Archive for May, 2007
FrameChannel uses the open RSS standard that millions of devices can interact with. FrameMedia uses RSS in order to make using FrameChannel as easy as possible for both users and frame manufacturers.
But PF Digital, the company that makes the eStarling, doesn’t allow its users to add whatever RSS feed they’d like to their eStarling frames. We think they ought to.
The eStarling frame currently supports a handful of external RSS feeds: Flickr, Picasa, Photobucket, and a few others. The company’s position on adding new RSS feeds is:
More RSS support will come. Please send email to suggestions@estarling.com to
include a new RSS.
We’re asking WirelessPictureFrame.com readers and FrameChannel users to email PF Digital/eStarling and ask them to add FrameChannel to their list of supported RSS feeds.
PF Digital needs to open the eStarling to other RSS feeds — including, but not limited to, FrameChannel — for a number of reasons.
Not allowing users to add whatever RSS feed they want is similar to Microsoft creating a version of Internet Explorer that can only visit certain websites. No one would stand for that — or probably use that browser for too long. PF Digital isn’t Microsoft’s size, of course, so they may need to move more deliberately. This would be a good next step.
PF Digital should also open up their RSS feeds because open standards and systems are better for users. When companies leverage open systems, interoperability increases, in turn increasing the value of products to customers. After all, the open Internet has proved to be more appealing than cloistered systems like AOL.
PF Digital isn’t the only frame company that isn’t open enough when it comes to RSS. Kodak needs to open up, too, and we’ll revisit that issue in the future.
The companies that have opened up already, like BigEFrame, should be applauded for their forward-looking stance. More frame makers are certain to be joining that list soon.
We hope that the eStarling will join those ranks, too, and if you’d like to see them do so, please email suggestions@estarling.com and ask them to add FrameChannel to their list of supported RSS feeds.
The motion sensor is something that really sets this VistaFrame apart! 
VistaFrame is a digital photo frame that offers consumers a simple and easy way to display their digital pictures directly from a memory card. VistaFrame’s slideshow feature allows users to showcase pictures on a personalized display. VistaFrame features two built-in Memory Card readers compatible with most Memory Card Formats, eliminating the need for a computer. This makes the VistaFrame an ideal gift for someone who doesn’t have a computer.
VistaFrame is compatible with 5 popular Memory Card Formats, providing consumers with compatibility from a wide range of digital cameras. The upper Memory Card Slot is a 4-in-1 Card Reader able to read the following Memory Card Types: SD, Memory Stick®, SmartMedia®, and MultiMediaCardâ„¢. VistaFrame’s Lower Memory Card Slot reads CompactFlash® Cards (Type I only). Consumers can view digital pictures directly from their Memory Card or from VistaFrame’s Internal Memory “My Album.” Up to 8 pictures can be saved in “My Album.”
VistaFrame goes into Power-Saving Mode after 60 minutes of inactivity and wakes up when the built-in Motion Sensor detects movement, a Memory Card is inserted, or a button is pressed.
Features
- Clear, bright 6.8″ TFT LCD Flat Screen.
- Easy to set up, just plug in the Power Adapter
- Easy to use, simply insert your Memory Card.
- Compatible with most Memory Cards.
- Display one picture continuously or create your own slideshows.
- Motion Sensor-Activated Display
The VistaFrame digital picture frame, with motion sensor, is priced at $250.00 in most stores.  Â
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Our sister site, FrameChannel, is designed for wireless digital picture frames, as you probably know. However, what you may not know is that it works on many other devices, too. FrameChannel works as a screensaver, with Yahoo Widgets, and with Google Desktop.
Today, the FrameChannel Yahoo widget is featured on the front page of the Yahoo Widget gallery.
Yahoo Widgets is a free — and very cool — tool that gives you a bunch of small, specific programs that sit on your desktop and do things like check stocks and weather forecasts.
Since both Yahoo Widgets and FrameChannel are free, there’s no reason to not go download both and start enjoying the benefits of FrameChannel today. There are some reasons besides price that you should download both today:
- Try Before You Buy – If you’ve been thinking of buying a wireless digital picture frame, then using FrameChannel with Yahoo Widgets will give you a taste of how cool FrameChannel would be on your frame. And who knows? You might like it so much that you’ll order a frame today!
- Compelling Content – FrameChannel gives you a lot more than access to photos. It’s got over 200 content channels for you to choose from to create your own customized channels. From jokes to pictures from NASA and the AP, from cartoons to news feeds to National Geographic images, it’s got it all. And almost all content is free.
Now that FrameChannel is live and open for anyone to get a free account, there are just two things I’m waiting for:
- FrameChannel on a Frame – Having FrameChannel run on the desktop is cool, but it will be even cooler to see it running on a wireless frame hanging on a wall or sitting on a desk. FrameChannel is already being used by a couple of frame manufacturers, and according to our interview with FrameMedia co-founder Alan Phillips, more are on the way.
- The Christmas Rush – Pretty much everyone is expecting this Christmas to be the breakthrough year for digital picture frames. Which is great. Even greater? All the new potential users for FrameChannel. Because it’s easy for users to create and publish their own channels that anyone can subscribe to, I think we’re going to be seeing a lot of exciting, innovative new content on FrameChannel after the holidays.
For now, though, you can put your early adopter hat on by downloading the FrameChannel Yahoo widget.
More than 112,000 digital picture frames were sold in the week leading up to Mother’s Day, according to new data released by market research firm The NPD Group. The total value of these sales was nearly US$12 million.
According to NPD, 7-inch frames were the most popular frames, and the average selling price for the 7-inch devices was down to just US$81. Overall average selling prices were at US$106. Both figures were large drops – over $50 in both cases – from the same period last year.
The total number of available frame products tracked by NPD rose from 13 to 70 this year, according to the company.
These numbers are of particular interest because they indicate the continued and growing importance of women to the digital picture frame market.
Pandigital told us that 78% of their customers – and remember, they’ve sold more frames than anyone else – are women. That information, combined with NPD’s data, seems to make clear that women are going to be a key, if not the most central, market for digital picture frames for at least the near term.
Which manufacturers and marketers will see this and act on it first? It could be the difference between success and failure.
