Pandigital Moves Into Kitchen With HDTV/Frame Combo

DUBLIN, CALIF. — Pandigital will ship a combination HDTV/digital frame to dealers in June.

The 15-inch “kitchen frame” comes preloaded with recipes and was introduced at the International Home & Housewares Show in Chicago earlier this month.

It features a 1,280 by 720 resolution screen with an ATSC/NTSC tuner, S-Video and HDMI inputs.

The $399 frame is sealed with glass to defend against kitchen spills and offers interchangeable faceplates in brushed stainless steel, black and white. It ships with a countertop stand and an under-the-cabinet mount and is also wall-mountable.

The frame can be operated with touch controls surrounding the panel or with a remote control that can be stowed behind the frame.

The kitchen frame offers 512MB of internal memory, memory card slots, calendar and clock functions, digital music and video playback. It is wirelessly enabled and will ship with a wireless adapter for accessing photos story on Picasa Web Albums Web site.

The market for digital frames is growing swiftly. Eleven percent of all U.S. households own a digital photo frame, according to PMA's 2008 U.S. Digital Imaging Survey.

That figure is roughly double the number of households owning a digital frame in 2006.

According to PMA, 15 percent of digital camera households reported owning a digital photo frame in 2007 vs. 9 percent in 2006. Its rapid growth as a digital camera accessory owes to falling prices and improved performance, the association observed.

Frames are also benefiting from the large install base of digital cameras, as consumers look for means of viewing their images, the association said.