ARCHOS Launches Own Android Market, Tablet Coming September 15th

ARCHOS is taking on quite the challenge. The company has sent out an invitation to a September 15th event where it is largely believed they’ll unveil an Android Internet Tablet. Keep in mind this is just where the challenge BEGINS:

Rumored specs include:

• 5-inch WVGA touchscreen
• HDMI Output
• 720p video
• OpenGL library support
• Flash support
• 500GB Storage
• 7-hour video battery life
• Cortex CPU
• 3.5G Connectivity

It has all the makings of a successful piece of hardware… but where ARCHOS’ real challenge lays is software: the company has launched their own version of Android Market targeted at super high-end non-smartphone devices. The market is called AppsLib and their objectives are quite clearly stated:

By High-End devices, we mean devices that are not only smartphones, but all kind of tablets, PDA, PNDs or picture-frames. Devices that will tomorrow provide the same kind of experience than a PC, mobility added.

AppsLib is a co-venture with ARCHOS. Our target is to be available on a large variety of device, from a lot of manufacturer. But we believe ARCHOS has got what it takes to become the future of Android devices. If you want to develop on a new generation of product, you should consider the following suggestions.

An alternative “Market” to serve alternative hardware? The fragmentation has begun! With such an open platform, Google would have an impossible time avoiding fragmentation and as long as they keep their own Market nicely situated they can do little to prevent 3rd parties from creating alternative arenas for application distribution platforms.

ARCHOS will definitely need to convince developers that submitting to such a market is worthwhile. Like Android, developers will be wooed much more easily once more of these types of devices are launched. But will other manufacturer’s submit to ARCHOS own application distribution attempt? I suppose it depends on the circumstances and legal arrangements.

The idea isn’t a bad one. Browsing Android Market for applications and downloading a result built specifically for a Netbook or Digital Picture Frame could be an increasing irritation and this is an issue Google will have to address at some point. In the meantime, ARCHOS could effectively fill that gap with AppsLib. I don’t like the name much by the way. AppsLibrary would have been much better.

Huge opportunity. Huge potential. But also huge challenges. Whether or not the ARCHOS Android Internet Tablet is successful and whether AppsLib is successful are two incredibly different questions with completely different implications. Each will be interesting to watch develop and I can tell you I’m eager for September 15th on both accounts – hardware and software.

[Via Pocketables]