Pandigital Intros Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and Battery Pack Adaptors for its Digital Picture Frames

Besides rolling out seven new digital photo frames in sizes ranging from 6 inches to 15 inches, Pandigital cut the cord today with three accessories for its line of photo frames: a Bluetooth connector/adapter, a Wi-Fi connector/adapter, and also a battery pack. Connected to a Pandigital frame, the Bluetooth connector/adapter pairs with any Bluetooth device, letting you send pictures to the frame and display them in all their glory. The company says the $US40 adapter will be available this month.

Pandigital’s Wi-Fi accessory lets the frame connect to a wireless network, letting you transmit pictures to the frame from other computers on the network. Pandigital wasn’t specific about whether you’d be able to grab photos from a Flickr account, or email pictures to the frame as you can with the eStarling digital photo frame. The Wi-Fi adapter works with 802.11a/b/g networks, and will be available for $US50 in August.

Also rolling out in August is a $US50 battery pack that powers the frame for three hours on a charge. The company didn’t say which size frame would give you this three-hour battery life, but we’re thinking that’s not quite long enough to actually be practical. At least it includes a charger, so you won’t be needing to buy boatloads of batteries to keep this thing going.

The picture frames have new features added, too. There’s a clock function now built in that lets you display your chosen pictures, videos or mp3 files at specified times, and can also be used as an alarm clock (imagine a video of the forest with sounds of chirping birds waking you gently at 6 a.m.). The company also added PictBridge capabilities to the frames, letting you wirelessly transmit a picture in the frame to a PictBridge-capable printer nearby.

Here’s a list of the new frames, along with resolutions and pricing:

•15-inch (model PAN150-B) has 256MB of integrated memory, 1024×768 resolution and has a suggested retail price of $US299.99.

•11-inch (model PAN111-B) has 256MB of integrated memory, 800×480 resolution and has a suggested retail price of $US229.99.

•10.4-inch (model PAN104-B) has 256MB of integrated memory, 800×600 resolution and a suggested retail price of $US249.99.

•9-inch (model PAN90-2) has 256MB of integrated memory, 800×480 resolution, and has a suggested retail price of $US179.99.

•8-inch (model PAN80-2) has 128MB of integrated memory, 800×480 resolution and has a suggested retail price of $US149.99.

•7-inch (model PAN70-1) 128MB of integrated memory, 480×234 resolution and has a suggested retail price of $US129.99.

•6-inch (model PAN-602B) has 128MB of integrated memory, 410×234 resolution and has a suggested retail price of $US119.99.