3 Best Digital Frames

Chandra Wijaya — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 13:08:19 +0000

A few year ago, digital photo frames were cute, simple gadgets that were relegated to novelty items. These days, such frames have come into their own,with video playback, Wi-FI, blue tooth, and even social media apps. They have earned a place alongside other must have technologies.

Here’s a look at three of top competitors in the digital photo frame market :

Pandigital 8″ PanTouch Clear Digital Photo Frame
It offers a touch screen interface and video support, at a very aggressive price – less than $100 ( you can get it now for $98 with 128MB Built-in Memory in here.). But there are some quirks : the user interface is a bit slow, there are some design issues, and you’ll experience the occasional image-scaling problem – but they’re not insurmountable if you’re on a strict budget.

Pandigital 8-Inch Digital Photo Frame

The Pandigital frame has a contemporary look that combine a dark wood border, and although the LCD itself measure 8 inches diagonal, the mat and wood border bring the total size to nearly double that 15″ diagonal . The USB cable that connect the touch panel to the frame itself hang from the frame’s border and runs to the back of the device- a minor eyesore.

You can store photos, music, and video on the frame’s 1GB of internal memory stream through the rear mounted card reader or USB ports. The touch screen is accurate and functional, but doesn’t have advanced touch features found on capacitive screens. This Pandigital frame displayed 65% of the sRGB color gamut- a good score.

Pros : Competitive price. Touch enabled screen. Simple interface. You can add Wi-FI connectivity via $29 adapter.
Cons : No accelerometer for switching between landscape and portrait modes. Sluggish interface. Jerky video playback. Minor image rescaling issues.

Sony DPF – D70 7″ Digital Photo Frame
This Sony doesn’t offer a touch screen, video playback, HDMI out, Blue -tooth, or even Wi-FI connectivity. But the one thing this elegant digital photo frame does display digital photos it does very well.

The frame sports a sleek minimalist design and a simple menu structure. Other frames may offer more features for the same price, but few are a hassle free. The 5.5 by 8.0 by 1.2 inch (HWD) D70 is almost identical to last year’s 9″ DPF -V900. Both frames are equipped with fast and simple software, and offer a sleek minimalist design with nothing but an 800 by 480 pixel LCD.

Sony DPF-D70 7-inch Digital Photo Frame

The D70 features a 15:9 aspect ratio, but your photos are likely to be shot in 3:2 or 4:3, so you’ll see black bars on either side of the an image. Thankfully Sony includes a big, easy to find View Mode button on the top of the frame.

This frame comes with 232MB of internal memory- meager compared with the other frame in this roundup. Also, the interface is no frills and straightforward. This frame shows 59% of the sRGB color gamut and display images without errors. So if you want high quality image display and don’t need the bells and whistles, this Sony Digital Frame is a good choice. Grab it now with only $199.99 from here now.

Pros : Elegant Design. Speedy operation.
Cons : No USB port for attached storage. Limited internal memory. No support for video playback. Finicky IR receiver.

Toshiba DMF82XKU 8″ Digital Media Frame
It is an slightly expensive digital photo frame, but it well executed Web-connected features help to justify its price of $153. And thanks to its online component, the DMF82XKU is great for say, displaying party pictures from Facebook or sending vacation photos home to grandma- while you’re still on the road.

Toshiba DMF82XKU 8-Inch Wireless Digital Media Frame

The 8 inch frame looks nearly identical to the Sony 7 inch frame, with an 800 by 480 pixel LCD and a 15:9 aspect ratio. Toshiba pairs Wi-Fi with FrameChannel, a sophisticated web based photo and content-streaming service that makes sending content to the frame seamless.

In addition, the frame includes 1GB of build-in memory, two card reader and a USB port. After calibrating the frame, the display produced the best image with the contrast level set to 3 (out of 5). The frame display 55.7% of the sRGB color gamut- an acceptable score. If you want something with punchier colors, try the Pandigital Photo Frame. So although this is a higher priced option than the Sony model, its very attractive package of features and Web connectivity make it a great option.

Pros : Elegant design. Simple image transfer via email or internet. Excellent web integration.
Cons : Images can only be transferred wirelessly using FrameChannel, a web based photo and content streaming service.

So, i leave it up to you choose which one that really suit to your need of Digital Photo Frame.

Chandra Wijaya Blog » Sony DPF D70

3 Best Digital Frames