The allure of Ceiva's digital picture frames has always been twofold: there's the low initial price
(as little as $100) combined with the ease-of-use (give one to the grands so they can catch pics of the kids, and they
don't have to do anything to keep up-to-date). Now, Ceiva is about to challenge the first part of that equation with a
high-end, high-priced display, the Ceiva Portrait. To be rolled out later this year, the 15-inch Portrait (which,
despite its name, is designed to be used in landscape mode) will sell for $599 to $699 depending on the package
purchased, and will include three years of membership in Ceiva's subscription service (like earlier Ceivas, the
Portrait will require a subscription in order to download photos via the internet; local loading of pics isn't
supported). The display will hold 100 pictures at once, and can connect to the internet via broadband and WiFi, in
addition to dial-up. Ceiva also announced a set-top box designed to turn any flat-panel TV into a Ceiva receiver, along
with a pocket-sized digital photo album that can be connected to any Ceiva unit to download pictures. Pricing for the
set-top and pocket display was not announced.
posted Jan 8th 2006 6:03AM
I can't believe Ceiva is still around with that pricing model. I hate subscription services, but I'll pay for them if they're something that I really want and they provide a real service. Even if I did want a digital picture frame, the service here is entirely redundant - they are charging customers to make the process more complicated. I suppose the idea of having the picture frame at grandmas house and updating it remotely is a nice one, but why not let people pay for that service if they want it, while letting everyone else upload pictures locally?
n8 nails it - is this service designed for people who have no idea what else to do with their money? I mean, a SUBSCRIPTION?? For pity's sake - frame, removable storage, power supply - how hard can that be?
I think this is a GREAT new product line from Ceiva. The size of the display has always been a point of contention with me, and that's now been quelled! I've also ALWAYS wanted to be able to upload pictures over my cable modem, instead of the phone line - excellent improvment!
The price is..well...a little steep...but that's the cost of techonology! I'm happy to see they're including three years of service. I'll gladly pay for a new product to encourage the company to continue updating, improving and moving forward, just like Ceiva is doing now.
one 15in lcd + one crappy computer + assorated cables = picture frame for cheeper then this
This is actually not a bad deal, at least compared to their 5-6" model. We bought one for Grandma a while ago and it was $350 for 3 years of service plus the device itself. Getting a 15 inch frame would of been nicer. (She loves it and would be lost updating a free version that required a memory card)
Now why doesn't some one come out with a cheap one for the do-it-yourself type person who doesn't need the subscription? A $150 LCD plus $100 in computer components (a memory card reader, etc.) should be more than enough to make a profit on it.
Eh, too much I did it for $20.00
http://www.frontiernet.net/~beakmyn/pictureframe/
That was a really cool project and guide you made with it beakmyn...thanks
One of these days, Ceiva will realize the true brilliance of this technology and apply it to marketing. Grandmas are one thing, but imagine what the technology could do for franchised brands who, until now, have had very little control over what franchisees show to consumers. In the past they'd send out time-sensitive promotional materials, and would have no clue whether they were put up or taken down in a timely manner. This would give the brand the power to control what the consumer sees. Not only would brands save thousands of dollars in printing and shipping, they could change the messaging at a moments notice or literally earn money selling ad space to other brands.
I work with one company that franchises maybe 10,000 hotels under various brand names. That would be one heck of a sale for Ceiva. Never mind these one-off grannies!!! Ceiva should contact me. I'll make them rich, I tell ya!!!