Digital Spectrum MemoryFrame MF-575 5.6-Inch Digital Picture Frame

I'm pretty technically competent but there are some things about this digital picture frame that have left me scratching my head.1. Why is there no owner's manual? The flimsy little pamphlet included is nearly worthless, and the website referred to on the registration card has been inaccessible/unavailable since the package arrived.Related to this . . .2. Why doesn't it work with jpegs from Apple computers? I used the card reader to load pictures from my iBook (OS 10.4) onto the memory card (why not use the included USB cable? Keep reading), plugged the memory card into the back of the picture frame, and nothing happened. HOWEVER, when I transferred the pictures from the memory card onto my Windows computer and THEN onto the memory card, everything worked wonderfully. If you own "just" an Apple computer then do NOT get this digital picture frame.3. What the heck is with the USB cable? First it is about 3 inches long, so if you are going to try to load pictures off a desktop computer good luck. Secondly, and even more importantly, one of the USB "plugs" simply will not fit into either the picture frame USB port of a computer's USB port. It is impossible for me to adequately describe this, but the actual metal plug on one end of the cable is shaped strangely. I couldn't figure out how to make it work (maybe others have).So why did I give this item four stars? Because the pictures display quite nicely, the frame is very attractive, the price is very competitive, and I know my wife is going to love it!

At first, I was pretty disappointed with the frame. The directions are pretty much non-existent and when I first tried to play a slide show, there was a long pause in between pictures and an X would often show up. I believe this is because I was using a mac. Once I put pictures on it from a PC, it seemd to work better. I was also under the impression that that frame came with a remote. What I thought was a remote is actually a usb/memory card converter. I have not used this yet, so I really cannot comment on that. Once I finally figured this frame out, I was a bit happier with it. But I would still give it an OK. The processor is a bit slow and music skips when played with the photos. If you are just looking for a digital frame to do PC photo slide shows, then this one will work. If you are looking for anything more, then I would go with another digital frame.In addition, this one was a good buy for the price I paid, $99.99 (had previously been $89.99). Since I originally began researching this product, the price has been raised by $30. It is steadily becoming not worth the price.

First, BEWARE if you use (Sony) Memory Sticks! As reported by another reviewer, this unit does not seem to work with the older (pre-Pro) sticks. I bought this for my mother and I tried about a dozen of her MSs, but none would read. Then, I tried one of my own MS Pro sticks, and my brother's SD card, and they worked fine. So, it seems clear that the unit simply does not support the original MS. Consequently, my brother donated a spare SD card for her to use, but this is really not convenient for my mother, whose camera can only use the old MS.The picture quality is not impressive, but I suspect that is typical of a unit in this price range. Therefore, I consider it acceptable, especially when viewing from a couple feet away. I've read complaints that the music player does not function well with the slideshow, but I had no trouble with this feature. The (192 kbps, constant bitrate) mp3s I put on the card played flawlessly as the pictures scrolled. The menu/interface could certainly be improved. I understand consumer electronics very well, but some of the features/settings on this unit are far from intuitive, and I'm sure my mother will have some difficulty making it perform exactly as she prefers.

This frame is great for what I wanted it to do - play a picture slideshow. Ignore whatever else it says it does. It plays mp3s and you'd think that you can play music in the background while the slideshow is going, but you'd be wrong. Technically, you could do it, but the song starts skipping around - I guess there isn't much processing power in the frame. In its defense, I didn't expect it to have much.I was also a little bummed that the only video supported is MPEG (and I haven't even tried that yet). It's a shame one of the most popular formats (AVI) isn't supported.Those are all the negatives. As for what I do like about it: - Very nice looking wooden frame - Plays slideshows (and as soon as you power it on, without any other interaction) - Loops through pictures non-stop - Random picture fade in/out effects - A lot of video options (brightness, sharpness, hue, contrast, etc.) - Separate slots for SD card and USB cable - Comes with an easy-to-use SD card reader/writer that plugs into a USB port - Had my first slideshow up and running within 5 minutes of opening the box (easy to set up, didn't even need the manual)It's a great digital picture frame, but keep your expectations low as far as the background music capability goes.

Item arrived with a 3inch scratch across the screen. The USB port is only accessable from your camera not your computer (male connection), which if you read closer in the less than sufficient instructions it does state. (USB device support - Thumb Drive, card reader, camera). Media type wasn't compatable with my camera (Smart Media) which it also states in small print - Media Type - SD/MMC/MS/XD. Screen size is small at 5.6".Over all I was disapponted with the product. Quality control seems to be an issue. Seeing that you can get a portable DVD player for $150 with a bigger screen, at $99 this seems to be overpriced. Would wait for the price to come down. Wouldn't pay more than about $59 for this product.