Customer Reviews

Digital Spectrum MemoryFrame MF-575 5.6-Inch Digital Picture Frame

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(22)

 

 

This frame is great for what I wanted it to do - play a picture slideshow. Ignore whatever else it says it does. It plays mp3s and you'd think that you can play music in the background while the slideshow is going, but you'd be wrong. Technically, you could do it, but the song starts skipping around - I guess there isn't much processing power in the frame. In its defense, I didn't expect it to have much.

I was also a little bummed that the only video supported is MPEG (and I haven't even tried that yet). It's a shame one of the most popular formats (AVI) isn't supported.

Those are all the negatives. As for what I do like about it:
- Very nice looking wooden frame
- Plays slideshows (and as soon as you power it on, without any other interaction)
- Loops through pictures non-stop
- Random picture fade in/out effects
- A lot of video options (brightness, sharpness, hue, contrast, etc.)
- Separate slots for SD card and USB cable
- Comes with an easy-to-use SD card reader/writer that plugs into a USB port
- Had my first slideshow up and running within 5 minutes of opening the box (easy to set up, didn't even need the manual)

It's a great digital picture frame, but keep your expectations low as far as the background music capability goes.

I love cool gadgets and this one is inexpensive, easy to use and the picture quality is great. I put cell phone pictures, digital camara pics and a music CD on a SanDisk to check out its capabilities and I am truly impressed. I can play music... but volume controll is by menu and that's not easily controlled as an external control would be but I was more interested in running a series of pics like vacation, family events, etc. Music and pics don't work and I haven't tried Music videos yet. I plan on buying a few more for family and may even use them for a corporate gift to customers.

Oh so close to a 5 star rating. Be warned that the description says that a remote control is included. IT IS NOT. Not a deal breaker for me but it should be removed from the included list. Larger picture files should be reduced so that they are not distorted when displayed.

Pros: The 89.99 sale price was to good to pass up. The screen is brightly lit and the images appear to be pretty sharp. The menu is easy to understand and navigate. The wood frame that is packaged can be replaced with other frames and is easy to remove and looks good.

Cons: The instructions. Now I'm no idiot and have plenty of high tech gadgets, but the instructions only go as far as to spell out what each functions are for the setup menu. THAT'S IT. I have never used a card reader before, so I had no idea that the un-documented gadget included was one. Took me a few to figure out that you had to remove the plastic cover over the end where you insert your SD card. That's when I felt like an idiot. After that it was smooth sailing.

All in all I'm pleased with the digital frame, but better instructions on how to use the card reader and correct listing of the included items and I would have rated this higher.

The resolution on the display for the Digital Spectrum MemoryFrame is terrible. If you get any closer than five feet from the picture, the image looks grainy - you can't even make out faces. I should have known, given the resolultion: this one is only 320x240. There are frames for not much more $$ that have double that resolution. Plus, the unit is gigantic and, despite the faux-wood frame around the outside, will definitely stand out on your desk or mantle. It must be four inches thick - nevermind the power cord sneaking out the back. In addition, the construction of this thing is cheap plastic. The faux-wood frame rattles loosely around the display, and the buttons feel like they're going to snap each time you press them. In addition, the menu is not intuitive and, given the terrible resolution, can even be difficult to read. I'm returning mine, and I think I'll wait for this technology to get better (and cheaper) before I try again.

I bought mine as a gift for my parents. They are going to love it.

Initially the pictures do not seem to be as clear as expected, mostly because I am used to veiwing the pictures on a nice flat panel monitor, but they look just fine.

It is perfect for a gift for Grandparents, as long as you set it up prior to giving.

Very good value for $99!

I would also suggest purchasing a memory card (I got a 512M for $15, holds hundreds of pics)

Another thing that also sold me was the fact that the wooden frame is interchangeable with any 5x7 frame.

Again, great value!
LKH


NOTE:
I had never used a card reader before, and there are no instructions in the package, so here they are if you need them:

1. Take bottom cover off of card reader (it's the small white square that says "SD/MMC/MS/XD" on it).
2. Place your (not included) memory card in the card reader.
3. Plug the "mini" USB cable(black cable) into the card reader, then plug the other end of the "mini" USB cable into your computer's USB port.
4. Transfer photos and pics from computer to the device.
5. Once completed, pull card from reader and plug memory card into frame.
IT IS VERY EASY

Over all I'd have to say this is a decent price for a decent gadget. I have many of the same nit-picks as the others. My biggest grip though, is the screen size. If I can buy a 19" LCD for $150 online nowadays, this thing should be at least 5x7. Just my two cents.

Regarding the other "features", like mp3, I agree that they should not be included unless it can perform the task. The remote should be included. I know it was wrongly listed as having one by Amazon. This should be considered essential.

As an aside, with the previous critique about not playing AVI movies, the problem is that AVI is actually not a format. It's a pesky, junky, windows-centric "wrapper" that is/can be put around virtually any movie format. For this reason I can't really blame the gadget. Instead we can blame the dumbing-down of computer users by the "industry" when they fail to explain things like this because they think we are too dumb. It causes all kinds of confusion. In reality, my understanding is that an AVI file may be wrapping an MPEG, DIVX, MOV, or nearly any other common video codec.

Far better models for similair price range - dissapointed with the quality of the finish etc etc. works fine though.

This product works fine except for the fact it gets hot very fast. We can't just leave it on running all day.

I bought this at Christmas 2006 as a present for my wife. Great present, well received and a wonderful way to view pictures and remind us of when they were taken ....... but it only lasted 5 months. By May 2007 it packed up and wouldn't play any more pictures. Replaced the memory card but to no avail ..... not worth the money for five months.

This frame looked very nice after it was first purchased however after two weeks the pixels started to go out. After 3 weeks it looked like it was snowing in every picture. I called the company 2x but never got a call back. I'm looking for a new model now.