Rosy picture for digital photo frames

Global shipments of displays for digital photo frames are expected to rise to 22.7 million units in 2008

Digital photo frames (DPFs) are now selling at an unprecedented rate, according to new market research.

Analyst firm iSuppli reported that global shipments of displays for DPFs are expected to rise to 22.7 million units in 2008, up 58.8 per cent from 14.3 million in 2007.

Last year was a "banner period" for DPF displays, with worldwide unit shipments growing 256.7 per cent from four million in 2006.

ISuppli expects worldwide shipments to grow by a factor of four to reach 78.3 million by 2011.

"Introduced in 2005, the DPF was purchased by early adopters and few others, " said Vinita Jakhanwal, principal analyst for mobile displays at iSuppli.

"Consumers were not sold on the value proposition of a product that simply cycled the same pictures over and over again with inferior image quality compared to a photo print.

"However, something happened in 2007. DPFs experienced a banner year as falling prices made them more attractive to consumers."

Jakhanwal noted that DPF competition proliferated in 2007 as many branded and non-branded vendors entered the market.

Each vendor has segmented its brand into a certain niche, including value, high-quality, rich features and regional orientation, or by pairing its DPFs with digital still camera sales.

The average selling price for DPFs was around $150 when they were first introduced in 2005, but has now fallen to $75, according to iSuppli.