A while back, I blogged about my dream gadget – the Archos AV700E. Not long after that, I decided to plunk down some cash for it. It’s been about 6 months since I’ve got it. The final verdict? Love it.

So, let’s back up a bit, if you’re not sure what I’m talking about. The Archos AV700E is a portable media recorder and player. I like to think of it as my portable digital VCR because that’s exactly how I use it. If you have TiVo, you know how it feels.

While this little thing is not exactly TiVo, but I love it mainly because of portability. We used to have a set top type DVD recorder. Problem is, sometimes we want to record from another room and we have this huge hassle of moving, unplugging cables etc.

The Archos has also helped me save several DVD disks. Instead of allowing my kids to destroy the disks, I just record the movies. Not all movies are recordable though – it’s got a built in mechanism to not record protected material.

Finally, this thing is awesome on road trips. Pricey, yes useful for us, absolutely.