Chances are, your phone packs an amazing camera. If not, and you carry a separate camera, chances are, again, that it’s digital. This creates something of a barrier when it comes to actually displaying the photos you capture. Sure, I can flip through my phone and turn it around and say “Look at this,” but that’s not really the point.
Digital photo frames are a way to show off those photos without having to print them and, well, buy frames for them. Most digital photo frames work via Wi-Fi so transferring photos to them is easy. Some have touch screens so you can even flip through them. So, here’s a list of nine of the best digital photo frames you can get to show off your digital memories.
The Aura Mason digital frame tops our list, and it comes from a good pedigree. Indeed, you'll notice two other Aura entries on this list. This one is Aura's premium offering (which also makes it the most expensive in its size). It has a 1,600 x 1,200 resolution at 224 pixels per inch (PPI).?The frame is a chonker at 2 inches thick, but that also makes the frame freestanding. There are no leg attachments or other support mechanisms to lose or break. The frame can hold unlimited photos and videos (it even includes a built-in speaker), and there's no subscription fee. You can upload photos using an app, via email or in a web browser.
This 11-inch picture frame is one of the least expensive frames in the list, checking in at just $49 on sale as of this writing. This frame connects to the internet or can just play back photos from a microSD card if you prefer. That makes it a lot easier to set up for the less-technical crowd. It has a 1,920 x 1,080 display which is vibrant and beautiful. You can hang the frame in portrait or landscape orientation, and it automatically adjusts your photos accordingly, meaning your portraits won't show up sideways if you set up the frame in landscape.
The frame also comes with a remote control, along with some utilities, like an alarm clock and calendar function. When you're playing back photos, you can even add background music to your slideshow, which is a nice extra feature.
Finally, we get to Aura's most expensive frame on this list, the Walden. Right off the bat, it's more expensive because it's a larger, 15-inch screen with an anti-glare coating. The display resolution is 1,600 x 1,200, like the Mason frame, but due to its larger size, the frame checks in at 133 PPI. This frame also has a 4:3 aspect ratio (also like the Mason), which, humorously, Aura brags is "the same as your phone's camera." That's debatable but probably largely true for most of the population.?
Like the other Aura entries, you get unlimited photo storage with no subscription fees, and you can upload photos via app, email or on the web. You can also mount it on a table or on a wall, unlike the other Aura models.
The Aeezo Portrait frame is another inexpensive entry. It comes with a 10.1-inch, IPS touchscreen display with a 1,280 x 800 resolution. Like many others, it's controlled via an app and you can invite others to collaborate by adding photos and videos (up to 15 seconds). This frame has 16GB of internal storage, which can be expanded by up to 64GB via SD card or USB drive.
This frame is wall mountable or can stand on its own. It can also rotate your photos as necessary to properly display them. Azeeo assures you that your photos are never stored by the company. They go from your phone to your frame with no storage in between. One interesting feature that you don't see much is the inclusion of a 3.5mm audio jack so you can connect it to an external audio source.
The Pix Star Wi-Fi Cloud Frame has a robust set of features you might like. The frame itself sports a 9.7-inch IPS LCD anti-glare screen with a 1,024 x 768 resolution and a 4:3 aspect ratio, all of which make it one of the smaller, less pixel-dense frames on the list. It also comes with just 8GB of onboard storage, which means it can hold a lot of photos, but there are others on this list that hold more. As a salve to that wound, Pix Star offers unlimited cloud storage.
This frame offers a couple of things that aren't common on other options. The first is a motion sensor that allows the frame to turn on when someone walks by. It's a power-saving feature that helps make it a bit more environmentally friendly, which is a nice touch. Also, this frame comes with a set of apps like a calendar, weather and even games, so if you've ever wanted to play a brain game on your picture frame, you're in for a treat.
The Amazon Echo Show 15 is when Amazon decided to go big. It's Amazon's biggest Echo display, and it's designed to be hung on your wall and turned into a sort of command center for your home. You can use an optional stand to put it on your counter, but our reviewer felt it was really too large for that use case. However, when your Echo Show 15 is not helping you organize your household, it can display your photos during its downtime, which is how it found its way onto our list.
If you're considering the Echo Show 15, it's important to keep two things in mind. First, like most digital frames, this device requires constant power, so if you hang it on your wall, you'll need to do something with the cable that runs to your outlet. Second, the Echo Show 15 can be hung in portrait or landscape orientation — but you need to choose when you're hanging it, because it's really tough to change how it's hanging after the fact.
The skylight frame comes in two sizes — 10 inch and 15 inch — both of which are touch screens. I have the 10-inch version, which has a 1,280 x 800 IPS touchscreen display and 8GB of onboard storage. You can add photos via app or a personalized email that you create. If you're giving this frame as a gift, you can also preload photos on the frame without unboxing it as a nice surprise. You can also designate multiple users to add photos to the frame, which is a welcome extra touch.
One of the neat features of the frame is the heart button that you can tap to favorite photos and have them show up more frequently. There's a Sleep mode timer too, so you can set what times you want the frame to be on. Skylight also sells a digital calendar (which doubles as a photo frame when not in use), so if you're looking for a way to organize your family calendars and display your photos, you may want to check that out, though it's significantly more expensive.
Finally, we get to the Google Pixel Tablet, which, if I'm being totally honest, is my favorite digital photo frame because I use it daily for non-photo frame things. But I'm getting ahead of myself. You can buy Google's latest tablet with or without a speaker dock, but if you buy it with the dock, the tablet converts into a large Google Home hub that can display photos when idle. Specifically, and the reason it's my favorite photo frame, it shows Google Photos, which is where I have over 10 years of memories. The 11-inch, 2,560 x 1,600 LCD display is gorgeous for that purpose.
Naturally, being a tablet/smart display, you can do a lot of other things with it. When it's undocked it functions more like a tablet; you can ask it questions and control your smart home. But with it docked on my desk, I can see a lovely set of photos of my family and friends as I work throughout the day. Other digital photo frames do a great job with that primary function, but the extra utility of the tablet is what keeps me coming back to it.
