Digi Frames Evolving Still

April 2008

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As the digital frame market continues to evolve we are actually starting to see how the devices are becoming a more central part of consumer’s lives, similar to the way the cellphone evolved from “cool convenience” to “must-have” CE device.

From the ability to simply display images in slideshow form on various size LCD screens to delivery of instantaneous up-to-date information on weather, news, stock quotes, and advertisements, the digital frame is just beginning to realize its full potential.

According to a recent report conducted by IMS Research, the category exploded in 2007 accounting for more than $648 million in retail revenue in the U.S.

IMS Research analyst Mark Meza recently stated, “The converged digital home is evolving at such a rapid pace that a niche market has been created for a product designed and fashioned specifically for accentuating the home décor and not necessarily as an extension of the traditional home entertainment center. CE manufacturers and component suppliers are betting that the driving force behind the growth of this market will continue to be the potential for DPFs to not only provide a slideshow of images and video clips commemorating memorable events, but to also function as information display devices.”

The category was slow to develop when the first models hit the market at the turn of the century, most of which were high-priced with fairly complicated user interfaces. This market seemed to turn the corner in 2006 as manufactures began producing more attractive, more affordable and easier to use models with a wide array of feature sets. As 2008 heads into Q2, the sky appears to be the limit for this category now.

“The potential exists for a single home to have a DPF as the centerpiece in each room, with the dual function of being a digital display and a real-time information source. This adds huge potential for market growth as DPFs develop into much more than a one-time purchase of a ‘dumb display device’ that sits on the mantle in the background of the living room,” adds Meza. Wireless technologies are poised to play a major role in driving the transition of the DPF market from single one-time purchases for friends and family, to mass adoption via multiple repeat purchases for a single user’s home.

While the move toward a more “full-service” device is intriguing, the digital frame market continues to dazzle for the reasons the product was originally intended, as an image display device.