NETGEAR Meural MC321BL Canvas II the Smart Art Frame with 55 cm HD Digital Canvas, 41x61 cm Black Frame (WiFi-Connected)

I bought two of these frames in early 2020. Three months out of the warranty period of 2 years, some dark patches started to appear along one of the edges of the screen (shown in the attached photo)This same problem has occurred on both frames. (Bought from same supplier, at the same time and the problem is along same edge of the canvas. The only difference is that they were in two separate locations. I was advised that this was a hardware problem which could not be repaired, the canvas could only be replaced, and this was not possible because it was after the warranty period had expired.Furthermore, NETGEAR encourage you to buy the GearHead networking support this is also useless if you have a hardware problem. They can only guide you through an issue that you have with your network (i.e., Wi-Fi connection lost, reset etc) and its pretty basic at that.So, when thinking about purchasing please bear in mind these items may only have a two-year life and after that you will have to write off your investment to experience (approx. £1400 in my case) because they cannot be repaired and that is the maximum length of the warranty under which replacement can take place. BEWARE! I believe that where a manufacturer has confidence in the reliability of their product, they give long warranties and have repair solutions in place to keep customers happy. NETGEAR IS NOT ONE OF THESE. THIS IS DEFINITELY A “TAKE THE MONEY AND RUN” SORT OF BUSINESS.If you like a gamble go ahead and purchase!

Firstly, I had a significant amount of issues with the third-party company who manage the sale of these devices in the UK (Expertis); we ordered from them directly in error, and it took constant barrages of emails, calls and threats to get a collection of the item and a refund from them exercising distance selling rights - so don't expect any kind of level of aftercare at all from them.Amazon are at least consistent in their approach to supporting the products they sell. Anyway; on to the device itself.It is hella-expensive for what it is (and certainly wait until it is around the £450 mark as it often is). Quite why it is at an RRP of £200 more expensive in £'s than it is in $'s in the US makes me think they don't really want to sell these in the UK market.The build quality is awful. The 'frame' very loosely sits on the mounted screen, such that it is bendy and moveable. It feels like cheap plastic all over.The screen is just a screen, and not even a very good resolution one or colour reproduction one. I've read so many reviews where the reviewer says they have been 'wowed' that brushstrokes on art work look like they could be actual brushstrokes! Well; spoiler alert, a brushstroke can look like a brushstroke on any decent screen with high enough resolution. Here, on the Meural canvas, they look passable. I'd argue art looks better rendered on my LG C8 (which it should, as it is an expensive OLED screen). It shows pictures backlit, so will always look like a digital screen - not once have I been convinced otherwise.The thing is buggy - I've uploaded about 200 photos, and I find both this canvas and the Wifi Photo frame I have from Meural both bug-out constantly - they show the same photo over and over again, and seem to constantly be trying to update the library (despite full resets). Clearly the library online has become corrupted; however there is no help or support for this, so it means I have to just manually control them whenever I want new images to show consistently.I've had no end of trouble trying to sign up for Meural membership, to the point that I just won't bother now and will make do with what content I will load myself. The Meural website is clunky, and the buttons to purchase membership didn't work. For a company who are literally in the business of making the internet work (Netgear), their tech-savvy and grasp of simple internet and e-commerce requirements is shocking to say the least; and doesn't fill me with confidence that this product will 'take off', and so will not be something that will last the test of time (as previous iterations of this concept by other companies have failed).I am not wowed by this device, but it largely does what it says on the tin in a market where there are limited options for digitally displaying art and photographs - the Meural Canvas is passable; but the supporting eco-system is a flub, the build quality is poor, the support is some of the worst I've come up against, and the cost is too high with all these things considered.It works ok for what I wanted it for; but overall, a huge disappointment and not something I would recommend to friends or family. Maybe if I had my time again, I'd go with the Samsung frame, as at least that has wider applications if the art side of it doesn't work out.

Product is ok, if rather costly. Since Netgear bought the company its nearly impossible to contact support and when you do they take literally months to answer. This was a support query to renew a subscription, were a fault to emerge i would probably bin it as their support is dire.One example: They ask for the serial number when providing support. There isnt one, the product has a product ID, its not that. A product name, its not that. There is a label on the back, its not on that. Not on the box either! Its almost as if they have your money and dont care anymore...Its a shame as the frame itself is quite nice.