Does the Nixplay smart digital photo frame need a subscription?
The Nixplay smart digital photo frame has a premium monthly/annual subscription called “Nixplay Plus”. Nixplay Plus is required to unlock the Nixplay smart frame’s full feature set and functionality.
For example, by purchasing Nixplay Plus, you expand cloud storage, unlock full access to the mobile app, increase video and audio playback limits, grant online access, etc.
The issue here is that many competing frames offer all of these features – and oftentimes better – without charging any extra fees or subscriptions. We’ll look at this in more depth in the next section.
For example, Pix-Star digital photo frames offer free-for-life cloud storage, full access to their mobile app and web interface, the ability to remotely control and manage up to 25 frames from anywhere, and import social media photo albums directly to the frame, and more.
Pix-Star’s frames don’t charge any extra subscription fees or hidden costs. All of its features are unlocked and ready to go when you buy the frame.
With most devices that charge recurring fees, you get the hardware at a reduced rate – or for free. With Nixplay smart digital photo frames, the upfront cost is higher than most similarly priced digital frames. You then have to pay the subscription fee for each year you plan on owning the frame.
We recommend avoiding digital photo frames with monthly fees. They fail to offer enough unique features and functionality to justify their high long-term cost. Several frames don’t charge extra fees and offer much better value for money.
Is the Nixplay smart digital photo frame the best frame?
The Nixplay smart digital photo frame is subscription-based. This is usually a model we suggest avoiding as you need to pay extra monthly/annual fees to unlock the frame’s full feature set.
With Nixplay Wi-Fi frames, access to the mobile app and web interface, video and audio, cloud storage, online access, and more, are locked behind their subscription paywall.
Should you choose not to pay for their Nixplay Plus subscription, you’ll lose access to almost all of the features that make the Nixplay smart frame compete in this high-end space.
We suggest going for a digital photo frame with Wi-Fi like the Pix-Star. They don’t require any subscription fees and don’t lock any features behind a paywall. Despite this, you get a robust feature set and arguably the most versatile frame on the market.
This includes advanced features like a mobile app & web dashboard, extensive video and audio playback support, importing photos directly from social media to the frame, and the ability to remotely configure your frames from anywhere in the world.
Unlike Nixplay, Pix-Star’s frames work offline. This is thanks to their 8GB of internal storage space and extensive USB/SD card support. You can use any USB/SD card size and play slideshows directly off them when connected to the frame (without having to copy them to the frame’s internal storage).
Pix-Star’s frames offer better value for money than subscription-based frames like the Nixplay smart digital photo frame. You get more features, a lower upfront cost, and a frame that effortlessly caters to the modern home and family – without charging a cent extra!
How does the Nixplay smart photo frame work?
The Nixplay smart photo frame is a cloud-based digital frame. This means that photos are steamed from the cloud, temporarily held on the frame’s internal storage, and displayed in slideshows. Nixplay’s frames don’t work well offline, despite offering internal storage space.
Nixplay smart picture frames are also subscription-based. The subscription service is called Nixplay Plus. It’s required to unlock and expand upon features like cloud storage, multi-frame control groups, video and audio support, and access to the mobile app and web dashboard. These features are typically offered for free – and oftentimes more effectively – by competing frames like the Pix-Star.
Should you choose not to buy Nixplay Plus, you don’t have access to many features and photo-sharing methods. Your use of the Nixplay mobile app is very limited and you can only send a couple of pictures at a time.
It’s worth noting that Nixplay smart photo frames don’t offer USB/SD card support. This means that you can’t load photos to the frame while it’s offline. The issue here is that you can’t upload many pictures using the mobile app either – unless you pay for Nixplay Plus. It’s a bit of a lose-lose scenario.
For comparison, Pix-Star’s frames offer great USB/SD card support. You can use any size of USB/SD card and can play slideshows directly from it on the frame. There’s no need to copy any of the USB/SD card’s content to the frame’s internal storage first. This gives you access to unlimited external storage, which is made better by the Pix-Star plug & play feature.
Can the Nixplay smart frame play video and audio?
You can only play 15-second video clips on the Nixplay smart photo frame by default. If you choose to pay for the Nixplay Plus subscription, you can then play 60-second video clips.
For comparison, Pix-Star digital photo frame let you play 2-minute video clips by default. You don’t need to pay extra for the feature. Additionally, you can play audio files from a connected USB/SD card, and send audio recordings via the Pix-Star Snap mobile app.
Can I email photos to the Nixplay smart digital photo frame?
Nixplay supports sending photos to their smart digital photo frame by both email and via the mobile app. While the mobile app is the more versatile choice, almost all of its features are locked behind the Nixplay Plus subscription paywall.
Sending pictures to a Nixplay frame via email is also quite limiting. You can only send a couple of pictures at a time. Additionally, there’s no way to get them to add to slideshows automatically as they’re received. You also cannot organize these photos into playlists or adjust the order in which they play.
With photo-mail, you can only send a handful of pictures at the same time. You can’t send video or audio clips via this method either. This is one of the reasons that the Nixplay frame performs more like an expensive mid-range frame – especially if you choose not to buy the extra Nixplay Plus subscription package!
