Rollip Turns Any Photo Into A Polaroid Look-Alike!

Rollip.com has developed a new site that lets you give any digital picture the classic look and feel of a vintage or Polaroid picture, and I am having a blast with it!

This actually is MY Christmas tree, by the way, from one of the “experiments” I was doing as I played around on the Rollip website.  It’s so easy – the website guides you through each simple step -  and such fun!

Rollip’s website gives people many more options than most similar sites, I’ve discovered.  There are many options for customization, as well as better quality effects of various kinds.  Rollip’s format – online – makes it much easier to share pictures across the social web.

Rollip is also addictive: I’ve been playing with it all evening!

You can also share your newly-made “vintage” pictures via email, as well as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and almost every other social media outlet.

Go on, click on Rollip.com and give it a try.  You’ll be hooked, too.  And just think how cool your wireless/digital picture frame will be, with all those “Polaroids” slideshowing across it!

Hands On with HP’s DreamScreen

Tom Spring, at PCWorld.com, has posted an article about HP’s new limited-wireless DreamScreen digital picture frames; he’s not entirely convinced, but we’ll let YOU be your own judge of it:

HP is taking the digital photo frame to new heights with its HP DreamScreen line of smart displays that do way more than just let you browse pretty pictures. The DreamScreen, announced Wednesday, is a beautiful smart display that comes in two sizes (10- and 13-inches diagonally). They link wirelessly to the Internet and can display pictures, five-day weather forecasts, Facebook friend updates, and the Pandora music service. The displays also can be linked to your desktop so you can easily put multimedia content directly on them.

Available today online, the HP DreamScreen will run you $250 for the 100 model and $300 for the 130 model. HP says DreamScreens will be in brick-and-mortar retail stores on October 11.

I checked out the HP DreamScreens last night at an industry event in New York and wouldn’t exactly call them a “dream.” The DreamScreen may look like slick tablet computers that people have been salivating for, but these are just very expensive and very smart displays that lack the key features — such as a touch screen interface and true portability — that could make them breakthrough products.

I’ll get into my beefs with DreamScreen after I break down the specs.

A Digital Photo Frame to Die For

The 130 DreamScreen model has a 13.3-inch display that offers a 16:9 ratio and a resolution of 800 by 480. The 100 unit has a 10.2-inch diagonal display. Both units sport 2GB (1.5GB usable space) of memory, have two USB ports, headphone output for external speakers, built-in stereo speakers, ethernet jack, and a 802.11 b/g wireless antenna. Both units have built-in 6-in-2 card readers that can accept CF and SD cards.

The USB port allows you to connect a thumb drive or external hard drive. The DreamScreen can also play videos (MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, H.264) and music (MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV). Software for a PC allows you to add content to the frame.

You navigate the device using a tiny remote control or via controls built into the hardware. Applications include access to HP’s SnapFish online photo service; a custom version of Facebook for viewing friends, status updates, and photos; access to Pandora music streaming service; HP’s own HP SmartRadio service; and a clock.

The DreamScreen some with wall mounts on the back or can be set on a table. It lacks a battery, so it must stay plugged in at all times.

What’s Not to Like?

My biggest beef with the DreamScreen is that you want it to be a touchscreen device — and it’s not. Last night, nearly everyone who looked at the DreamScreen tried to touch the screen to navigate it. The DreamScreens run an embedded version of Linux that lacks the ability to do much more than run pre-canned HP applications specially designed for the devices. Right now, there are only eight applications, though HP representatives say that number could be expanded soon.

I like the idea of having a limited functioning device, but some basic functions are missing. You can’t check e-mail or browse news headlines, for example. I get that HP is not just creating a touchscreen computer with this device; if I wanted one of those, I could plop down $1400 for HP’s TouchSmart IQ800t. However, I still craved an RSS display and simple messaging notification (be it e-mail, SMS text, or IM). Okay, so responding to messages would be an issue on the DreamScreen, but at least you’d know new messages were there.

Also lacking from the DreamScreen is the capability to view Web-based video content from services such as YouTube and Hulu. E-mail, video, and RSS feeds would all be possible without having to embed a full-fledge OS into the device if HP decided to give the DreamScreen a simple browser. It didn’t.

Another missing feature is the capability to stream video and auido files from your PC, which would eliminate the need to run them locally on the DreamScreen. Ideally you’d be able to navigate libraries of content on your desktop PC or NAS device and playback through the DreamScreen. Right now you can’t.

Another temptation with this device is to pick it up as if it were a sleek portable tablet. Want to take that video you’re watching into the kitchen? You can’t do it without unplugging the device. Even if you don’t mind plugging it in everywhere you go, the DreamScreen sports some bulky hardware on its backside, making it less than ideal for porting from room to room. Once you find a home for this unit, it will most likely stay there.

Now, I’m not going to be popular with HP’s Ameer Karim, director of product marketing. On Wednesday night he told me people just don’t want this type of functionality I want from the DreamScreen.

I readily admit I may be suffering from Apple tablet envy, where I think that everything that kind of looks like a tablet should be a table. But the DreamScreen, for me, is stuck in tablet purgatory. It’s not quite the tablet I want it to be and too expensive to justify as a replacement for the digital picture frame I never use.

Go Green with a Wireless Digital Picture Frame

Tracy, at Planet Forward, gives us all a suggestion about going green:  Go Digital!

Here’s a simple green tip of the week that can last a lifetime: use a digital camera to capture all of those memorable moments. When you process film, it necessitates the use of chemicals, a lot of water and paper. Choose a sustainable alternative with a digital camera that allows you to take countless pictures and easily delete the ones you don’t like and cherish those you love. Use a memory stick to take unlimited pictures at your complete discretion then copy them onto your computer for easy viewing.

And you can use a Digital picture frame to have an array of your favorite photos on display in your home. It’s green living made easy as you copy selected photos or plug in the memory stick into the Digital picture frame. The result, flashing crisp images that express even more about your child’s growth or a vacation you took or a party you attended. Digital picture frames are also a great and affordable eco-friendly gift idea to help cut down on the consumption required to process film.

You can also share your album online with friends and family through email or if you’re into the social networking scene, put them on your facebook or myspace pages or blogs of your own. It’s green photo sharing without using material resources.

If you aren’t already, start enjoying the benefits of a digital camera and follow this simple green tip that’s as easy as “say cheese.”

HP DreamScreen Wi-Fi frame spotted at FCC

Electronista tells us about the new HP DreamScreen WiFi digital picture frame!

A new digital photo frame from HP, the DreamScreen, is expected to arrive soon, as it was recently spotted passing FCC tests. The frame will be available with a 10.2-inch or 13.3-inch screen and respective resolutions of 800×480 and 1280×800. The unique feature is the device’s ability to access photos from Facebook and Snapfish, while simultaneously streaming music from Pandora over its Wi-Fi or wired Internet connection.

Otherwise, the frames are fairly conventional, with 2GB of integrated storage space, a remote control, and a reader for CF, SD, and Memory Stick memory cards. Pricing and release dates for the DreamScreen frames is not yet known.