- Introduction
- Frame Functionality
- The Frame selection buttons don't work.
- The labels printed on the Frame selection buttons have worn off.
- The COMPACTFLASH Card slot seems too large or too small. The COMPACTFLASH Card can't be inserted.
- The COMPACTFLASH Card is stuck in the slot.
- The joints that connect the Frame's stand to the Frame's back are too loose.
- As received, the bezel (wooden frame) is too loose.
- The Frame's 'feet' are loose, or keep slipping out.
- The Frame shuts itself off more than once a day and the time always has to be reset.
- Frame Display
- Picture is displayed with black bars above and below, or on both sides.
- There are black lines through the LCD display.
- Pictures are distorted
- Artifacts on the LCD screen
- My Slide Show displays at a variable rate.
- COMPACTFLASH Card picture not displayed
- The Frame appears to be frozen.
- Frame goes On or Off at the wrong time. Or, the Frame does not turn itself On or Off.
- There is no thumbnail view of an expected picture.
- I accidentally deleted a picture from my Frame.
Updated 16 June, 2004
If you're having problems with your Non-Networked KODAK Smart Picture Frame, we can help! Check these pages for information on a variety of topics before you call for help!
Be certain the Frame is plugged into a functional power supply. If there is a surge protector in-line, try removing it.
Check that the power cable the Frame uses is operational.
Be certain that connections for the power supply cord (AC adapter) are tight and secure and that nothing is pulling them out of the Frame or outlets.
Press firmly on a button and wait for a response.
If the Frame continues to be unresponsive, contact Kodak Customer Support.
NOTE: The Frame's buttons are stiff when first used.
Your Frame should not be cleaned with any solvent-based cleaners.
Insert the card with the holes (for connection pins) of the card facing the Frame. Be sure to insert the COMPACTFLASH Card completely.
Rotate the Frame so that the COMPACTFLASH Card slot is facing up. Firmly hold the Frame. Firmly grasp the card and pull upward.
A certain amount of flexibility is by design and often necessary for optimum picture display from any location. However, if your Frame's stand continually lets your Frame fall, contact Kodak Customer Support.
With the bezel aligned to the Frame's LCD and back, grasp the bezel on both sides and press firmly toward the Frame's back.
If this is not effective, remove the bezel and then put it back on. To do this:
Turn off the Frame and unplug the power supply from the wall.
Turn the frame upside-down so that the LCD screen is facing (or, is in) your lap.
Locate two tabs behind the frame stand, against the bezel, and press down and away from the bezel with your thumbs. This may be difficult.
Gently remove the bezel from the Frame LCD-back-stand assembly.
To replace the bezel, align the LCD (there is no up or down) with the bezel and press firmly until the bezel 'clicks' into place.
If the bezel remains too loose, contact Kodak Customer Support.
Be certain the surface on which the Frame is placed is not inordinately slippery.
Contact Kodak Customer Support.
Make sure you are not experiencing power outages. Make sure the Frame is not connected to a switch that is being turned off and on.
Turn off the Frame, and unplug the power supply from the wall.
If the Frame is plugged in through a surge protector, remove it.
Plug the Frame into a different outlet.
Turn the Frame back on using the Pictures/Channels button (not the ON/OFF button or any other button).
If the problem persists, contact Kodak Customer Support.
This does not indicate a problem with the Frame.
A picture is readied for display on the Frame by adjusting its aspect ratio. The Frame displays images with a 4:3 aspect* ratio. If the aspect ratio of a picture is not 4:3, the Frame adjusts the aspect ratio to 4:3. Black bars are the result of this adjustment. A picture with a higher resolution that has a 4:3 aspect ratio is compressed to 640 x 480 for display on the Frame, but it won't be displayed with black bars.
For example, a picture from a KODAK Picture CD has a resolution of 1024 x 1536, and an aspect ratio of 1:1.5. Therefore, a picture from a Picture CD and stored on a COMPACTFLASH Card is displayed on the Frame with black bars (their position dependent on whether the picture is landscape or portrait).
*Aspect ratio is a comparison of the horizontal resolution to the vertical resolution.
If a picture on the Frame was rotated using the Rotate Menu, it too will appear with black bars because the Frame adjusts the aspect ratio to 4:3.
Turn off the Frame, and unplug the power supply from the wall.
If the Frame is plugged in through a surge protector, remove it.
Plug the Frame into a different outlet.
Turn the Frame back on using the Pictures/Channels button (not the ON/OFF switch or any other button).
Set the time and Accept Settings.
If the artifacts are still visible, contact Kodak Customer Support and work with the customer support representative.
If you are viewing the Frame at an angle, the picture quality will not be optimal. For optimal viewing, place the Frame so that it is viewed straight on.
The pictures may appear the same way from their source (i.e., before they are displayed on the Frame). View the picture on another device (computer, digital camera, etc.) to determine the quality of the original picture.
At times, the format of pictures taken with older digital cameras and read or copied from COMPACTFLASH Cards are distorted. This is because the directory created by the digital camera on the COMPACTFLASH Card is not compatible with the coding in the Frame. In these cases, the pictures do not display optimally, if at all.
If the picture distortion is severe and is not being caused by any of the above potential problems, contact Kodak Customer Support. Work with the customer support representative (see Artifacts on the LCD screen first).
Seeing white dots, white lines, nothing but the backlight, or other artifacts on the Frame's LCD screen may indicate a failed LCD.
Turn off the Frame, and unplug the power supply from the wall.
If the Frame is plugged in through a surge protector, remove it.
Plug the Frame's AC power adapter into a different outlet.
Turn the Frame back on using the Pictures/Channels button (not the ON/OFF switch or any other button).
Set the time and Accept Settings.
If the artifacts are still visible, contact Kodak Customer Support and work with the customer support representative.
When a COMPACTFLASH Card is inserted, it appears that the slide show runs at a varied rate. Pictures stored on the Frame display according to the Slide Show Rate you've set, while pictures from the COMPACTFLASH Card display at 20 to 30-second intervals (or longer depending on the picture resolution) regardless of the Slide Show Rate you've set. The picture stored immediately before the COMPACTFLASH Card pictures displays until the first COMPACTFLASH Card picture has been successfully read by the Frame.
If you have just inserted the COMPACTFLASH Card, the Frame may still be reading the first picture, especially if it is high resolution.
Pictures that have been manipulated by PHOTOSHOP, for example, may not contain the proper EXIF information. Therefore, thumbnails may not exist for the pictures and/or the pictures may not be viewable on the Frame from a COMPACTFLASH Card.
The picture may be corrupt. Try displaying another picture from the COMPACTFLASH Card on your Frame. Try to view the picture in question on another source (like your digital camera) to see if it's corrupt.
The COMPACTFLASH Card may be corrupt. Try another COMPACTFLASH Card or try to view the pictures on another device, like a digital camera, before assuming there is a problem with the Frame.
What is the size of the image? If it is less than 640 x 480, the image may not be displayed.
At times, the format of pictures taken with older digital cameras and read or copied from COMPACTFLASH Cards are distorted. This is because the directory created by the digital camera on the COMPACTFLASH Card is not compatible with the coding in the Frame. In these cases, the pictures do not be displayed optimally, if at all.
The COMPACTFLASH Card connections in the Frame may be damaged. If none of the aforementioned solutions apply, contact Kodak Customer Support and work with the customer support representative.
Turn off your Frame and unplug the power supply from the wall.
Turn off your Frame and unplug the power supply from the wall.
If the Frame is plugged in through a surge protector, remove it.
Plug the Frame into a different outlet.
Turn the Frame back on using the Pictures/Channels button (not the ON/OFF switch or any other button).
Set the time and Accept Settings.
If there is a thin white bar across the top of the LCD screen along with the picture and you have followed the procedure above, contact Kodak Customer Support.
Is the correct time set on the Frame? Go to the Advanced option in the Frame Menu (use arrow keys to highlight and press OK). Use the arrow keys to bracket Set the Time and press OK. Is the time correct?
For more information, see
Select the Frame Menu/On/Off Times option to verify that the ON/Off Times are enabled and set correctly.
Is it possible a power outage caused the Frame to malfunction? After resetting the On/Off times, determine whether the Frame continues to go On/Off at the wrong times. Has the time changed due to Daylight Savings Time, for example?
For more information, see
Pictures that have been manipulated by PHOTOSHOP, for example, may not contain the proper EXIF information. Therefore, thumbnails may not exist for the pictures and/or the pictures may not be viewable on the Frame from a COMPACTFLASH Card.
The picture may be corrupt. Try displaying another picture from the COMPACTFLASH Card on your Frame. Try to view the picture in question on another source (like your digital camera) to see if it's corrupt.
The COMPACTFLASH Card may be corrupt. Try another COMPACTFLASH Card or try to view the pictures on another device, like a digital camera, before assuming there is a problem with the Frame.
When you delete a picture from the Frame, it is removed from the Frame and cannot be recovered unless you left a copy of it on a COMPACTFLASH Card.