Why simplicity?

The digital revolution is supposed to have made our lives easier, but studies have shown that’s not the case. Around 30% of home-networking products, for example, are returned because people can’t get them to work. And 48% of people have put off buying a digital camera because they see them as too complicated.

This need to simplify the way we experience technology was something we recognized and wanted to address. In January 2003, we carried out research to find out if you shared our vision. We asked 1,650 consumers and 180 customers in 120 in-depth interviews, 24 focus groups and 1,439 quantitative interviews. We talked to people from the UK, the US, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Brazil, China and Hong Kong.

Sunday, April 30, 2006

Philips is making it easier for consumers to show off their digital images with the launch of their Digital Photo Display, a 16.5 cm, high definition, full colour panel surrounded by a stylish silver and translucent frame. While the digital camera revolution has made photography so much easier, digital images too often get filed to a PC hard drive or CD, rarely to be seen again.

The Digital Photo Display solves this problem with an innovative and elegant digital photo gallery for the home or office that shows off photos at their very best at print-like picture quality and full 16-bit colour and adjustable brightness of up to 200 nits.

Housed in a stylish glass-and-metal-effect frame,the Digital Photo Display’s 137 x 91mm, 720 x 480 pixel LCD screen delivers a quality that matches colour prints in a traditional picture frame.

Between 50 and 80 JPEG pictures from SD, MMC, Memory Stick® and CompactFlash® memory cards, or directly (via USB) from digital cameras or PCs can be uploaded into the Digital Photo Display, with the exact number of stored images dependant on the file size of the original picture. Alternatively a memory card can be kept in the Digital Photo Display to increase the number of images available to be displayed.

Philips software optimises uploaded photos without compromising display quality, with pictures able to be viewed individually, as thumbnails or displayed in a slideshow.

A PC is not required to access images - simply insert a digital camera memory card and copy the photos across. This simplicity is an important feature, with photos transferred instantly with a straightforward, intuitive one button touch operation from the camera or PC via a standard USB cord.

Reproducing the rich detail and vibrant colours consumers are accustomed to seeing in printed photos, the Digital Photo Display can be used for landscape or portrait images and also comes with a handy feature that allows users to automatically turn the display on and off at preset times everyday. It can be powered either from the internal battery or by using the supplied AC adaptor. When unplugged from the mains, the rechargeable battery will allow up to 50 minutes of operation.

This product has been introduced in response to the immense popularity of digital photography amongst consumers. Philips research has found that many consumers do nothing more with their photographs than store them on a PC, with no more than 20% of pictures taken ever printed out. Consumers are also digitally scanning old prints to preserve precious memories, but doing nothing more than archiving them on a PC.

Whatever route consumers are coming to digital photography, the Digital Photo Display provides a dynamic platform for displaying images with simplicity and ease.