Aura Walden digital picture frame review: A big beauty with two big flaws
I love this frame except for a couple issues that drive me nuts. Both could easily be fixed.
I'm a little obsessed with digital picture frames, and with good reason: They're the best way to revisit precious memories like family vacations, special occasions, the new grandkid (hi, baby Lucas!) and so on.
That's why I put together a roundup of the best digital picture frames, which showcases six different models — including the new Aura Walden. What follows is an expanded version of that review, as I've now lived with the frame for over a month. Spoiler alert: I absolutely love it except for a couple issues, one of which is almost a dealbreaker.
VERDICT: A big, beautiful photo frame that keeps precious memories alive — but suffers from a few glaring flaws that could easily be fixed.
- Easy to set up
- Big, beautiful screen
- Can be preconfigured for gifting
- Unlimited cloud storage with no monthly fees
- Limited slideshow options
- No global "fit to frame" option for photos
- You can't retrieve your photos from your library
Aura Walden design and setup
Aura makes some of the most stylish photo frames you can get, so it's a bit surprising this newer Walden model looks fairly plain: Just a basic black frame and white matte surrounding a roomy 15-inch screen. But that screen is glorious, one of the brightest and sharpest I've seen.
An included metal stand lets you position it in portrait or landscape orientation, but it's also wall-mountable (if you don't mind a cord running down your wall). I opted for an end table. Take note that the stand doesn't let you physically adjust the angle of the frame, but the screen itself looks great from any viewing angle.
Setup is easy, and so is adding photos: The frame can slurp up pics (and videos) from your phone, your iCloud account and Google Photos. And there's no limit on how many, as your purchase includes unlimited cloud storage. Unfortunately, it doesn't connect with the likes of Facebook, Instagram or other services, which some other frames can do.
You can also send photos from your computer using Aura's Web uploader, a nice option if you have an existing library that's not on your phone or online. (I used that tool to upload nearly 1,500 personal photos; it worked perfectly.) However, Aura doesn't allow this to go the other way: You can't download all your photos from your library, which I find extremely frustrating. These cloud-based albums represent not only a backup of the photos you've shared, but also a larger collection of those shared by others.
Indeed, as time goes by and photos get added by friends and family members, the end result is a photo library that's unique and effectively irreplaceable. So what happens if, say, you want to create a backup of that library? Or move your photos elsewhere? Aura can migrate them to another Aura frame (a process that requires reaching out to customer service), but you can't retrieve them yourself.
Other frames, including those from Nixplay and Pix-Star, permit that; why doesn't the Walden? You may not find this as important as I do, but it's the one thing that really gives me pause about recommending this.
I do like the way Aura caters to gift-givers: You can upload photos in advance and even set the frame up for use with the recipient's Wi-Fi network — great for grandparents or anyone who's not super tech-savvy. (Note that this works a little differently depending on whether you purchase from Aura proper or a retail partner like Amazon; be sure to read Aura's gifting page to learn more.)
Aura Walden features and operation
As noted above, the Walden's big, beautiful screen is a standout — and that's arguably the most important aspect of any photo frame.
Also important: The app that controls it. Aura's is quite good overall, more intuitive and easier to use than many others I've tried. And it does something really crucial: Whenever you upload a photo, it's flagged in the app so you don't accidentally upload it again. (Why most photo-frame apps don't do this is a mystery to me.)
Friends and family can use the Aura app on their own devices to send their own photos to your frame, or you can give them the frame's dedicated email address (which you can find in the app's Settings page).
The Walden has a built-in motion sensor that not only detects when people are present, but also adjusts screen brightness depending on the room's ambient light. However, I was surprised to discover there's no way to manually adjust brightness, either on the frame itself or in the app.
This is the rare frame that doesn't have a touch screen. All settings are managed in the app, though there are touch bars embedded on the top and side edges; you can swipe these to page through your photos. I thought this a bit inconvenient at first, but it actually makes sense because it keeps the screen free of fingerprints.
You can also long-press the top touch-bar to bring up a menu, but the only options there are Remove and TK. What's missing, and desperately needed, is a quick "fit to frame" selection. By default, the Walden automatically scales each photo to highlight what it thinks is the best part (usually faces). But sometimes it zooms in too much, or it excludes parts of the photo I want to see. (Like, you know, the beautiful countryside in the background.)
Ideally, when I spot an over-scaled photo, I'd bring up that menu and choose "fit" to see the whole thing. Alas, the only way to do this is to reach for my phone, open the Aura app, navigate to Settings, tap Remote Control, tap Position and then tap Fill. And that's assuming the photo hasn't already changed by then, in which case I have to navigate back to it.
This is ludicrous. What's more, there's no global override option; I can't force the frame to automatically size all photos to fit. Instead, they have to be handled manually, one at a time, as they appear.
Again, this is something that bothers me more than it may bother others, but lots of other frames give you a lot more control over how photos are displayed. For example, while there are lots of choices for the interval timing between one photo and the next, the shortest is 15 seconds. Why not 10 seconds or five? Some of us like a faster slideshow.
What's more, the Walden offers no transition effects whatsoever; here's hoping you like a leftward slide. This isn't a huge deal, yet most other frames give you a least a few transition options: fades, wipes, etc. Nothing, Aura?
Aura Walden: Should you buy it?
If I'm being extra tough on the Walden, it's because I expect more from a $300 photo frame. The irony is that Aura could fix every single issue I've raised here with just a few lines of code (okay, maybe transitions require more than a few), and the result would be a more well-rounded and competitive product.
As it stands, it's still very good, and still one of my favorite photo frames to date. It's a snap to use and pictures look gorgeous. Plus there's no obnoxious subscription requirement. But it's precisely because I like it so much that I want it to be perfect, and until Aura addresses these issues, it isn't.
