Is the Viewsonic digital photo frame any good?
The Viewsonic digital photo frame is a decent budget frame. It doesn’t feature Wi-Fi or cloud connectivity but offers a simple enough user interface. Despite having a low-resolution screen, the Viewsonic digital photo frame redeems itself by using a 4:3 aspect ratio. Unlike many budget digital photo frames that use 16:9 aspect ratios, 4:3 offers a more natural and uninterrupted viewing experience. You get fewer cropped or distorted images and they won’t be boxed in by black bars.
That being said, it would have been nicer to see a slightly higher resolution display – but it’s okay for most situations. You get an 8-inch display with minimal screen wastage. The bezels are quite thick but still offer a relatively immersive viewing experience.
Without the ability to connect to Wi-Fi or the cloud (and all the related features), the only way to send photos to the frame is via an SD card. You can’t connect a USB as there is no supported port, and the frame has no internal storage. Photos are displayed directly from the SD card. This can be an issue as you can occasionally run into trouble trying to read the photos from the SD card.
Viewsonic digital photo frames don’t support multimedia playback (audio included), you can only view photos in slideshows. As for slideshows, you don’t have a lot of control over play order. The photos are almost played in a random order, with pictures often being skipped over and shows often.
The attachable stand isn’t adjustable but does support both landscape and portrait orientations. You’ll find the viewing angle to be quite narrow, with photos being difficult to see from above or from the sides. You can’t mount this frame on the wall, so viewing angle isn’t always the biggest issue. You can just move the frame manually to face you or the entrance to the room for example.
For the price, the Viewsonic digital photo frame isn’t a bad deal. You get a simple and basic frame without many features. For some people this is ideal – but not without issues. The user interface feels outdated and can be tricky to navigate. That being said, you shouldn’t expect a refined and premium experience from a budget-level digital photo frame. In summary, you get what you pay for – though it’s likely not a frame that’ll last for several years.
How does the Viewsonic digital photo frame compare to the Pix-Star?
Pix-Star’s frame is one of the top-selling frames on Amazon – and one of the best premium frames on the market. While it’s not the fairest comparison to make, the Viewsonic digital photo frame struggles to compete in any way with the Pix-Star.
With the Pix-Star frame, you get full Wi-Fi and cloud support – along with all the accompanying features. This includes a well-designed mobile app and a fluid web interface. You can send photos to the frame easily and from anywhere, including videos and audio notes. Sending photos to multiple frames at the same time is effortless and doesn’t take more than a few moments. The Pix-Star digital frame is great for both elderly users that aren’t tech-savvy, and for large and spread-out families.
You can view photos and photo albums from social media and photo-sharing platforms on the Pix-Star frame by linking them via the web interface. They’re automatically synced and saved to the frame’s 8GB internal storage and can be viewed offline.
One of the main ways the Pix-Star takes the lead is with slideshows. First of all, you’re viewing them on a higher resolution 1024×768 display with adjustable color and brightness settings. You can choose to display all the photos on the frame, and the option to include videos (with or without sound). You can choose specific folders to include in a slideshow, and even play recent photos only – or more frequently.
Slideshows can be started remotely via the web interface. Here you can manage and control up to 25 connected frames. You can edit and manage cloud storage, import external photos, and web albums, and change most settings on the frame – from anywhere in the world.
When you consider all of these features, along with secondary ones like web music & radio, weather & alerts, reminders, games, and more – it’s easy to see why the Pix-Star is one of the best on the market. If your budget can accommodate the Pix-Star frame, you’ll get far more versatility and functionality for your money. It’s an especially useful frame for large families and those that want to involve the grandparents and other not-so-tech-savvy loved ones.
Can I connect the Viewsonic digital photo frame to Wi-Fi?
Viewsonic digital photo frames don’t have any Wi-Fi or cloud capabilities. You can’t connect to mobile hotspots or mobile networks. Features like Bluetooth to connect directly to a mobile device are computers also aren’t available. These frames can only receive and display photos from compatible SD cards. There’s no internal storage so you’ll need to leave the SD card inserted at all times to view the photos on them.
How many photos can the Viewsonic digital photo frame hold?
Viewsonic digital photo frames don’t have internal storage space. This means that alone, they can’t hold any photos. They can display photos from a compatible SD card that’s inserted into the frame’s SD card slot. You’ll need to leave it connected at all times. You might struggle to get larger cards (especially larger than 32GB) to work with this frame. If you have issues, try using a smaller card – around 4-8GB. This is usually enough for 4,000 – 8,000 photos assuming the average photo size is ~1MB (larger than average).
Can the Viewsonic digital photo frame play videos and audio?
Viewsonic digital photo frames do not support multimedia playback. You can only display photos on the 800×600 screen. Note that the support photo format is JPG only. You can’t play audio as there are no inbuilt speakers on the frame, or any way to connect external speakers (Bluetooth or via a USB/AUX cable).
