I was contacted by Greetingflix to try their online photo sharing product. I have folder upon folder of pictures to share with friends and family and any new way to do that is always going to catch my eye. So I agreed.
Greetingflix allows you to download your pictures and view them with music and added effects. They have 10-12 templates that require 3-6 photos from you. Each template has pre-made video and music to go with a theme and automatically inserts your pictures into the theme for you to send out to friends and family. You have the option of adding a personalized message to the end.
I originally had the free membership which gives you 20MB of storage space and access to free templates. Greetingflix updated me to the Pro account (usually $19.95/year) and I suddenly had 100MB of storage and unlimited access to all templates.
At first I was wicked excited because, hello? Unlimited access to all templates? Yes! I was totally addicted to my free membership! But I wanted to add more than three or six photos to a template and I needed more templates! These templates weren't enough! I needed more creativity! I was sure to get that with the Pro account! Right? Right?!?
Sadly, no. I basically got 100MB of storage and all the same templates I had access to with the free account. And I didn't even get to add more pictures to those templates. I was still limited to the number prescribed in the free account. So, even though I could upload more pictures, I couldn't add them to the template unless I just kept making that template over and over with new pictures.
The templates themselves are mostly fun. A few are cheezy and a few didn't lend themselves to my family, but may be perfect for yours (case in point: the sports templates). I think the Greetingflix team did a good job providing templates for a wide audience. They have something that will appeal to college students, love birds, new parents, and seasoned parents. I bet you'll find at least one template you'll like. My complaint is that I was completely hooked on making these things then utterly disappointed when I realized the limited template options. As soon as they make more templates on a consistent basis, they'll be off and running.
As for usability, I had trouble uploading pictures a few times. Not every time. I consider myself to be more than a little computer savvy and I had some trouble navigating this site to find the information I was looking for when I had questions. Their FAQ section answers questions about their services, not how to use their product.
I also have to warn you that you need to click the buttons on the screen instead of relying on your Enter key. I cannot tell you how many times I would enter information, hit the Enter key, then be taken to the beginning of the process to start over because Greetingflix didn't process it. Oh my word. The frustration. And when I would try to name my project the same name, it would tell me that project was already there, but it wouldn't show up! Oye! This can all be avoided if you use your mouse to click the relevant buttons on your screen. Heed the Chili warning. Unless, you know, you like banging your head against the wall in frustration. In which case, knock yourself out. (She deadpans in her trademark Chili way.)
Greetingflix, you've been Chili tried. I'm sorry to say, with a several usability issues and limited templates I can't go higher than two chilis. When these are worked out, I know you'll have a great product.
Greetingflix.com: 
