Pix-Star vs FeelCare frames: Which one is better?
The Pix-Star vs FeelCare frames comparison probably isn’t one you’ve heard before. FeelCare frames straddle the line between upper-mid-range and premium. They’re priced at just under what you’d pay for Pix-Star’s 10-inch digital frames – but their real-world performance is drastically different.
Pix-Star’s frames are arguably the most versatile premium digital frames on the market – which is impressive when you consider their price and lack of recurring or hidden fees. Pix-Star’s frames offer unique features like free-for-life cloud storage (something you don’t get with FeelCare frames). Additionally, Pix-Star’s frames offer a robust feature set with family & elderly user-focused features like web albums, comprehensive remote-control functionality, and more.
Perhaps the most impactful and most immediately noticeable difference between these frames is their aspect ratio. Pix-Star’s digital frames use a 4:3 aspect ratio; whereas FeelCare frames use a 16:10 ratio. Most of our modern smartphones capture photos in 4:3, and most cameras shoot in 3:2.
Digital frames with a 4:3 aspect ratio are best equipped to display these photos without having them surrounded by black pillar bars. Digital frames with 16:10 displays are arguably the worst at displaying photos send from smartphones & cameras. You will need to edit almost every picture that you send to FeelCare frames – or suffer from boxing-in, distortion, zooming, and/or cropping.
Pix-Star’s mobile app is more intuitive and capable. You can send more photos in one go (up to 250 photos at the same time – and to several frames at the same time). Videos & audio messages can be sent via the mobile app to any of your Pix-Star frames. Other premium features that the Pix-Star offers include multi-frame control groups (where you can control up to 25 connected Pix-Star frames from anywhere in the world), web albums (importing photos directly from social media & photo-sharing sites), automatic cloud backups, and 8GB of internal storage space.
In summary, Pix-Star’s frames are the better value for money choice. While this isn’t to say that FeelCare frames are bad frames – they too offer decent value for money for an upper mid-range frame. Key features are lackluster with FeelCare’s frames, giving Pix-Star the undeniable edge – and they’re only a couple of coffees more expensive.
Are premium frames like Pix-Star and FeelCare worth buying?
We always suggest going for a premium digital frame. While the Pix-Star vs FeelCare frames debate is important, it’s probably not as important as the premium vs budget frame debate. Premium frames offer a massive leap in versatility and functionality thanks to features like cloud storage, extensive Wi-Fi connectivity, mobile apps & web interfaces, remote control functionality, and far superior display quality.
As the mantra goes “You get what you pay for” – and this is 100% true for digital frames. Cheap digital frames are constantly criticized for their inferior build quality, poor usability, limited features, little to no internal storage, and no Wi-Fi or cloud capabilities. Their viewing experience lags far behind what you’d get from a premium digital frame – and the price isn’t much higher.
These issues extend into the mid-range of the market too. Many mid-range digital frames struggle to find their place on the market as they’re often only marginally cheaper than most premium frames – yet they are far off in terms of functionality, features, and real-world performance. Premium frames like the Pix-Star offer impressive value for money and arguably the most versatile performance/features suited to the modern home & family!
Can Pix-Star & FeelCare frames be wall-mounted?
Pix-Star supports using a standard VESA mount (purchased separately), which is more versatile and robust than the simple screw-in setup that FeelCare offers. While both frames can be set up in either landscape or portrait, Pix-Star’s is less error-prone. Photos can also be rotated directly inside slideshows (or the entire frame’s orientation can be adjusted through the settings page).
Pix-Star’s digital photo frames also come with dedicated hanging holes for more versatile mounting options. This is a great addition for families that like to move their frame(s) around the house or switch up their positioning without committing to a single setup point. It’s also quicker and simpler to set up than a standard VESA mount – though not quite as robust.
Pix-Star vs FeelCare frames: Can they work without Wi-Fi?
Pix-Star and FeelCare frames can work without constantly being connected to Wi-Fi. This is an essential feature for any premium digital frame – especially for grandparents & families. In some cases – as with Aura frames – a constant connection is required to view photos every day. Pix-Star’s frames are arguably more versatile as they let you manage all of your locally saved photos, videos, and audio files via the frame’s media gallery.
Additionally, Pix-Star’s frames offer almost all of the frame’s settings for offline use. You can create customized and personalized slideshows, and adjust them without needing to exit the slideshow. To adjust these same settings on the FeelCare frame requires you to back out of the slideshow to the main settings page.
Do Pix-Star or FeelCare frames offer better slideshows?
No Pix-Star vs FeelCare frames comparison would be complete without looking at slideshows. Digital frame slideshows are probably the most important feature for day-to-day use – so you want something that doesn’t drive you up the proverbial wall. In short, Pix-Star’s 4:3 aspect ratio is far superior to FeelCare’s 16:10 aspect ratio for photo slideshows.
Since most of our smartphones and cameras shoot in 4:3 (some full-frame cameras shoot in 3:2), digital frames with a 4:3 display are going to be a better match. You won’t need to edit photos before sending them to the frame, smart-fill features are going to work more consistently, and photos won’t be surrounded by black pillar bars.
These are all common issues that are heavily criticized with 16:10 aspect ratios on digital frames. There are a few situations where 16:10 aspect ratios are the better choice – so it’s still quite a surprise to see some digital frames use them – especially at the FeelCare frame’s price point.
On top of all of this, Pix-Star’s frames offer more comprehensive slideshow settings. You have fine control over the play order & frequency in which photos are displayed. You can choose which files & folders to include in slideshows. Slideshows can be started remotely from anywhere in the world (and managed to change their settings, sources, etc.).
