Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I had high hopes for this frame. I did a bunch of research before purchasing, and like many in the photo frame market, am simply looking for a frame capable of receiving photos wirelessly in an easy-to-use, comprehensible format with a reasonable user interface that doesn't require constant interaction after the initial setup.
To preface this, I'm in IT for a living and relatively savvy when it comes to electronic gadgetry. I'm quite confident I have given this an overly fair "opportunity" to succeed (a few hours, to be precise). In fact, I was sure I was missing something, because the options that don't exist are so central to making the frame even halfway worthwhile. (And if by chance my assessment is incorrect, shame on HP for not making it either easier to use, or providing some sort of documentation for the wireless portion of the frame, which by and large is left for the user to muddle through.)
Anyway, simply stated, the biggest issue I have with this frame is each of the functions is completely disparate from the rest of the frame. For example, if you load pictures onto a memory card, the frame will only play those pictures (and not stream anything wirelessly). Likewise, if you are wirelessly streaming photos via Facebook in a particular album, not only is it impossible to have the slideshow also display Snapfish/etc photos, but you can't even set it to include other Facebook albums in the slideshow! It seems crazy, but I tried over and over again (and using both the Facebook and Snapfish interfaces), and I could only get it to display one album at a time. Once you're tired with that album, apparently they expect you to manually set it to display a separate album, and so on.
Honestly, is it so much to ask that the frame connects to my Facebook/Snapfish/etc account, and displays random images from ALL photo galleries? Even better would be to be able to exclude specific albums, but that's not even that important (at least in comparison). The thought that every time I add an album, I (a) have to manually configure the frame (via HP's website) to allow access to the new album, and (b) then I have to tell the frame to show that album (and subsequently, the next album, and so forth), I find the whole wireless integration terribly thought out and executed on HP's end.
A minor gripe in comparison, but worth noting -- when you're viewing FB, Snapfish, etc albums, there is a little icon that appears in the bottom-right of the screen with the FB/etc logo. So if you're constantly streaming FB photos, that icon (best I can tell) will always be there. It never turned off for me, and there were no options in the settings to disable it.
My idea of the ideal photo frame is to set it up and forget it. It should just auto-update with new photos. I shouldn't have to keep interacting with it. That's why I paid for wireless, but alas.
Anyway, I returned this product and will be trying something else in the future. Too bad, as the technology of photo frames is now multiple years old and yet we're still not seeing any real thought that goes into the user interface of these frames so we can configure it and hand off to grandma so she'll always be up to date.
Unfortunately, in my opinion, this frame simply doesn't live up to expectations.
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The HP 8-Inch Smart Wi-Fi Display is a full-featured wireless digital picture frame that lets you quickly and easily access digital content on the frame, on the Internet or on a home server or PC. It lets you enjoy and share photos from online photo sharing sites, access popular social networking sites, listen to Internet radio and receive information such as headline news and weather forecasts. The HP Smart Wi-Fi Display is a smart choice for personal use or as a gift to your loved ones. Built-in wireless connectivity: Lets you connect to the Internet and your home network; Lets you view your photo collection or stream video and music from your home media server or PC; Online photo sharing sites and social website access: Enjoy and share photo albums from your favorite photo sharing websites such as Snapfish, Photobucket, Flickr, and Picasa; Enjoy and share photo albums from your favorite social networking websites such as Facebook, MySpace, and morel; Get real-time notification when friends & families update their albums or when new photos are available; View latest video from your favorite people on YouTube; Internet radio and Internet gadgetView real-time weather condition in your area: Receive the latest Tweets from your friends; At the touch of a finger, listen to your favorite Internet radio stations; Customizable user interfaceEasy one-time setup on a PC allows you to pick and choose exactly what service to receive and how the user interface looks from various skins/backgrounds. You can also create your own playlist for photos, video and music from your collection: MMS photos: Send photos directly to your HP Smart Wi-Fi Display from your mobile phone;Digital Picture Frame functions: A feature-rich digital picture frame lets you browse through your photo collection online or offline. Now, you can share and receive pictures directly to your frame from family and friends. You can also view slideshows of your pictures while playing your favorite music
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