I like to show off the pictures that I have taken, especially those of my family, but the main problem is that there is just never enough space on the wall for all the picture frames to hang from. So, a few years ago, I happened upon something that shows a large number of pictures in a small space, that space being the size of a standard pictures frame, such as 7inch, 8 inch or there abouts.
That something that I happened upon is in fact called a digital photo frame which, as the title suggests is a photo frame that digitally shows pictures. What I mean by showing pictures is that it can show a vast number of them in a slide show fashion.
These days there are many different types of these digital picture frames so actually finding the right one for you is a bit of a task in itself. Fortunately, as I have spent many years amassing these type of picture frames I like to think of myself as a bit of a connoisseur when it comes to finding a reliable one which is also quite nice to look at too.
One particular digital picture frame that I have stuck on a shelf, showing off many of my pictures for all to see, is a lovely little 7 inch model which goes underneath the name of KitVision


* Firstly, let's take a look at the frame itself...
Well, from the name of it you'd think that it was shaped like a Kitten, and you'd be completely and utterly mad if you really thought that it was... come on, a kitten shaped picture frame..? What ever next?
No, this is shaped like any other frame type device, which is basically a rectangle which makes it look like one of those 'normal' picture frames that you usually put a single picture of the mother-in-law in so as to keep the burglars away from your DVD player.

In fact the full frame, that is the entire lot, the screen and all that surrounds it, is about 230mm by about 170mm, and about 30mm thick, so it is larger than the visible frame really. The actual 'viewable' 7 inch screen, (or more 175mm), is surrounded by a 25mm black frame which in turn is surrounded by a 25mm clear frame, thus, making the entire frame look a lot bigger than it actually is, if you know what I mean.

The stand slots into a little grove on the back, offering two different grooves depending on whether you want the frame in portrait or landscape.
Above and to the left of this slot there are the control buttons, which are situated on a small protruding section. These controls are play/pause, next, previous, which do exactly what they say they do. Then there's the interval button, which lets you select the time between each picture in the slideshow function.
Finally there's the mode button which lets you select how you want to see the pictures on the screen.

On the back still, well, more to the side on the rear, there are a few little slots and a port, (no, not the drink that you see the elderly spinster drinking at the annual dart meeting, I mean port as in a hole where something slots into... don't be rude). These ports, slots, holes, or what ever you want to call them, are for the power cable and the external memory additions, such as SD card and USB.

NOTE:
It comes in a few choices of colours, black, which I have, silver, white, pink and, which is pretty neat and I wish I'd got this one, a union jack one, which is red, white and blue stripes.
Although when I say it comes in different colours it is only the actual inner frame that is a different colour, the outer frame is clear on every choice.


* How does it work then..?
You have to shovel in some coal and then stoke the fire until the steam gets up to the right pressure... no, hang on, that's some thing else. This actually works using something that the boffins call elastic-trickery.
In other words this runs of the mains, which does mean that you do have to have it positioned near a plug socket, and, sadly, as it doesn't have a built in battery it has to remain plugged in to keep the pictures showing.

To get it working you have to put on some pictures, either on the internal memory, which won't take long, or inserting a card into the slot on the side.
The frames brain is intelligent enough to know what device you have plugged into the SD slot and the USB slot, which makes it more intelligent than some of the people that I have to work with.

Then, using the easy to understand menu settings, you go through the motions, choosing the way you want you images to be seen, and press the play button to set the slideshow going.
Simple as that really.


* What does it offer..?
You ask a fine question my curious comrade? A question that deserves an answer of the finest quality from the finest minds. (But allow me to answer instead).

This frame actually has a bit of a measly internal memory, with it only offering 8MB. Yes, Mega NOT Giga. Which means that if you don't insert an external memory device you're only going to be looking at about 5 or 6 good quality pictures over and over again, which is not that good at all, I mean, you may as well buy one f those wooden picture frames that you can put lots of pictures inside a cardboard cut out.
Luckily though, as I said, you can add an SD card into the slot, but not just an SD card, you can also slot in a MS, XD, CF, and MMC card, with the Pro duo range too as long as you have an adapter, (but not all at once as this may cram up the single slot and could cause some damage). Apart from that you can use a USB connection as well
It can show both portrait and landscape pictures, and offers a few transitions so that you can really give your slideshow that personal touch. But remember, the images have to be adjusted accordingly before showing on the slideshow as this does not have a built in function to adjust them automatically. Although it does have the ability to be able to delete images from the card or the internal memory so do be careful as once they're gone they're gone.

This frame can cope with the most common JPEG format, managing to cope with up to 10MP pictures, and you can use it to show a single image or, as I end to do, use it as a slideshow image viewer.

Plus. For those that are really interested, it also offers a calendar and an alarm clock, which is nice, if you like that sort of thing that is.


* Is it easy to use..?
Another interesting question indeed my inquisitive iguana. One which I will give my finest riposte to.
This frame is without doubt one of the easiest frame to use, mainly due to the fact that what it offers is so basic. You simply put in your pictures and press play. Simple.
The menu is so easy to go through, making the initial set up easier than falling over after a few tipples of the finest malt. I won't go into too much description about how this goes but I will say that you can adjust the pictures, making them fit onto the screen better. You can also set up the speed of the slideshow, from 10 seconds to a minute between each picture showing up. Or you can adjust the way each picture comes in by adjusting the effects, which again, is done in the menu section.
In fact, most things are done by getting into the menu function, including contrast, colour, rotation and more... including the language if you want to show off and have everything written in Bangladeshi... or how ever you pronounce it..? (it doesn't actually have a Bangladeshi setting before you start to shout).

It can be either stood on a flat surface or hung from a wall. The stand can be twisted to allow for both portrait and landscape, plus, if you want to hang it on a wall, there are two little holes drilled into the back of the frame. It weights about 420grams so I can't see it ripping from the wall unless your plaster is a bit on the fragile side.

It can handle up to 10MP images, which is great for me as I tend to take pictures at 5 - 8 MP, mainly due to the fact that, even though the camera that I use these days is a 12MP one, I can't see any reason for choosing any higher due to the fact that the pictures are clear enough at that without taking up all the room on my camera memory.

* What about the results..?
Well, City won the 2011/2012 Premier league, taking United to the wire, winning on goal difference alone after what has to be the most nail biting, nerve racking, gut wrenching and probably the best game of my life, (I am a City fan before you ask).
But it's not the football results you're after is it? You want to know what the results of this frame are don't you?
Well, the results depend on the pictures that you actually put on them so don't expect the images shown on this frame to automatically improve your terribly fuzzy pictures that you blamed the camera for taking so badly.
But as long as your pictures are half decent then this LCD TFT screen will happily show them off in a clear and very appealing way indeed.
Plus, it gives you a chance to show a few little impressive 'tricks' of your own using the functions with-in the device. There's the transitions, which let you choose the way that your images change when sliding along, such as fade, flick and slide in or out.
Then there's the speed selection, which give you three options, slow, medium and fast, or 5 seconds, 10 seconds and 60 seconds.
And, if you comes across a picture you particularly like, there is a rather fine button called the pause button which lets you pause the slideshow in order for that picture to stay showing until you press the button again, to continue the slideshow.


* My Opinion...

This is a fine little digital picture frame that not only looks the part but does what it is supposed to do without all the bells and toggles, or what ever the saying is.

I particularly like the way that the screen is housed within a frame, which is in another frame, making the whole thing rather interesting indeed, in a picture frame sort of interesting anyway. I am quite happy with the black frame, although I have seen the other frames which are all quite nice too, especially the union flag one for all you patriotic ones out there.

The screen is pretty clear indeed, although some pictures can look a little 'iffy', but that's down to the picture itself and not the frame and, as with many types of frames, when you've turned the pictures that you have to from portrait to landscape, or visa-versa, the pictures can look a little, well, shall we say strange.

The settings are so simple to understand and even easier to use, allowing you to adjust the slide show to your own personal choice. This is done in the menu section where you can do several things with the pictures, such as crop them, turn them around and even stretch them, (but this I don't recommend as some pictures can look pretty frightening once stretched).
Although before I put any images on any of my pictures frames I like to sort them out on a PC first as I find it a lot easier to do rather than messing around on the frame itself. But I have tested how easy it is to do on this frame and found it pretty basic, easy to understand and a breeze to get the results you require.
As with most frames of this type, but not all, you can set the speed of the images so that you can see them for a few seconds to a minute each. One thing though is that they will all be shown for the same amount of time so if you have a picture of the in laws that you don't really like, but you feel that it has to be shown to keep the peace in the house, it will have to be seen for the same amount of time as that picture of you when you met up with some woman who appeared on the X Factor and suddenly had thousands of screaming people chasing her down the road...? You Can't have the in-laws showing for a split second and have the other pics showing for a minutes... sorry.

It does have a bit of a downside, that being the fact that the internal memory is lower than a politicians IQ. But once an SD card is slotted in, offering up to a 16GB card, there's no real danger of running out of space for loading thousands of your favourite images. Think about it, if you take pictures at 5MB then you can fit about over 3000 images onto a 16GB card, which is plenty of pictures in anyone's eyes.
I do have to say that on the initial loading of the SD card it can take a few minutes for the frame to read the images on the card, depending on how much is on the card. But once it has read it then it doesn't have to do it again, unless you turn the frame off or take the card out.


* So what would one expect to pay for this digital picture frame..?
Well, one, or more than one, would expect to pay a low price of about £20 - £30 for this lovely sized frame that can show off thousands of you most favourite images over and over again.

* Is it worth the money..?
For the price tag I'd have to say yes, as it does exactly what it is supposed to do without the frame itself taking your eye away from the pictures that you are supposed to be seeing.
But do shop around as there are bargains out there to be found.

In all, even though I've never heard of Kitvision, even after a quick 'guggle' check on line I'm still none the wiser, I do know that after getting hold of this frame and being very happy with what it offers I would no doubt buy another product of this kind from KitVisision, who ever they may be.


©Blissman70 2012