Digital Pictures without a PC

Ceiva Digital Picture Frame
Chris Ricci

Digital imaging technology is moving at the speed of sight n’ sound, and now the speeds of the Internet too. How the photo industry has changed. No more film – unless you’re a professional, in which case film will never go away. We take the pictures, store them on tiny memory cards and we then drop them off. Maybe we upload them to the photo finishing company, or take them our friendly photo developing kiosk. Well, add the internet, take out the photo finishing service and we have the Ceiva Digital Picture Receiver frame

Ceiva has developed the Digital photo Receiver. This device is a digital photo frame on steroids! You use this to send your photos to the digital picture frame via the internet. You don’t even need a computer to use it. Although, you do need an internet connection.

Imagine this; you want to send some Christmas pictures to your family back home at lightning speed. How about at the speed of the internet? How about as quick as you can plug your camera into the pc, or send a photo from your cellular phone? Well now you can. Some of the newer models also have a memory card slot as well.

The Ceiva connects directly to your existing internet connection using a supplied Ethernet adapter or by telephone. You need a router to split your internet connection; otherwise you’ll have to swap cables with your pc and the Ceiva. A trial user id and account are included with the product that allows you to upload and store your photos on the Ceiva server. Your photos are automatically sent directly to the digital picture frame on the receiving end. You can create your own slideshow using standard picture formats such as jpg, bmp, gif with up to 30 photos per day. The standard picture size 640 x 480 pixels.

To use the Ceiva, you simply plug in the supplied ac adapter, and the angled USB to broadband connector. There is a button on the back to initiate the connection to the internet. Once connected, you will see a small summary screen, and your pictures will begin downloading. The Ceiva comes with interchangeable frames in black and silver. The base acts as a control panel with functions such as delete, next, back and so on. You can press the print button and have a photo printed and mailed to you. There is a fee of course, as well as a monthly fee for the photo storage and management. The fees range from $9.95 US for the service called PicturePlan. There are several models, with many frame sizes and features.

Manufacturer: Ceiva
Price: $149.99 to $599 US
More Info: http://www.ceiva.com/
Rating 4/5
A great idea, especially the print feature. The picture frame could be larger, and the monthly fees could be less. But still, a good idea!