frame

News of the A850, Sony's full-frame follow-up to the Alpha DSLR-A900, surfaced on the Web weeks ago--Sony itself accidentally leaked the entire manual, for pity's sake--but the most important aspect of the product, the camera's price, remained only speculation. Without that context, one really didn't know what to make of the subtly stripped-down version of the A900. Now we know it'll cost $1,999 for the body, making it the least expensive full-frame dSLR currently available. That makes it newsworthy, but does that automatically make it droolworthy?

It's worth taking a step back and considering the benefits--and drawbacks--of a full-frame dSLR; that is, a camera with a sensor that has the same active area as a frame of 35mm film. In comparison, typical consumer dSLR sensors are anywhere from two thirds to half that size. Since larger sensors are generally better for cramming a lot of pixels in without losing ground to an excessive amount of image noise, full-frame sensors are commonly accepted as the best choice for high-resolution and/or low-light photography (without opting for the significantly larger and more expensive medium format option). It's also easier to build wide-angle lenses for larger sensors.

A big, low-noise, high-resolution sensor: what's not to like? Well, for one thing, big sensors mean big cameras; they require lenses with larger circumferences than the smaller sensors, larger viewfinders, larger bodies, and so on. And all of that costs more. The A850 is still $1,000 more and 10 ounces heavier than its newly minted 14-megapixel little brother, the A550.… Read more

Frame Maker Pro lets users customize their digital photos with a variety of frames. With simple execution and excellent results, users will love adding these to a picture.

The program's interface is organized so that users will not need the Help file. With all of the commands laid along the right side, users are always only a few clicks from creating a frame. First, users select a photo from their collections. Do this pastes a large image of the picture on the screen, and then users work through the menu to customize their frame. Frame designs run from cartoonish … Read more

Dream Photo Editor allows users to create photo collages with a variety of special effects. Unfortunately, the program's clunky interface and sometimes tacky content hinder its effectiveness.

Upon opening the program, we were met with several error messages right off the bat. This was followed by two nonsensical screens with unlabeled buttons. We clicked a couple of them at random, got a couple more error messages, and then the program opened. Nice. The program's interface is somewhat cluttered and not particularly attractive. The functions aren't bad. Users can start with a blank background or use one of … Read more

It's not surprising when a TV or monitor manufacturer decides to enter the digital photo frame market. It's already got its hands on the panels, designers, and brand recognition, so why not throw something out there and see if it can sell some units? So again, not shocking that Toshiba announced Monday one 10-inch and two 8-inch Digital Media Frames (especially since its dabbled in this market outside the U.S.).

Toshiba's not calling them photo frames, because they do more than just display pictures once you connect them over Wi-Fi to the Internet. A partnership with … Read more

OEM manufacturer SilverPac has announced its latest digital photo frame, the SilverFrame, at the Computex tradeshow in Taipei, Taiwan. Before you brush this gizmo aside as "just another digital picture display," stop right there.

The 10.1-inch touch-screen-operated SilverFrame is probably the most advanced digital photo frame we have seen. It runs Windows CE 6.0 R2 with 512MB of RAM and supports Microsoft applications such as Windows SideShow and Live FrameIt. This means you can also surf the Web and access instant-messaging clients such as MSN.

As it is Wi-Fi-enabled, the SilverFrame (PDF) can view pictures and videos stored on social-networking sites such as Facebook, Flickr, and Picassa. It also has Bluetooth to receive images sent from your mobile phone, which can be stored in the 1GB onboard memory. As with most other digital photo frames, the SilverFrame has a multicard reader and micro USB/USB ports to import images from cameras.

According to SlashGear, the SilverFrame is on display at Microsoft's booth at Computex. But since SilverPac is just an OEM manufacturer, the company is now waiting for other firms to pick up the design.

Other noteworthy features: … Read more

Framing Studio allows digital photographers the opportunity to line their pictures up with different frames and apply special effects to each shot. With a simple interface, our only concern is whether all users will find the product useful.

The program has a very simple interface featuring a large center screen for viewing photos and big command icons along the left side for applying frames and effects. Users looking for a lot of choices will be pleased with the dozens of framing options ranging from wild and crazy, to dignified and traditional. The effects are less impressive, thanks to a small … Read more

The Wrap-Around-the-Corner photo frame from Photojojo is so innovative that we asked ourselves: "Why didn't we think of it earlier?"

The frame fits comfortably at almost any corner of the house and consists of 12 separate panels that can hold 7 to 12 photographs of various sizes. For a picture to wrap around the corner, you'll need to splice it in half and fit it into the adjacent slots. While that may sound like a hassle, we think this makes for an interesting montage of your work.

The retail price of $99 for the Wrap-Around-the-Corner is … Read more

I really liked the last Jobo frame I reviewed, but it was just a little short on features in comparison with other models in its price and size range. It looks as if the company's latest model is no different.

The 8-inch Jobo Plano 8 has an 800x600-pixel resolution LCD with a 400:1 contrast ratio and measures 8.4 inches wide by 6.5 inches high by 0.9 inch thick. There are slots for SD, SDHC, MMC, MemoryStick, and xD cards (not CompactFlash, though), and a USB port for connecting external storage. There is no internal memory, … Read more

Kodak offers a number of digital photo frames, including models that feature built-in wireless connectivity and even cutting edge OLED display technology. However, its 8-inch EasyShare M820, available for less than $100, is an attractive option for consumers hoping to balance affordability with some advanced features in a reasonably sized frame.

Some digital photo frames have real wood or metal finishes, but this is strictly a plastic affair. With its simple, slim black border, the frame looks elegant enough from afar and comes with two stick-on decorative mattes (one is red, the other silver) that allow you to customize the … Read more