Seamlessly curate your art
Meural Canvas II Frame
Trying to design your living space can be a costly exercise, especially when the throw pillows you just bought for R500 a pop don’t even match your new rug. Or your tastes may change with the seasons – or after a breakup. And let’s be honest, nobody wants a giant print of Klimt’s The Kiss that they bought with their ex still hanging on their wall like a giant reminder of ‘what could have been’.
That’s where the Meural Canvas II Frame comes in handy. Its basically art meets tech, allowing you to transform your space into a rotating gallery without having to build one, and finally see all the photos you have taken and not printed. The Canvas II also offers a library of more than 30 000 images to choose from, ranging from the greats like Vermeer and Pollock to up-and-coming innovators in the art world. The frame is available in two display sizes – 21.5 inches or 27 inches – and set up should only take you roughly thirty minutes, unless you have never hung anything on a wall before.
The box features an 8-foot power cord, wall anchors, a wall mount, and a cleaning cloth. While the cord can be a bit of an eyesore, there are multiple creative ways to conceal it. You’ll just have to be crafty. If you have a particular colour scheme in mind, the frame is available in four styles, with a matte screen with anti-glare properties and an ambient light sensor that blends in well with any surroundings. Whether you hang it in portrait or landscape mode is up to you – the picture adjusts according to the direction of the frame.
There is also an optional swivel mount that allows you to quickly change between the two orientations. The display offers a crisp backlit 1920 x 1080p LCD, meaning even the brush strokes on your selected painting are visible. Setup requires you to download the manual app and figure out how to use the gesture-control option. Essentially, there is a sensor at the bottom of the frame that picks up your hand movements. Using this, you can scroll through pictures, schedule display times and durations, and select options from the menu. For those who are not the most dexterous, the Meural app comes with an easy-to-follow tutorial.
Full access to the Meural Art Library requires a subscription, with images from renowned museums, different art movements and styles, and archives like National Geographic. But if the subscription is not your style (or you don’t feel like dropping the annual $69.95), the digital frame does come with 42 preloaded images and 100 sampler images. Or simply upload your own pictures to the included 8 GB SD storage via Bluetooth.
So, whether you’re an art aficionado looking to show off your refined taste or simply tired of staring at the same old wall, the Meural Canvas II might be your new favourite gadget. It’s like having a personal curator – minus the judgement when you swap out Starry Night for a cat meme.
Price: $399.99 (±R7 050) or $499.99 (±R8 800) netgear.com
Specifications
Dimensions: 61.72 x 41.40 x 3.55 cm and 7 kg, or 73.40 x 47.24 x 3.55 cm and 9 kg
Display: 21.5-inch (54.61 cm) or 27-inch (68.58 cm)
1920x1080p full-HO AHVA LCD with anti-glare technology
Memory & storage: 2 GB DDR3 RAM; 8 GB SD card
Wi-Fi: Wi-Fi 5 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4 GHz and 5 GHz)
Ports: Micro USB. SD card slot, Ethernet
By: Kaylene Overall
Images: Supplied
