions of Asphalt 8: Airborne and Modern Combat 4: Zero Hour by Gameloft both revisited for physical controls. “With a tablet that’s as innovative as the ARCHOS GamePad 2, it was an easy decision to optimise our games for the platform,” said Cyril Guilleminot, Gameloft Director for France & Benelux. “Users will be able to take part in a brand new gaming experience with its integrated physical control system.”

Made for Gaming

HD IPS Screen

The ARCHOS GamePad 2 features a 7 inch HD screen perfect for gaming. The widescreen 1280 x 800 pixel resolution gives an amazing gaming and multimedia experience and IPS technology ensures amazing colours and brightness as well as perfect viewing angles

Powerful Processor, Larger Battery

Powered by an A9 generation quad-core processor running at 1.6GHz coupled with a fast Quad-Core graphics processor and 2GB of system RAM, the ARCHOS GamePad 2 has more than enough power to play the latest 3D games smoothly.

Thanks to super energy-efficient 28 nanometer processor technology and a much larger battery than normally used on a 7 inch tablet, the ARCHOS GamePad 2 has vastly improved battery life whether in gaming or simply when browsing the web.

Improved Thumb-Sticks, Buttons and Mapping Tool

The ARCHOS GamePad 2 features more precise, incurved dual thumb-sticks, double buttons on each shoulder, a single part directional pad and a vastly improved button click-feeling for a better physical gaming experience.

Combined with the updated version of the critically praised Game Mapping Tool, first featured on the GamePad 1, that lets users map any touch-screen button game to work with the physical controls, the ARCHOS GamePad 2 offers an improved android gaming experience for hundreds of thousands of free and paid games.

The ARCHOS GameZone – find the best games

To find great games faster, ARCHOS created the GamePad Game Zone application; curating over 1 million apps and games in the Google Play™ Store, the Game Zone shows off the best ARCHOS GamePad 2 compatible games.

With downloads, purchases, ratings, comments and game updates all taking place through the Google Play™ Store, users can get the best from the huge games catalogue available for the ARCHOS GamePad 2.

Storage for Games

The ARCHOS GamePad 2 is available in two storage sizes – 8GB and 16GB. Both versions include a microSD slot (64GB compatible) with app2sd support for extra storage.

Still a powerful Android Tablet

Though the ARCHOS GamePad 2 was designed with gaming in mind, it’s still a fully functional Android tablet able to do everything that you expect from a tablet… and more, thanks to ARCHOS media applications. Additional key features and specs include:

• Android 4.2™ ‘Jelly Bean’
• Google Certified with full access to the Google Play store and its 1 million apps and games, GamePad Game Zone app also included to find the best games
• Amazing Tablet Features: WiFi Display, HDMI, front stereo speakers, Front camera for video calling and an improved multi-media thanks to Archos Media Center applications

The ARCHOS GamePad 2 will be available at the end of October at €179.99 on www.ARCHOS.com.