Which are the best digital picture frames for families for 2022?
Pix-Star’s 10 & 15-inch frames are probably the best digital picture frames for families in 2022 and beyond. They’re one of the few premium frames that cater to individual users, families and less tech-savvy users at the same time. It’s seen through their smooth user interfaces, shallow menus, interconnectedness, multi-frame control groups, and how easy it is to share photos & videos.
Pix-Star’s frames offer free-for-life cloud storage and can receive photos from anywhere in the world in just a few short moments. Pix-Star’s digital photo frames are well-suited to bigger and busier families thanks to the helpful Pix-Star Snap mobile app & web dashboard. The mobile app lets you send up to 250 photos to multiple frames at the same time.
Pix-Star’s web dashboard is arguably the most versatile on the market, letting you import photos from almost a dozen social media, photo-sharing, and online storage platforms. These frames are excellent at automating the photo-sharing process as you can set web albums to automatically sync and download any photos that get subsequently added to any linked albums.
Finally, Pix-Star’s web interface lets you remotely adjust any of your connected Pix-Star frames from anywhere in the world. Here you can adjust your frames’ settings, start slideshows, manage storage (both cloud & local), update their firmware, and much more. It’s the perfect feature for families that want to stay connected but don’t enjoy all the frustrations of photo-sharing, management, and who sees what & when.
What to look for in the best digital picture frames for families?
Interconnectedness is an essential feature for any frame that’s competing for the top spot. The ability to manage all of your family’s frames from a single user account is a must-have feature for families – especially those with elderly users. Using new devices can be complicated with a steep learning curve for grandparents.
Digital picture frames like the Pix-Star offer family-focused features like free-for-life cloud storage and the ability to send & receive photos from anywhere in the world. Pix-Star’s multi-frame account lets you manage and control up to 25 Pix-Star frames from a single user account – making it easy to keep everyone in the family up to date with the latest photos and videos.
You should look for a digital frame with a big display (10-inches and up), a 4:3 aspect ratio (to match the photos most smartphones take), and adjustable brightness color & brightness settings. Other features like motion sensors, auto-on/off schedules, weather, web music & radio, etc., are all helpful features – but shouldn’t be at the forefront of the decision-making process.
How do the best cloud digital picture frames work?
Most of the best cloud digital picture frames offer cloud storage (usually limited and even paid in some cases), automatic backups, and some of the top cloud digital frames offer features like web albums & remote-control functionality. While not all of these features are reliant on the cloud, they work most effectively – and with the most versatility – when they’re synced in with the cloud.
As mentioned above, many of the best digital picture frames with cloud functionality have limits. This is almost the case, with only a couple of the top frames like the Pix-Star offering free-for-life cloud storage for all their frames. In most cases, there’s a limit on the size of cloud storage for each from, e.g., 10GB.
You can often pay for an additional optional annual subscription (e.g., Nixplay Plus & Skylight Plus) fee to either unlock cloud storage – or expand its allocated size. We seldom recommend choosing frames like these frames as their long-term cost can be very high when compared to competing frames like the Pix-Star. This becomes even more apparent when you consider that Pix-Star offers all of these “paid” features for free with any of their frames.
Do the best digital picture frames for families have great slideshows?
Slideshows are where the best digital picture frames separate themselves sharply from mid-range and cheaper digital frames. Very few mid-range and budget frames give you much control over slideshows, their settings, and how they appear on the display. By contrast, premium digital frames like the Pix-Star use versatile slideshows with an immersive 4:3 display to help you find the perfect slideshow for every situation.
Premium frames often let you control the play order & frequency at which photos are displayed within slideshows. This is a major pain point for many cheaper frames as you can often only view slideshows filled with randomized photos. Additionally, you’re seldom able to select which sources (e.g., from the mobile app, web albums, receive via email, USB/SD card, etc.) to play slideshows from.
For families that share & view a lot of photos, customizable and personalized slideshows are a must-have. You need to be able to select which files and folders are to be included in slideshows, how often specific photos appear, the order in which they display, and other stylistic elements. Additionally, some premium frames like the Pix-Star have a remote-control feature that lets you start & manage slideshows remotely from anywhere in the world – the perfect feature for big or busy families!
Can the best digital picture frames for families be remotely controlled?
Only a handful of the best digital picture frames for families support remote control – and we’re not referring to supporting a handheld remote that’s used to control the frame from within the same room. In most cases where the remote control is supported, it’s controlled through a web interface. In some cases, the remote-control feature is supported through the mobile app – though it’s not nearly as comprehensive not intuitive as using a web interface.
Pix-Star’s digital picture frames support remote control capabilities. You can remotely manage and control up to 25 connected Pix-Star frames from anywhere in the world. All you need is an online frame, a web browser, and Wi-Fi. Here you can adjust their settings, start slideshows, manage both local & cloud storage, change slideshow sources, and much more.
Remote-control functionality is an essential feature for families. You can automate much of the photo-sharing process, make sharing far less frustrating, and get less tech-savvy users like grandparents more involved – without needing to lift a finger.
