I own three Samsung Frames and I really like the look and capability, but frankly the software is pretty poor. Like many here the primary reason I purchased the device was to show off my own pictures ... a giant digital frame. However, the picture frame software is actually pretty rudimentary and not up the capabilities one would find on a $25 digital frame or a $2 tablet app. Very basic capabilities are missing, and the reliability of the software is suspect. Samsung also appears to abandon older models once newer ones ship rather than provide even the most basic upgrades. You might not notice this if you only buy one Frame, but I have 3 different years of the same model and the differences in the software are surprising. To expect a buyer to replace a 2 year old $1500 TV just to get a tweak to the matte options for pictures is not terribly customer focused. Some specific issues with the Frame slideshow (some of which have been mentioned previously by others on this thread):
- Can't shuffle or re-order images - They always play in the order they were loaded which given how unreliable and finicky that process can be, is a real pain
- Can't easily load and manage personal collections (only paid for ones). You can only load (slowly) a bunch of pictures and can only divide them into favorites or everything.
- Poor scaling (why can't it rescale or reedit pictures rather than forcing you to edit them perfectly to 4K?). And why does it occasionally screw up the scaling and stretch pictures if you happened to have a slightly different resolution?
- Very limited selection of collage options, or more interesting mattes. Maybe I want the portrait picture on the left instead of the right, or maybe I want to display 2 portrait images. Or 4 landscape shots.
- Poor ability to manage when the slide show comes on and off. I have one in my bedroom and I have to force the display into Off mode to prevent the slideshow from randomly popping on at 2 in the morning .. regardless of how all the settings are tweaked ... I've tried them all.
- Can't access images from a cloud service. I'd prefer Google photos or OneDrive, but even Samsung's own Gallery isn't supported. Seriously? This is a cloud connected device.
- No easy way to set up a large number of pictures with mattes and options. You must do it one by one. And it is a slow painful process. At least (as one other noted) let me have a default option.
- No smooth transitions when changing images. It is always a rather inelegant jump cut with a visible glitch. Pictures should fade one to the next.
- Can't advance (or skip back) pictures (treat like a slide show)
- Slide show always restarts from the beginning
- Should be able to combine with some of the Ambient mode features (like having the time overlaid with voice command)
- I should be able to optionally have the picture name/title and maybe a date displayed tastefully along the bottom. And an option to call up more metadata from the remote or with a voice command.
- No easy way to play music or audio along with the images
As I noted I own three and overall really like the device. But there is significant room for improvement.
