T-Mobile Cameo frame now available for $99.99

We already knew how much the world's first digital picture frame tied to a wireless carrier network would cost, but no one bothered to mention a specific release date. Regardless, the T-Mobile Cameo is finally available in T-Mob retail stores, and it'll cost you $99.99 up front plus $9.99 per month for the connected services. It's the gift that keeps on giving taking.

[Alex L. @ Nov 20th 2008 10:58AM]

For $9.99/month, I wouldn't take it even if the frame were to be free...

[rony @ Nov 20th 2008 11:02AM]

Does your mommy know you are online? Do you even understand what you are typing?

[Zelatio @ Nov 20th 2008 11:10AM]

...I thought he actually has a legitimate point. I wouldn't get this even if it were free, like a free phone. I fail to see the usefulness of being connected to a cellular network. Pictures from phones are so crappy that the will look horrible in one of these frames.

[Alex L. @ Nov 20th 2008 11:13AM]

@rony,

I'm old enough to see that this is a service that costs way too much for what they offer.

Incidentally, that's my son in the picture, and I'm willing to bet that I'm at least 10 years older than you. "Rony".

[Ayman @ Nov 20th 2008 11:18AM]

@ Alex
even 9.99$/month?

[rony @ Nov 20th 2008 11:45AM]

low ranks himself...............sorry thought that was you in the picture.

[Phoenix @ Nov 20th 2008 12:13PM]

What? Rony, how could you POSSIBLY be that dumb?

[Alex L. @ Nov 20th 2008 12:25PM]

Come on now folks, looking back I think rony was just making fun because I had a baby as my avatar, and I jumped the gun by thinking he was criticizing my comment.

He can't possible have thought that was me in the picture, he just said that to save face, w/o having to explain his own joke (that would be lamer).



And if I'm wrong about all the above... You can suck it Rony!!!

[Lowest Ranked @ Nov 20th 2008 12:39PM]

Well, in his defense you are of Asian descent, and your avatar could easily be a 17 year old teenager.

[Alex L. @ Nov 20th 2008 12:43PM]

"Asian descent" that term always cracks me up, almost as much as "Asian persuasion" ... I think I'm going to start using "genetically Asian", we've sure come a long way from "Mongoloids"....

[Lowest Ranked @ Nov 20th 2008 1:05PM]

Don't make me use the 'O' word...

[nismo334 @ Nov 20th 2008 1:09PM]

I made your mom use the "O" word last night.

[Lowest Ranked @ Nov 20th 2008 2:12PM]

"OhmyGoditsSosmall!" Doesn't really count as being one word...

[Maciek @ Nov 20th 2008 8:32PM]

@Zelatio... Actually I have to disagree... I have a digital picture frame (Momento) and surprisingly photos from my phone look very good. I do have to disclose though that I have an N95 so a 5 MP pic looks good (streamed via Flickr) but even from my recent G1 (3.2 MP) they do look quite well. Hmmm...just thought of something... I'd like everyone to send me some nice photos from their phones directly to my frame - [e-mail] (please no porn)


It will be cool to see "surprises" from people all around the world. The frame is on now.

[Patriks7 @ Nov 20th 2008 11:03AM]

I fail to see what the point of the services is in this case..

[Ayman @ Nov 20th 2008 11:22AM]

place this portrait, at home (like parents) and give them pictures of your life, and they feel more connected to you


hence you would see this at nursing homes and all the old folks would be sitting and looking at all the pretty pictures

[fieldcar @ Nov 20th 2008 11:04AM]

...but the leather frame!

[andy @ Nov 20th 2008 11:09AM]

Put this one right up there with Palm's dumb ass Foleo idea, only this is worse because its just so stupid and pointless let alone being sold at TMobile retail store with monthly charge

[Chad @ Nov 20th 2008 11:32AM]

I don't think it is stupid nor pointless but I do believe it is overpriced. I can see a multitude of uses for this but I could just as easily do them with a frame that connects to a home network and I just send the pictures from my phone to the picture frames IP address with no extra monthly charges. Sounds like a job for IPV6!

[iEye @ Nov 20th 2008 11:11AM]

I really want to see the morons who actually purchase this and use it.

I wonder if there is a way to hack the frame and get some unlimited tethering internets...

[iEye @ Nov 20th 2008 12:43PM]

hack, oh you mean like this

[iEye @ Nov 20th 2008 3:18PM]

Nice try there, but the real iEye has rotating avatars...

[AMiSH PiRATE @ Nov 20th 2008 11:22AM]

I would totally be into this if instead of your pictures it sent the frame, it streamed pictures from random strangers' phones on it. Although, I suppose the novelty of having pictures of teenage girls making goofy faces in trig class fading into pictures of people's pockets would itself fade away after about an hour.

[nismo334 @ Nov 20th 2008 1:12PM]

well it would fade off until you got streamed naked photos of Paris Hilton, and then you'd be rich! Thus, making the device pay for itself.

[Ayman @ Nov 20th 2008 11:23AM]

Stick a camera speaker and microphone and you would have a 2 way communication

[Shareef Yousef @ Nov 20th 2008 12:24PM]

Get back to work Ayman lol

[absinthe party @ Nov 20th 2008 12:33PM]

You should probably listen to ^that^ guy, seeing as how it only displays static images.

[bangladeshiluv @ Nov 20th 2008 12:51PM]

fugliest asian model yet

[Rifter @ Nov 20th 2008 1:07PM]

My mom is looking at buying a digital photo frame for my grandmother, for Christmas. She is worried though, that my grandmother may have trouble using it. We want it to have an SD card slot, so we can swap pictures from time to time. But, we are worried that she will STILL have troubles using it. This would be nice, to be able to send pictures to it.

[bangladeshiluv @ Nov 20th 2008 1:11PM]

print out the photos and put it in an album. oldschool.

this is the only viable solution. old people and technology dont mix.

[alan @ Nov 20th 2008 1:26PM]

Guys,

Without going to the nurnsing home extreme, I think you are missing the obvious point that there are many, many millions of parents and grandparents all over the world who do not have a computer in their house and never will. They, in turn, have millions of children and grand children who do travel the world and take digitial pictures constantly. Most of the time, the grandparents get post cards (yes, they still exist) or prints (after the travelers get home). If it is well executed and simple to use, a device of this type facilitates the flow and makes it easier for the grandparents to feel more connected.

I think this device is being targetted at the "gift for grandmom" crowd, who may still be 30 years from a nursing home. Most of the time, the fees will be paid by the person buying the frame as a gift (not for themselves). The objective is to make the simplest practical system for delivering digital images to the gift recepient. Some smart, educated and successful people give nice, thoughful (and expensive) gifts to the people who helped them rise to their level of sophistication. Having said this, I think it might look like a better deal if they offered a flat price including the bundled service for a year.

[sebbo @ Nov 20th 2008 5:30PM]

the DigitalPictureFrame (thats the name it is sold under here in Germany) costs 150€ here... but without a monthly rate...
Sending MMS to the Frame costs the sender (whatever he pays for a MO-MM). Uploading via WebFrontend costs 0,99€ for 4 pictures... the DPF has a SD-Card slot... at least ;)

The hardware price is okay imho, but uploading via web should cost 1€ / 10 pictures... that would be a better price ;)

[Ben @ Nov 20th 2008 7:44PM]

That's a lot of frame for $99.99. You'd expect a picture frame to contain more space for the picture and less for the frame. T-Mobile seems to think otherwise.

[ant909 @ Nov 20th 2008 10:38PM]

the gift that keeps on taking!!! thats fuckin hilarious!!!

[JOCOMAN @ Nov 21st 2008 9:22AM]

Look it's Juan Luis Pedro Philippo DeHuevos Epstein from Welcome Back Carter.

[Hannes @ Nov 22nd 2008 6:49AM]

I am not really convinced of this model! What do the others think?

http://www.digital-photo-frame-market.info

[paul @ Nov 23rd 2008 6:14AM]

Looks good but i can't seeit catching on.

http://cellphones-now.com

[Main Man Dave @ Dec 20th 2008 11:50AM]

Actually if you had actually TRIED the Cameo you'd see it was worth 99 bucks and 9.99 a month. It's a great device. Pics sent to it look great - even from a Blackberry or G1. And if you scale down any pics from your computer off of your digital camera a bit you can email them via the tmomail.net alias for the phone.

Think about being able to send pics to your grandma who as one of these while you're out on a trip.

Seems to me the "highest ranked" entries here are from T-Mobile critics and haters... Not from people who have actually bothered to TRY the device. I have tried it.. and it's quite good and a good idea.

[Nitchvideo @ Jan 25th 2009 12:09AM]

My mother is in a nursing home with no internet connection. She lives 600 miles away close to my brother. She is hard of hearing like many people her age. So it is very difficult to communicate with her. I got frame so that I could send her pictures on a daily basis. The rest of the extended family also uses it. She says it gives her some thing to look forward to everyday.
My only complaints are that the frame is small, there are no remote management functions and it does not play video clips. If they put one out that did this I would go out and buy it and replace the other. If it cost 300 dollars it would still be cheap for my purposes. It cost me 600 dollars each time I visit, when I can fined a weekend without other obligations.