I'm a great one for having my photos around me and the move into the digital age has made me shift from traditional frames and photo albums to more digital means of both storage and display. As such, this frame was given to me as part of this shift and, although I have to say that I haven't made the maximum use of it, it gave me the idea of an on-going gift for someone else which has benefited her no end, so let me explain ...

*** What it is ***

* Comprises of a basic plastic frame: 7 inch visible screen with resolution of 480 x 234 and facility for either memory card and / or USB memory for photo storage. A power adaptor and instruction booklet also come in the box. Do be aware that you need to purchase a memory card or USB memory stick separately - although these can be sourced incredibly cheaply now!

* Compared to some of these frames available out there, this Clarity model is a basic brand, which does little apart from store and display your photos, although it does have a calendar and clock facility. However, for a value brand, the display quality of the images and the additional features of clock and calendar actually make this a good value item.

*** Using the frame ***

* The frame itself can be wall mounted (the holes are moulded into the back unit for fixing onto screws) or there is a flap that pulls out so that the frame can stand onto a flat surface. The whole unit does need to be plugged in to run, so this needs to be borne in mind if you do want to wall mount it, as the height of the mounting could be restricted by the length of the wire from plug to the frame.

* All the buttons for use are along the top of the back of the frame, making them easily accessible if wall mounted or shelf standing. The buttons control: mode; forward; backwards; up; down; return; enter and power. Depending on which mode you are in (photo, calendar or clock) these other buttons have different functions. However, these are usefully detailed in the booklet and even if you don't have it, the whole thing is very easy to navigate and works quite intuitively, so it's easy enough to work out for yourself.

* From the basic, main menu when switching on the unit, there's a choice of functions: photo; setup; calendar and clock. Setup gives you options for changing the interval time between your photo transitions, as well as the transition effects themselves. You can also adjust settings such as contrast and brightness within the setup too.

* Photos can easily loaded into the frame using the USB or memory card and once you press 'photo' as the mode you want to view in the frame, the photos load surprisingly quickly. Do be aware though that some of your photos may not fill the whole 7 inches of the viewing window, for example portrait style photos tend to be framed around the sides.

*** Our own use of this ***

Now as I said, I haven't really used this frame as much as I should have: largely because I don't really sit down long enough to 'watch' the photos, I think, although since Christmas I've made much more effort to have this frame up and running, because it's so easy to keep it up to date with your latest pics.

With that said, our main use of this frame has not been through our use of it but through the fact that, having received it as a gift, it inspired us to buy one as a gift for a relative in a nursing home. Her room is very small so wall space for photos is very limited and there is not enough shelf space for her to store photo albums, even the mini kind. This all contributes to her feeling a little low at times, because she does love to be able to look around the room and feel 'surrounded' by her family. So, we bought her one of these Clarity frames and have bought two memory cards to use with it: one that stays with the frame and one that stays with us. Each time we visit, we update the card we have with a new set of photos which reflect everything the family's been up to. Then on the visit we swap the cards over so that she has a new set of up to date pics to look at. This frame in particular has made this work particularly well for us to do this, because:

* The in / out of the cards facilitates quick swap overs: it doesn't take over our visit to her, just adds to it!
* The fact that this is a 'no frill' frame, means that the functions of the frame are fine for this older lady who can be quite easily confused - she can navigate the basic functions easily and doesn't get overwhelmed.
* And if she does? Just switching the power button off and then back on instantly takes you back to the main menu, so even if she gets lost with it, she can just go back to viewing the photos from the main menu by switching off and then on again.
* The buttons being based along the top of the back of the frame make it easy for her to just press the buttons she wants, she does not have to handle the frame as a whole (important on days when she is feeling a bit wobbly).
* Two of my husband's sisters live abroad. They frequently email us photos which we add on to the card, so that these can be shared as well, giving her up to date images of what everyone in the family is up to.

So, a photo frame and a little more besides, for our family. Of course if you want frills and bells, this frame's probably not for you, but for a user-friendly, basic function photo storage / display device, I think this one is hard to beat in terms of value for money, particularly given the on-going pleasure it is giving our elderly relative.