Philips 7-Inch Digital Photo Frame (Clear & Black)
by Philips Peripherals and Accessories
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List Price: Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Philips 7-Inch Digital Photo Frame (Clear & Black)
Customer Review: Nice picture quality; terrible user interface; it helps if you know your way around computers
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I'm familiar with this type of product having used a couple of others from other manufacturers in the past.
Having read some of the reviews, I will say I'm very computer-savvy, and didn't run into some of the problems others have mentioned.
The picture quality was nice; not terrific, but I'll get back to that in a moment.
There's plenty of on-board memory. According to Windows Explorer, about 8 megs. The key to using that judiciously is to size your pictures before storing them to memory, using photo software like Photoshop Elements or better, as if you were prepping them for the web. The native screen resolution is 720X480, so I sized all my pics to stay within those parameters, and I typically ended up with a file size of somewhere around 40 - 80 kb, and you can stick 1 or 2 hundred on this device at that file size. Further, they'll fit the screen without distortion from the frame firmware trying to adjust your pics to the display. Additionally, you won't eat up all the memory trying to store full 2-Meg Jpegs -- 4 of those and your memory's full -- that really won't look any better here than they would on your computer display looking at a web page. Save those for prints.
The downside to this is that picture quality suffers a bit because of the smaller file size, and because this is an LCD display there's also some artifacting in shadow areas (a fact of life with LCDs). But let's face it: you're not going to use this device for professional presentations. This is so you or your Mom can see all those cool pictures you have.
Now, the biggest drawback to this is the TERRIBLE user interface. This thing isn't at all intuitive as far as operating it. There's a row of tiny buttons on the top behind the frame, and it's always pretty much guesswork as to what switch makes the device perform which action. The written instructions are totally useless in trying to figure this out. Trial and error is the only method available, for all intents and purposes.
I had no trouble copying in pictures from a folder on my Desktop using Windows Explorer (I operate in an XP environment, so I can't speak to Vista. I hate Vista). I used Edit > Select All > Copy then just pasted them into the folder on the device. They all copied in perfectly.
So, a middle of the road grade based on my experience with other brands, which seem to be easier to operate.
(Incidentally, for those who have problems deleting the sample pics that came already loaded. In Windows Explorer, I had absolutely no problem deleting all the sample photos in the folder.)
Customer Review: Stylish display for your pictures!
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This is the third digital photo frame that I've acquired, and so far it's the best of the lot. I've even played around and put all three side by side just to compare them. It was a slow day, okay?
Anyway, let's get the issue of cost out of the way first. Digital photo frames are not nearly as inexpensive as we would like to see. But do a little value analysis and you might discover that while it's pocket change, you're still doing fine with the Item being reviewed the Philips 6.5-Inch Digital Photo Frame. The beauty of the digital frame is that you can have vivid displays of as many photos as you can fit onto a memory card (I usually have at least 50 mid-sized jpgs on one like this); rotating from pic to pic in a nice tidy space. The alternative might be to paper your wall with 50 printed and framed photographs, a hassle in time, wall space and money. All of a sudden the digital option starts to look a little better, so then it comes down to comparing different brands.
Some people complain about the image quality, however I've found that any digital frame is dependent on the quality of the jpg file. The bigger the file (more pixels to work with), the better the image will work on the display. That then raises the question of how many pictures can you have? Well duh... if you're going to use the internal memory, you're picture inventory is going to be limited. Use a 2 gig memory card and you can cycle through a LOT of pictures. And remember what I mentioned before, in a side by side comparison with my other two digi-frames, the Philips was the best (using the same files).
The setup directions were fine for me, I didn't have any problems whatsoever. And one of the features that I like best is the SmartPower option to have it turn off after a prescribed amount of time.
Some of the other features like photo manipulation on the unit and a sound feature just don't appeal to me. I'll do all my image adjusting and cropping on the computer, and I'm not turned off by the black bars that my cropping might create. And as for music with my pictures? Forget about it! There's two much sound competition in my house already, why add to it?
Bottom line, I like this unit. I'd love to see it offered for sale under $60, but then again, I'd like to have a 100mpg car too.
Customer Review: Sleek Frame, Good Picture Quality
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This is the first digital photo frame that I've used, and I do think it's very good quality for the price, and a nifty gadget to have around. With digital cameras, most photos never see the light of day, and this frame is an easy way to show them off. The pros of this frame:
- I thought the screen quality was very good to excellent - bright, clear, vibrant colors.
- Easy to use, simple instructions, can pretty much plug-in and go if your photos are the right dimensions
- I received the clear & black frame, and it looks very nice and stylish on our shelf (many digital frames tend to look cheap and plastic)
- Accepts many different types of memory cards, and you'll be hard pressed to find one that will not look with this frame
Now for the cons, and keep in mind that these are not necessarily cons for this particular frame, but my observations about digital frames in general. The whole concept of digital frames seems to be more cumbersome than convenient, and that may be because this technology is not yet where it should be.
- The frame can be displayed vertically or horizontally; you'd have to group your photos into 1 of 2 categories to be displayed correctly.
- This particular frame has no input for a flash drive (and I'm not sure whether other frames do either), so if you want to keep your memory card in your camera, you'd have to buy another one to use with the frame.
- You can store photos in the frame's internal memory, but with only 16MB, that means about 8-9 photos, unless you reformat
- Pretty much all photos will have to be altered on the computer before they can correctly display on the frame. I tried my photos as they were, and all were cut off either on the sides, or the top and bottom.
- The frame displays the time in the bottom right corner (which I did not like in the first place). If you unplug the frame, you'll have to set the time again when you turn it back on.
Customer Review: Decent Photo Frame a Tad Pricey
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Strange as it seems, I often find myself pricing digital photo frames when at local big-box retailers. They seem like such a great gift idea, but I'm hard pressed to spend $130+ to display my photos.
This frame, while in the $90 range, is certainly more affordable, but not quite the performance-for-bargain I was hoping for.
Though I have one digital frame at home (a Westinghouse), I was keen for a second to put on display downstairs.
For argument's sake, let's say I'm the type of person who doesn't like to read directions. That being said, I fidgeted with the frame's interface for about five minutes before I figured out how to move through all the menus, change the clock, delete the 'Philips' photos and set my photos to a slide-show mode. It was a little awkward, but not unbelievably difficult.
What I like most:
~The frame's actual design. It's very sleek looking and compact, which is a huge improvement on some of the bulkier frames out there (like my Westinghouse).
~Also, I'd have to say this frame's SmartPower feature is its one stand out feature as I'm a conscientious power user and like that this frame will only turn on during the time when someone is around to see it.
What I liked least:
~I am disappointed that the resolution isn't as crisp as my other frame, nor are the colors as vivid. This despite Philips Imagen promise for automatic photo enhancement.
In general, this frame's very basic in that ALL it does is display and play through photos, as compare to other frames out there that have additional fancy options such as video and music.
Overall, this may be on the pricey side if you simply want to have a few of your favorite digital photos cycling through when guests come over. However if you're looking for a little more in a frame you might find Philips' design and power saving feature all the extras you want.
Customer Review: Great mid-level Digital Photo Frame
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
The Philips 6.5 digital photo frame is a great mid-level photo frame. The frame itself (I have the clear version) is attractive and does not look cheap - it looks very stylish. It is of average size and would be nice for the office or a desk at home; I would not use as a wall-mounted frame.
I was able to organize some pictures onto an SDHC card and install that into the Philips. I find this method easier than connecting the frame to the computer. If you do not own a computer, you can still use this frame by inserting a memory card from your camera directly into the frame. If you do own a computer, the benefit of hooking up to the computer is you can adjust the orientations (portrait/landscape) of some photos the digital frame may display wrong. You can also take advantage of the onboard memory of 16 MB.
The LCD screen resolution (800x480) is excellent - especially considering the price point. The viewing angle is very good. I was impressed with the automatic slideshow transitions that are added. You can also view your images as thumbnails or use it as a clock. Another great feature is the timer functionality, so you can program the device to power on and display photos during certain timeframes.
So why is this mid-level? Some of the newer digital frames have internal speakers and allow playback of videos that you may have recorded, or MP3 songs. The additional features of some frames are great - but may not justify the higher price for a lot of consumers. The Philips is a nice, middle-of-the-road and well-priced digital picture frame with an excellent LCD screen. I definitely recommend it for the average consumer who will be happy with the basic functions. I've given only four stars because I would have liked to see a remote control included to supplement the control buttons on the back of the frame.