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Digital Photo Frames
Click the image on the left to skip to our range of Digital Photo Frames
INFORMATION AND ADVICE ON HOW TO CHOOSE DIGITAL PHOTO FRAMES
Within the past few years, technology has moved on in such a way that we now have the flat panel LCD Screen. With this evolution came LCD TV's, Flat screen computer monitors and, of course, the digital photo frame. At first the prices were high, reflecting the extreme leap in technology but in the past year, as with all technology, prices have come right down meaning that the digital photo frame is now the 'must have' for any home with a digital camera. There are hundreds of digital photo frames to choose from so here are some of the things to think about when considering a digital photo frame to make sure that you choose the right one for you:
Networking Some digital photo frames are designed to stand alone with images fed to the screen from a memory card inserted into the frame . To put a show together, you use a memory card reader and copy images from your computer to the card, then remove the card from the reader and insert it into the frame. Other digital photo frames are designed to be connected to a phone line or Wi Fi so images can be sent to it from other computers on the Internet or mobile phone. Internet connected digital photo frames are great, but they are not effortless. You or someone else has to upload images to an on-line account before they can be sent to a frame. Ideally, you would also format the images first to make them the right size.
Number of Images. Some digital photo frames, especially those that connect to the Internet, have their own internal memory that limits the number of images that can be stored and displayed. Other digital photo frames use removable memory cards and the number of images is limited only by the storage capacity of the cards.
Portability Some digital photo frames are designed to plug into the wall and others can run off batteries. Those that run off batteries can be used in the field to review photos as well as display them at home.
Size and resolution One of the key determinants of price is the size and resolution of the screen. Most digital photo frames are 5 x 7 inches or smaller and display images in 640 x 480 or smaller sizes. Don't confuse frame size with screen size. Most have large frames and small screens. To calculate the pixel density of a screen you first calculate the screen's viewing area and resolution. For example, if the screen is 4 x 6 inches and the resolution is 640 x 480, 4 x 6 = 24 square inches and 640 x 480 equals 307, 200 total pixels. You then divide the total pixels by the square inches to find the pixels per square inch-307200/24=12,800 pixels per inch. The square root of this number will give you the pixels per inch, in this case about 113.
Higher numbers are better, but exact comparisons can only be made between screens of roughly the same size.
Screen technology Check out how bright the screen is. The best screen technology is currently Active Matrix thin film transistor (TFT). What is the viewing angle of the screen. Is it backlit? Will your images be clear and bright in a bright room?
Color depth The number of colors a screen can display is referred to as color depth. Some screens have 24-bit color and others support better 30-bit or higher.
Image formats All digital photo frames support JPEG images but only a few support MPEG. Make sure the frame supports the image formats your camera creates.
Memory card formats Most frames accept CompactFlash cards, but other frames accept SmartMedia, Memory Stick cards etc. Be sure the digital photo frame accepts the same type of card as your camera or that adapters are available. Even if it accepts the same card, does it accept the specific type you use? For example CompactFlash cards come in type I and II, and there is a small but bewildering number of SmartMedia cards with varying compatibility.
USB outlets on a frame let you connect it to a computer by cable. The frame may then appear on your computer as a hard drive so you can copy images to it.
User Options Can you specify the time each image is on the screen? Can you rotate pictures to display them in portrait or landscape mode? Will the digital photo frame do this for you automatically? Can you specify different transitions such as fades between images? Can you set a power off and on time so it doesn't run 24 hours a day? Is there a sleep function so you can turn it off temporarily? Is there a pan or zoom function? Can you control brightness and contrast? Can you view all of the stored images as thumbnails?
Aspect ratio Aspect ratio often determines if an image is cropped for display. (Ideally a frame won't crop your images or at least give you the option of a full-image display). On screens that do crop photos with an aspect ratio different from the screen's, two sides are cropped so the screen is filled by the central portion of the image. If you want control over this process you can crop your images in a photo-editing program before sending them to the frame. A few frames can display images in an HDTV aspect ratio of 16:9 but most use the TV aspect ratio of 4:3 or the 35mm film ratio of 1:1.5. Be careful when considering aspect ratios. HDTV shaped frames may look sexy but one new one has a resolution of only 480 x 234. If you display portrait oriented images they will either be very small on the screen or heavily cropped.
Style The "look" of these digital photo frames vary widely. Be sure you see a photo of what it looks like to confirm that you can live with it. Some have interchangeable frames (bezels) so you can change the look when you want to.
Software upgrades Can you download revised software from the manufacturer's Web site to upgrade your frame when improvements are made?
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As you can see there is certainly a lot to consider but, by making the right choice, you can get those treasured photos off your computers hard drive and out on display so that everyone can enjoy them.
Click here to see our range of digital photo frames
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