PhotoSpring: An Affordable, Connected Digital Photo Frame

Connected Digital Photo Frames Reinvent the Genre

After a decades-long lull when digital photo frames went from the cool new thing to a cheap impulse buy, they are getting interesting again. What changed? A new generation of digital photo frames lets users upload photos from their smartphones, instead of having to manually load SD cards. They are also internet connected, with the ability to allow friends and family to push their shots to the frame. The result is a slideshow of photos that’s constantly replenished instead of showing the same old thing. These new digital photo frames tend toward larger and higher quality displays as well. The PhotoSpring is one of the more popular options in this growing category.

PhotoSpring Specs:

• 10.1-inch, 1280 x 800 IPS touchscreen display
• Integrated 4-hour Li-Ion battery, dock doubles as charger
• 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, 2.4GHz
• 16GB storage (32GB option available)
• Dual 2-watt speakers
• Supports JPG, PNG, GIF, MOV, MP4, M4V, AVI
• 11.2 x 7.9 x 0.8-inches, weighs 1.6 pounds
• Android and iOS mobile apps + Mac, PC and web support
• Available in white or black 
• MSRP $149

Hands-On

Setup took a little longer than I expected, but that was partially my fault. 

PhotoSpring does a good job with its setup wizard, which runs right on the frame. But, like many devices, it supports 2.4GHz only. My network has separate 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands with the same network name, but the setup wizard doesn’t display the band. Accustomed to seeing the network name only as being 2.4GHz (and not noticing a duplicate entry), I fought with the setup for 10 minutes, thinking I was repeatedly entering the wrong password. The frame simply would not connect.

Then I realized there were two identical Wi-Fi network names showing and the one I had been hammering was probably the 5GHz band. I switched to the other and everything was fine. The frame ran a firmware update and we were in business. 

Setup includes downloading the PhotoSpring app (I used the iOS and macOS versions), setting up an account (it was free), associating a frame with my account, selecting some photos and sending them off to the frame. The frame sits in a charge cradle in landscape or portrait mode, or you can connect the charger directly. With the direct connection I suppose you could wall mount it, but there is no included hardware.

You don’t directly load photos onto the PhotoSpring frame. It has 16GB of onboard storage, but you get the photos there by selecting them on your smartphone or PC, choosing a frame (maybe a family member or friend has opted to allow you to share photos, as well as having access to your own frame), then sending them. They’re delivered via the internet (you have the option of automatic acceptance or a notification and manual acceptance) and are then stored on the destination PhotoSpring frame --so if it loses connectivity, it still keeps whatever photos are onboard.

The PhotoSpring can display a static image, or a slideshow. Photos can be auto-formatted, although the 16:10 aspect ratio may mean smartphone photos end up modified from the original. Bad photos with defects like low resolution can be automatically filtered out. It can also play videos, complete with sound. Other options include brightness, volume, slideshow timing, and schedules (including a sleep schedule). To overrule slideshow timing the PhotoSpring accepts touch gestures like swipe left or right. There are also options for organizing and viewing stored photos as playlists, including by date and designating favorites.

In fact, there are so many ways to customize the PhotoSpring and its contents that I sometimes got a little lost navigating the options. 

It’s a Tablet... Sort Of

The PhotoSpring looks like tablet (albeit an early generation tablet with big bezels) as much as it looks like photo frame, especially when you start navigating with the touchscreen interface. It also takes a minute or two to reboot after being powered down. Completing the tablet analogy, you can take the PhotoSpring off its charge cradle and use it tablet-style to browse photos or watch videos. The battery is good for four hours.

Image Quality

The downside of so many digital photo frames is the use of cheap LCD panels, with low resolution, poor viewing angles and dim or uneven backlighting. The PhotoSpring display is larger than most at 10.1-inches. At its HD resolution, that’s about 149 ppi, which is significantly lower resolution than your smartphone or most tablets. However, you’re not looking at text. With photos, the resolution stands up for decent viewing quality even at close range. From across the room, it looks great. Color reproduction, viewing angles and brightness were all good. The only real flaw is a reflective surface that can catch a lot of glare if light sources are nearby. 

There’s also a white line about one pixel high that runs across the bottom of the display showing a visual countdown to the next photo in a slideshow. I checked and it can’t be turned off. It’s not noticeable from a distance, but up close and with dark backgrounds, I could definitely see it.

Recommendation

Regular readers might recall that I reviewed another digital photo frame --the Aurora-- a few months back. How do the two compare?

While they share the ability to upload photos from a smartphone, and to display photos from invited guests, these are two different classes of device. The Aurora features a higher quality, higher resolution (2048 x 1536) panel, a decorative frame, included wall-mount capability and motion detection (including gesture controls). The PhotoSpring has the advantage of a battery and portability. It can’t compete with the Aurora’s image quality and overall premium appearance, but it’s also less than half the price.

The PhotoSpring still offers better image quality than many digital photo frames, plus some extra features. And at $149, you could buy two (there’s a gift idea for you), and still have $100 in your pocket compared to one Aurora digital frame.

In other words, if you aren’t set on having the absolute best image quality available and don’t mind the glossy plastic frame, the PhotoSpring is a solid choice as a digital photo frame, striking a smart balance between quality, features and affordability.

Disclosure: PhotoSpring provided a frame for evaluation but had no input into this review.