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April 12, 2007
[ REVIEW—KaiserBaas Digital Picture Frame ]
Price: $400
Highly Recommended
The low-down: This digital photo frame has a diagonal dimension of 20cm and is mounted with an attractive surround suspended on clear plastic. There are picture surrounds of different colours that are easy to install. The LCD screen – 800 by 600 pixels – is of the quality of a high resolution notebook computer monitor and images are sharp and colour good. Images can be loaded into the frame from any type of memory card, including USB dongles, or directly from the computer. There is a small remote control and 16mb of internal memory.
Like: The image quality on this screen is particularly fine, and 20cm is a good compromise between size and price.
Dislike: We have found that all of these digital picture frames are user- hostile with confusing controls and inadequate manuals. The problem is that they all try to do too many things and as a result are frustratingly difficult to use. If the intention is to give a frame to a technophobe grandmother for mother’s day then it needs careful thought. The controls are a set of small buttons and switches that perform multiple functions depending on when and in what combination they are used. On screen menus are ugly and unhelpful. The manuals of all the frames we have tested are bewildering and the remote controls only make matters worse.
It ought to be possible to insert a memory card into its appropriate slot, press Play and it will load and display the images. Anything beyond that is unnecessary and detracts from the attractions of the frames.
Verdict: This is the best digital picture frame that we have tried. Its price seems to be about right by comparison with the competition, even if a bit steep for a single function gadget. The only way to judge the merits of these frames is to carefully prepare 20 horizontal images on a memory card with brightness, contrast and size all adjusted for best display on an 800 by 600 LCD, and then take it to a shop and ask them to demonstrate the various frames. The pre-loaded manufacturers’ promotional slides tell you nothing except that there are some exceptionally happy, tanned people with excellent teeth out there.
Posted by terry at April 12, 2007 04:12 AM
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Comments
I didn't get a chance to look at this, other than the outside of the box. 800x600 pixels is the minimum for that size of screen and is cheap to manufacture. AUD 400 is not a high price - an old notebook PC would cost about that much but then it's clunky and ugly and consumes more energy, I expect. The 4:3 aspect ratio would suit most of our digital photos - I saw a small 5R type screen with a 3:2 ratio or something like that - horrible because all the photos displaying on it were squashed. However, I've always been stingy about expenses not related to the camera - AUD 400 could get you a nice point and shoot model.
Posted by: anandasim
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at April 18, 2007 12:48 AM
For my wife's mother's day gift, a $99 "good enough for the purpose" picture frame at K-Mart pleased her.
Sure, its aspect ratio is wrong, and the contrast is way too high. But if this is all that you want, it'll do.
-peterpills
Posted by: Peter Allen at May 14, 2007 06:45 AM
For your readers info, the updated 10.4 inch model, with 256MB memory and interchangeable white & black frames is available now for $399.
Posted by: Henry at July 11, 2007 10:01 AM
It looks very nice, but the price still is a little high. If you are looking good quality with low price,why not directly buy it from China supplier ?
Posted by: www.svnco.com at December 1, 2007 12:14 AM
Enjoyed your review, and funny enough I was looking for a frame for a technophobic grandmother. Good advice! I'll be back.
Posted by: Neil at February 5, 2008 10:14 AM
It certainly looks nice, but I think this one beats the pants off it for value and looks ... its manufactured by a Taiwanese company called "SUN Group" ... not that well known, but great products...
SUN 8 Inch Digital Photo Frame [$249]
Posted by: Henry at June 4, 2008 02:12 PM