Are Kodak digital frames worth the money?
Kodak digital frames are relatively popular frames – but nowhere nearly as recognizable as the Kodak brand name. While these frames bear the Kodak brand name, it doesn’t guarantee any form of quality. Kodak offers a wide range of digital frames for cheap & mid-range budgets and a single premium digital frame. Here we’ll be focusing more on the premium model as it’s the only one that’s relevant enough to consider getting in 2021 and beyond.
Kodak digital frames are priced very close to other premium digital frames like the Pix-Star – but they are missing some essential features. First of all, cloud storage is only free for up to 5GB – which runs out very quickly if this is a frame for the family. Secondly, cloud storage is only offered for free for the first 2-years.
Another key consideration is the aspect ratio of the display. We recommend going for a 4:3 aspect ratio as it offers better compatibility as our smartphones mostly capture photos in 4:3. Kodak’s premium frame uses a 16:9 aspect ratio, meaning that most photos and videos will be surrounded by black pillar bars on the top, bottom, or sides of the image.
While Kodak does offer ways to send photos to the frame remotely, it’s not nearly as versatile or reliable as competing frames like the Pix-Star. The mobile app is very clunky and slow, with a tricky interface that’ll catch out even the best of us tech-savvy users. Photos tend to take a very long time to load and are first loaded to the Kodak servers. If these servers are down, or your frame loses its connection, the photos can’t sync or display on the frame.
Slideshows aren’t very versatile and you don’t have much control over the playback order & frequency of its photos. The same photos tend to repeat quite often and some will hardly show. While there is a workaround for this (by creating custom folders), it’s nowhere near as user-friendly as you’d expect from a frame at this price point.
To summarize, Kodak’s premium digital photo frame is probably the only frame in their range that’s worth considering. Even then, it struggles to find its place on the market when compared to what other top digital frames like the Pix-Star, Nixplay, Aura, and Dragontouch offer. Pix-Star’s frames offer much better value for money and a robust feature set – but more on that down below.
Are Pix-Star frames better than Kodak digital frames?
Pix-Star’s digital frames are one of the most popular frames at the moment. They’re widely regarded as one of the best value for money premium frames thanks to unique features like free-for-life cloud storage, the Pix-Star Snap mobile app, web album support, video & audio playback, and the ability to send/receive photos from anywhere in the world.
Pix-Star’s frames use a 4:3 aspect ratio (which is better than Kodak’s 16:9 aspect ratio). Slideshows are extremely customizable and you can control the play order & frequency of photos and videos. Videos can be included in slideshows and can be set to play muted. Audio messages can also be sent to and played on the frame – either directly through the internal speakers or externally connected speakers/headphones.
Pix-Star’s digital frames offer web album support – which is the ability to link & sync photo albums from social media, photo-sharing, and online storage platforms. Supported platforms include Facebook, Google Photos, Instagram, Dropbox, Flickr, Google Drive, and many more. These web albums are saved to the frame’s internal storage and are accessible offline.
Another way that Pix-Star’s frames outshine Kodak’s frames is in their interconnectedness. You can connect & manage up to 25 Pix-Star frames remotely from a single user account. It’s the perfect feature for families as you can adjust their settings, start & control slideshows, manage local & cloud storage, and much more – all from anywhere in the world. The remote-control feature is facilitated through the web interface – and is free-for-life.
Pix-Star’s frames are excellent choices for families and you can receive photos by email, mobile app, web dashboard, USB/SD card, and more. These frames are known to be some of the most user-friendly on the market – and they’re one of the only premium frames that cater specifically to elderly users & families. They offer frequent discounts and give you top value for money when compared with all other premium digital photo frames at this price point!
Can Kodak digital frames connect to Wi-Fi & the cloud?
The only Kodak digital frames that can connect to Wi-Fi is its most premium model. Wi-Fi connectivity lets the frame connect directly to the Kodak servers – which is where your photos are uploaded to when you send them from your phone or computer. Wi-Fi connectivity is not as extensive as with other premium digital frames – and you don’t get a ton of secondary features like web album support or remote-control functionality.
Kodak digital photo frames offer cloud storage of up to 5GB and only for 2-years. While this might be sufficient for a single user for a year or so, you’re likely to run into its upper limits. By contrast, Pix-Star’s frames offer free-for-life cloud storage and you can interconnect up to 25 Pix-Star frames with one user account.
Can I play videos on Kodak digital frames?
Kodak’s digital frames can play video and audio clips – through their quality isn’t the best. This is mainly due to the aspect ratio of the display and the low frame rate. Videos that exceed the frame’s native resolution and frame rate will usually run into compatibility issues. Make sure the videos you load to the frame aren’t too long and are only in .mp4 file format.
Are Kodak digital frames battery-powered?
Kodak digital picture frames come with a 4,000mAh battery that offers up to 4 hours of battery life. This number can change significantly depending on the nature of use, whether you’re playing videos, and if you have a Wi-Fi connection in the background. Other aspects such as screen brightness and slideshow settings can also have a big impact on battery life. We don’t usually recommend getting a battery-operated digital picture frame, so give this guide a read before making up your mind.
