Reviewed
by: Jack
Reikel, December 2006
Manufactured
by: Philips
Requires: Digital
photos; Windows 2000, XP or Vista for file transfer
via USB connection
MSRP: US$199.00
(street price)
A
digital camera with a 2GB storage card is a dangerous
thing to have. The main reason is that we end up
shooting thousands of pictures in a very short period
of time. The problem is that none of us have even
the faintest hope of ever displaying even so much
as the tiniest fraction of the good photos we manage
to take. The result? Most of what we shoot—landscapes,
vacations, family, kids, and all the rest—never
see the light of day. So what's the point of all
that camera gear if nobody ever gets to see the photos?
Traditional framing is out of the question and even
if you do start framing dozens of photos, where are
you going to hang them? Help is at hand.
The
Philips Digital Photo Display is a 7" (diagonal)
LCD screen mounted in a slim, attractive acrylic
frame and integrated support. It's a freestanding
device with a rear panel that includes a dual-slot
multicard reader. The reader is compatible with
Compact Flash I (CF) cards, Sony Memory Sticks
(MS), Secure Digital (SD) cards and Multi Media
Cards (MMC). We tested the device in a variety
of domestic and office settings, in a wide range
of ambient, artificial and natural lighting conditions.
The
Philips Digital Photo Display has six control buttons
along the top rear panel which provide basic functions
for full screen browsing, slideshows, thumbnail
browsing, file copy, file delete, photo rotate,
show in slideshow, as well as brightness adjustment,
language selection, slideshow command, status,
and daily auto on/off timer. The LCD is bright
and very sharp which seems to indicate a high density
display, which makes sense considering the decades
Philips has been in the display business. We loaded
digital photos into the Philips Digital Photo Display
in two ways: copying images from a PC via USB cable
to the device, and direct loading by copying photos
from a storage card inserted into the built-in
multimedia card readers.
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The
best vote in favor of the Philips Digital Photo Display
occurred during a brief business meeting in my office.
There were three other people in attendance at a planning
meeting. Everyone seemed to be participating in the meeting,
but a few minutes after we got started I realized that
nobody was looking at me when they were talking (or when
I was talking). In fact, they were all staring over my
shoulder at the digital photo frame. Although the 7" diagonal
screen is appropriate for the equivalent of a 4"x6" image,
it nonetheless caught everyone's attention from ten feet
(3 meters) distance. That's quite an accomplishment in
a brightly lit office.
At
home (well, in the homes of several different Kickstartnews
staffers actually) the Philips Digital Photo Display
did even better. With less ambient light than the typical
office, the device offers a lot of 'pop' in a living
room, bedroom or kitchen. Even in areas that receive
some direct sunlight, the display was often bright enough
to be seen. For the record, it's never a good idea to
allow direct sunlight to regularly hit an LCD (or any
other display for that matter). Viewing the display at
up to 50º off-axis presented surprisingly good detail
and clarity.
Setting
up slide shows is simple. All you have to do is load
the device, select the photos you want to use, and press
play. If you take a moment to set the automatic daily
on/off timer, the Philips Digital Photo Display will
turn itself on & off at preset times each day. If
you don't want to wait for photos to transfer from a
storage card, you can leave the card in the device and
run the slideshow directly from the card.
Cons: Battery
life is absurdly short at about 70 minutes—this
unit it really meant to be used with the AC adapter.
Built-in memory is much too small at 45-50 images at
800/720 x 480. Given the low cost of volatile and non-volatile
memory over the past few years, Philips and other digital
photo display makers should either increase the amount
of built-in memory or make it user upgradeable. The AC
adapter cable is too short for some living room setups—you
may need an extension cord. The navigation menu is a
bit fiddly. The contemporary styling may not fit into
all decors. The built-in multimedia card reader cannot
handle Compact Flash II or xD memory cards. It stands
securely but we're still not crazy about the metal support
bracket because it can cause minor abrasions on delicate
surfaces. We applied a thin strip of self-adhesive rubber
pad which also helped keep the unit more securely positioned.
No image or slideshow effects. No transitions.
Pros: With
a screen rated at 20,000 hours and a built-in timer,
you can run the Philips Digital Photo Display 6 hours
a day for about 10 years or more. That's excellent value
for any device that works so well to entertain visitors,
family and friends. The Philips Digital Photo Display
is well made and the quality of the LCD renders decent
photos quite well. Digital photo displays have come a
long way over the past few years, mainly because good
quality LCDs have dropped dramatically in price. Daily
on/off timer function is the absolute smartest feature
and it will help to keep the display bright and sharp
for years. The contemporary, Apple-ish styling fits well
in a wide variety of environments which means the device
looks attractive in living rooms, kitchens, bedrooms
and so on. If you're fed up with regularly dismantling
wooden and plastic picture frames, printing new photos
and hanging stuff on your walls, the Philips Digital
Photo Display is the answer to a prayer. Highly recommended.
