Archos Reveals Connected Home, Wearable Gadgets Ahead of CES

Android device maker Archos is gearing up for January's Consumer Electronics Show with a sneak peek at its new connected-home and wearable tech products.

Very different from what the company unveiled at this past year's Las Vegas tradeshow, Archos has new contraptions like a weather station, home camera, activity tracker, blood pressure monitor, and smartwatch to show off next month.

"Mobile devices have become the center of our life and our demand for instant access to information creates the need for even more interconnectivity," CEO Loic Poirier said in a statement.

Archos hopes to feed that need with its new Connected Home system, which is powered by the Smart Home App. For those looking to get a bit more hands on, there is the custom-designed Smart Home Tablet (pictured) from the company. The 7-inch "home gateway" combines the Android operating system with various connected objects, including a minicam, motion ball, movement tag, weather tag, and smart plug. And, just like the app, it allows users to customize actions like turning on a light or recording video based on a motion sensor.

While Smart Home serves as a sort of home base for Archos's gadgets, it is just one of the many products the company will showcase in Las Vegas, including the Activity Tracker to monitor daily footsteps and calories burned; the Blood Pressure Monitor, equipped with memory for more than 40 measurements; and the Connected Scale, which recognizes four different users and measures body shape based on mass and height, tracks body fat mass, and comes with onboard memory.

All three can be synchronized with the new Archos Connected Self app, where users can check key metrics, display activity-tracking graphs, and enable up to eight users to set goals.

CES 2014 attendees can also check out the Weather Station, which showcases indoor and outdoor information like CO2 levels, humidity, temperature, atmospheric pressure, and environmental noise levels. An accompanying mobile app also includes the ability to record, track, and graph data.

And keep your eyes open for a selection of sub-£50 ($83) smartwatches from Archos with a "Pebble-like design."

Using miniature accessories and Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity, the wireless devices are compatible with both the Android and iOS platforms.

"Archos' new lineup of connected objects exemplifies the ability to share and access information and represents our vision of creating a universe where all devices complement and work together."

Archos is looking forward to a new year of connected devices, but the company has a lot to look back on in 2013. During January's CES, Archos introduced four new Google Android-based tablets as part of the Titanium lineup.

The handset maker later introduced its Android-based smartphones — the Archos 35 Carbon, 50 Platinum, and 53 Platinum — in Europe. Meanwhile, the three-tablet Platinum tablet family launched in October with Android 4.2 Jelly Bean.

For more, check out CES 2014 Preview: Health and Fitness Tech.