5 Affordable Digital Photo Frames That Won’t Break the Bank

By Alice Hill
RealTechNews

Long ago I received a set of Ceiva digital picture frames to review. The frames were beautiful, but the business model, the price, and the technology were just not ready for primetime. You had to dial into a server that would download your pics - great for sharing new photos with Grandma, but a dial-up connection and a monthly fee? No thanks. (Ceiva is still in business, btw, and you can use an Internet connection, but the price is still through the roof.)

What About the Rest of Us?
Today, truly affordable digital picture frames are popping up in all sorts of sizes and price points. Some play video and/or audio, some double as a clock, and others are just inexpensive fun. Load up a memory card, or connect to your PC via USB, and boom - instant slide show. With that in mind here are five frames that won’t break the bank.

1. Desktop Digiframe Digital Photo Frame and Clock $70
The Desktop DigiFrame stores up to 22 of your favorite snaps that cycle throughout the day on your desk. Powered by 2 AAA batteries, this desk clock gives your office the personal touch and tells the date, time and temperature too.

You get a USB cable, photo software to load up your frame via your PC, and a battery for the clock part of the gadget. Not bad for $70. Source: Latestbuy.com.au via Fosfor

2. Magpix Palm-Sized Digital Picture Frame $99
True, it looks like someone cracked off and framed the swing-out digital viewfinder from the back of a digital camera, but for those of us who balk at those digital picture frames that cost closer to $300 plus a monthly fee, the Magpix Pocket Photo Album may be a refreshing alternative.

$99 gets you the framed 1.5 inch LCD with a scant 16MBs of memory, but you can bump it up thanks to the SD/MultiMediaCard slot. Plus, when you consider how small the display is, you can probably load thousands of smaller sized thumbnails and still have a world of decent-looking photos in your palm. You can even connect it to your TV. Source: Magpix.com

3. Tricod DigiFrame Heart-Shaped 1.1 inch Photo Keychain $39.95
Ok, this one makes me cringe, but I’ll bet every one of us can name someone in our life who would clap with delight over this product. Best of all, it’s cheap at $39.95.

What you get: 512MB of internal memory that stores up to 56 pictures. Software the automatically re-sizes your snaps, an auto play or manual playback mode setting, a simple USB connection that doubles as a battery charger (no need to buy batteries), and (brace yourself) it comes in a heart-shaped box. Source: B&HPhotoVideo.com

4. Media Street DF-EM7 Pure eMotion, 7″ Digital Picture Frame $119.95
Now we’re talking. A 7-inch TFT digital screen starts up a slide show the second you turn it on. The frame has a matte black finish around the screen and a shiny black acrylic frame, giving it a sleek modern look, and the $119 price is a steal.

Key features: Display images on the 7″ Hi-Resolution (480 x 234) anti-glare 16:9 Wide TFT color LCD. Compatible with common digital camera memory cards including Secure Digital, MultiMediaCard, Memory Stick, CompactFlash, and xD-Picture Cards. Operates from buttons on the unit. USB Port for easy transfer of images to frame from your computer. Source: BHPhotoVideo.com

5. Digital Spectrum MemoryVue MV800, Digital Photo/Video/Music Player, 8″ Digital Picture Frame $209.95
This is when we start getting serious without going broke. An 8-inch TFT screen that plays not only slideshows of your favorite pics, it also plays MP3 files in the background along with your photos, doubles as an MP3 player, and it plays video clips. Some other cool features include a wireless remote control, as well as side panel access to power and volume. And at $209, this one is going to jump off store shelves.

High Quality LCD Display
The 8″ High-Quality TFT color LCD Display has a 640 x 480 (VGA) resolution, and appears bright and sharp under most viewing conditions.

Compatible with Common Memory Cards
The Built in 5-in-1 Card Reader is compatible with CompactFlash (Type I & II), Secure Digital, MultiMediaCard, Memory Stick, and Memory Stick Pro Memory Cards.

Play Images, Videos and Music
The MV800 supports a range of still image video and audio format including MPEG1, MPEG2, & MPEG4 video; MP3 & MP4 audio; or JPEG & BMP images. The video playback feature can display high quality video up-to 640 x 480 @ 30 FPS. Source:BHPhotoVideo.com

Bottom Line: We predict that digital photo frames with be THE breakouthit of the holiday season. More on that later, but as you can see from these five choices, there are fun and affordable frames out there just waiting to shocase all those digital pictures you have.