The digital frame market continued its remarkable evolution at CES as a multitude of new models debuted offering everything from wireless uploads to the ability to print 4×6-inch photos.
The latter model comes to us from Smartparts who debuted a 7-inch frame, available by March they told us, that houses a small 4×6-inch dye-sub printer on the back. Cartridges that contain the photo paper and ink to make the prints at the touch of a button will cost about $20 and make 36 prints. The frame will carry a cost of around $270. The prints we eyed at the show looked solid. The idea here is obvious, as the images fly by and someone in the family says, “Oh, that’s a great picture of Mom and Dad,” the owner simply hits a button on top of the frame and that particular print comes out less than a minute later.
ToCad entered this market last year and the company has grown this SunPak-branded line to now include 5.6”, 7”, 8”, 10.4”, 12.1” and 15” models that are available in both Wood and acrylic outer frames. The displays are all of the TFT-LCD variety and can display photos or videos with SD, MMC and MS types of memory cards and/or USB Flash Drives. Add built-in stereo speakers on some of the models for sound when viewing movies or listening to MP3 files.
Optical storage makers LiteOn, under the CenOmax brand name, have entered the digital frame market as well with a nifty 7” model that doubles as an mp3 player – the F7024B.
CenOmax offers this stylish 7” widescreen digital frame with four frame inserts for some home décor flexibility. The F7024B can play back photos, video and audio in several formats including SD/MMC/MS/xD/CF for photos, supports major video formats and MP3 audio through its built-in speakers, and allows users to add music to their slideshows.
It incorporates an Auto Rotate feature that automatically rotates images for proper viewing, whether the frame is positioned vertically or horizontally. Expect an under $100 MSRP on this one.
Digital Spectrum Solutions introduced the Nu-Touch 700 frame that features a variety of new features including a T-Lite touch-sensor array that illuminates while in use, then disappears while a slide show is playing. The Nu-Touch has a 7” TFT screen and includes 128MB of internal memory that can store approximately 800 images. Add a built-in speaker and audio player so music can be added to slideshows as well. This model comes on the heels of the company’s Wi-Fi models, the MF-8115 and MF-8000, introduced last year.
Audiovox jumped in to this market as well with a combo message board/digital photo frame aptly named the Homebase Digital Message Board. Homebase is a digital picture frame with audio and video messaging capabilities, a built-in video and still camera, a digital calendar and the unit allows for writing directly on the screen with a market. The device can be mounted on a refrigerator door or sit on a countertop. They include 512 megabytes of built-in memory for storing photos, audio and video and it accepts media cards to expand storage. Audiovox’s Tom Malone noted that while the company had already been in the digital picture frame market, he wanted to offer something completely different from the rest of the competition. “We’re in it, but we wanted to be in it in a big way,” he said at the company press conference. “This takes digital picture frames to a whole new place in the home,” he added. Homebase will be available in two versions, one without the video camera for $149 and with the camera for $199. They’re expected to be out in time for Mother’s Day.
Digital Foci also introduced a new 15” model to their Image Moments line. With 256MB of internal memory and a 1024×768 display, Foci had added the most robust frame their line features. A built-in file management feature along with slots for all the most widely used media formats, Foci has really fleshed out their offerings in this category of late going from keychain models selling for under $100 to the new 15” model with a $399 price tag.
Fidelity jumped into the Wi -Fi frame game with the intro of their new Shogo-branded line of wireless models. The line now includes 8 and 10/4-inch model along with four frames that feature touchscreen interfaces. The new Shogo line will also feature rechargeable batteries, internal memory capacities of up to 2GB, Wi-Fi and Ethernet connectivity, auto image rotate and RF remotes. The new frames are capable of viewing images from the Net along with weather forecasts and streaming Internet radio through Fidelity’s new MyShogo.com site.
MediaStreet launched several new models as well, including – a 15” Thomas F. McKnight Edition that comes pre-loaded with images from the painter; a digital photo frame watch that displays the time, personal photos and a calendar all on a 1.5” display; and the 3.5” Personal Photo Edition, a touchscreen viewer with a leather cover that opens to activate the fame as well as serve a stand.
This provides but a peek at a market that is now nearing 100 different players and we’ll be taking a much closer look at this category in an upcoming issue of Picture Business.
