Tuesday 25 November 2008

Digital Frame - viewsonic, cheap


For the price, this Digital Frame is not terrible. I was expecting something a bit better but again, it's ok for a 480x234 resolution.



There's not on board memory but you can use a cheap SD or USB flash drive, just drop your pics there and you're ready. The menu is very basic as the unit itself.



If you can wait or pay for something better, then do it. Viewsonic'S VFA724W-10 7-Inch High Resolution Digital Photo Frame (Cherry Wood Frame)

I bought this digital photo frame for an older relative so I wasn't looking for anything with a lot of features... just nice and simple navigation and display. I had been pricing them for weeks beforehand and found it was VERY difficult to get a nice digital frame for anything less than $50--I'm so glad I found Viewsonic before I shelled out that kind of cash. This Viewsonic frame is easily the best value for your money ($29 when I bought it) and looks great. Unlike some of their competitors who use very cheap and wobbly plastic, this frame is made to look and feel just like wood, there is a nice white matte, and the entire thing is glass plated. Also, the stand is built into the frame and holds firm.



The image is stretched to fit the entirety of the frame--unlike other models which will leave an obnoxious edge around your photo--and the image quality is really bright, clear and crisp. I put a couple hundred photos on a USB flashdrive, plugged it in, and it was ready to go. Once I test drove the first one, I went out and bought one for myself... if you're not looking for special features (this one only appears to have pause, play, backwards, and forwards along with some image editing options) this is the perfect gift for yourself or someone you love. Simple but classy, I would definitely recommend it.

Not bad, and not good. The instruction manual is so poor it is almost funny.

If all you want to do is look at pictures stored on a SD memory chip is should be okay. Picture quality is good. Anything more complex can be a real challenge. I wanted to use a Memory Stick but could not get the Card Selection Screen to do anything but sit there. The only button that effected this screen put me to the Viewing Options screen so there was no way I could select using a Memory Stick. Somehow or other I also got to a totally undocumented screen that gave me three choices: Rotate Photo, Zoom Photo, or Adjust Color. I tried these options and now know why this screen is undocumented; the Adjust Color option is impossible to use.

The manual frequently refers to buttons to push that are non existent and to a remote control that does not come with the unit. Reference is made to a Play button followed by a weird symbol like this (>/ll). There is no Play button so the symbol probably means not in this edition. The best feature is the OFF button. It is like a reboot and works great.

We have a few high-dollar frames and they perform as expected. Frankly, I did not expect a ton considering the Viewsonic's price...but I was quite surprised. Easy to set up and a menu that was simple to sort through. Spend some time cropping your pics to 16:9 and they come out beautifully. Let the frame scale them and the quality will disappoint. The quality of the actual wood frame was astounding and was better than any of our expensive frames. We purchased multiple Viewsonics for gifts and they were a big hit. I took about 30 mins to crop and load pics on all of them and we have happy grandparents all over the country!

There is an undocumented menu for adjusting the images' brightness, contrast, tint, and color. However when you go to this menu option, brightness is the only option that is selectable to adjust, even though the other options have values that would seem to be changeable.



The result is that the images displayed, since those items cannot be adjusted, look poor at best...and thus this frame is not worth any price, unless you have been lucky enough to get a screen that looks okay. I apparently didn't.

The product arrived on time and in great condition. I am pleased with its performance and look, especially given the price I paid. It's a great buy if you want a simple digital frame, but it's not suited for a glamorous gift. Great budget buy!

If I had bought this in a brick and mortar store, I would return it. Wood frame is nice, sure, but image quality is awful. I bought this based on knowing View Sonic USED to have a good reputation for computer monitors. This product's display is FAR worse than the off brand drugstore model my husband bought me last year, for less. I wish I had bought the cheaper off model at the drugstore, since I bought this as a gift. I loaded a brand name SD card and plugged it in. Picture quality is very poor. I am more discerning than many though, and the person I bought this for MAY not notice. I sure notice. - Photo Frame - Cheap - Viewsonic - Digital Picture Frame'


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