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The tablet market is notably increasing in size with more users and apps with ever growing demand. However, there are not many tablet dedicated apps that enhance user’s experience. EllevSoft's Social Frame is an app that tablet owners may be worth checking out. It is a digital photo frame app with social media contents including Facebook, Twitter and RSS Feeds. People spend $50~200 solely to buy a digital frame but they are often left out unused because it is tedious work to update latest photos. Social Frame has solved these issues with automatic photos sync feature from the social network.
One of the most powerful and useful factors that distinguish this app from other similar slideshow app in the market is that it allows you to access social network contents in the app. While the pictures play in a slideshow in the background, you can open up Facebook, Twitter or RSS feed in a side window and view the most recent live updates. You can also post, leave, and delete comments.
First Impression
As soon as the app is launched, it automatically loads pictures from the camera folder and starts showing them in a slideshow. The whole process is automatic so it does not require any user’s inputs to start the slideshow. On the top left corner it displays a digital clock and weather. The weather automatically detects user’s location using GPS or Wi-Fi and receives and displays matching weather information. When you click on the weather symbol, it shows 5 days weather forecast.
When you tap on the screen it shows four icons – Facebook, Twitter, RSS feed and settings. If you press each of the icons, the window expands and shows its contents on the right 1/3 of the tablet screen. It is easy to flick through the Facebook news feeds and read them all without much effort. There are also half transparent icons dedicated to slideshow on the left side of the screen including play/pause slideshow, rotate photo, delete photo, share photo, show image details and clock & weather on/off icons. The overall design is very neat and organized with the icons that are clear and self explanatory.
Features
The slogan for this app is “use your tablet when you are not using your tablet!’. Just like how the slogan goes, this app maximizes the use of the tablet by turning it into a digital photo frame. There is an option to auto launch the app upon plugging in the charger to the tablet. The slideshow animation can be customized with different types of animation and time between each picture can also be adjusted. Facebook has three category icons on top: News feed, my wall, and notification. One of the notable features is album download from Facebook. You can choose your or friend’s album from Facebook, download the entire album and play in a slideshow. Downloaded friends' albums are encrypted in a local drive and cannot be modified or used outside the program to protect privacy. The user is notified whenever a new notification from Facebook or Twitter arrives. RSS feed is easy to navigate. Feeds are separated into different categories which make it easy to find the exact feed you want. You can swipe left or right to see the next or previous feed. Photos from 500px can be played in a slideshow so even if you don't have personal photos, you can enjoy mind-blowing photos from 500px.
Usefulness
SocialFrame can be used just like a normal digital photo frame. When you come home you would plug in your tablet to charge, then it auto launches this app. While you relax at home, your tablet displays your photos.
When you are at work, you can launch this app and leave it on your desk to show your co-workers your family photos. During break, you can quickly update yourself what your friends are up to through Facebook and Twitter.
Also this app can be a great gift for your parents. Digital frames have not been the best gifts to parents despite its usefulness because it is usually not so easy to update new photos and control different features. This is not the case anymore. Your family members can simply share photos with your parents through Facebook and Twitter and they will always be updated with new photos.
Ease of Use
The SocialFrame is incredibly simple to set up and can be adjusted to your own taste with the minimum number of settings options.
Conclusion
If you own an Android tablet, SocialFrame is one of the must have app. It certainly maximizes your usability of the tablet. Whether the user is at home with the tablet sitting on a table or whether the user is at work with the tablet standing beside the monitor, SocialFrame can be a great display with weather, clock, news, and pictures of your memories.
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