11.11.2019

I wanted a device that would enable me to make WhatsApp video calls using my TV as the local display, and this box does that extremely well.The unit itself feels solid, weighty and very well made. Using the built-in clips, it sits securely atop my Samsung flat screen TV, and the power cable is impressively long. They know the box is likely to be placed on top of a TV, so could be some distance away from the nearest power socket, so that attention to detail is really appreciated and unexpected - I expected to need an extension lead, but didn't.I was a little frustrated that the box spent over an hour updating itself before I could actually start using it. It said the software update may take about 15 minutes,but ended up taking very nearly a full hour. It then rebooted, at which point I thought I'd be able to start playing with my new toy, but no such luck. It then started updating the remote control, which took a further 3-4 minutes, taking the total update time to over an hour. Only then could I start setting the box up.It's a pity the box is WiFi only, as using a wired connection would have been more convenient (no need to enter a WiFi Key) and probably would have sped up the update process.Once I finally managed to start the setup process, this was really easy and intuitive, and only took a few minutes.One slight annoyance is that the on-screen keyboards are not QWERTY - the "keys" are arranged alphabetically, which I found awkward.During the setup process, I was offered a full-screen view of my own camera, so I could position the camera and play with the tracking feature and see what the picture was like. It would be nice to be able to recall this feature after initial setup, especially if I want to move the box to a new position, but I couldn't see any option to.My first call was a WhatsApp call to my mum, who has a fairly old Android phone.The picture quality is very good, even in a fairly dimly-lit room, and the video tracking works extremely well - actually far better than I had expected! If you move to the other side of the room, sit down, stand up, do a dance, whatever, it follows you flawlessly.When the other person turned their phone on its side, the picture filled the TV screen my end, and my picture flipped to horizontal and filled the screen their end as well - perfect!Audio quality was crystal clear both ends. The call audio comes through the TV speakers, but there is also a speaker built into the box itself. This emits the ringing signal, even when the call is being initiated from my end, which seems a bit weird.I was pleasantly surprised to find that the volume buttons on the Portal remote adjusted the volume on my TV - how it knew how to control my TV is a mystery because I never told it, but it worked somehow!My second call was another WhatsApp call, this time to a contact who has a new iPhone XR. Sadly, on this call, when they turned their phone sideways, while their picture flipped and filled my TV screen, my picture remained vertical and displayed as a pillarbox on their end. That was disappointing, but no doubt a bug that will be sorted out at some point. We flipped back and forth several times, but could not make the Portal box flip its image to horizontal.I then tried a Facebook Messenger call to the same contact, and that worked much better - when they turned their phone to horizontal, both pictures flipped to horizontal so we had full screen both ends.I have yet to try a Portal to Portal call, but I have no reason to doubt that this will work well.This box's primary function is to make video calls via a TV, and that job it does very well. I didn't try any of the other features because, frankly, I couldn't care less about them. Hopefully the landscape orientation bug will be sorted out in a future software version, then it'll be perfect.UPDATE - April 2020:Since I bought the Portal TV around 5 months ago, the software has been updated.The inset picture from your own camera is now placed in the bottom right corner of the screen instead of the top left, which is better, but I would still prefer an option to choose which corner to put the picture.There is now an option to force portrait/landscape orientation, so even though the automatic switching still doesn't work reliably, this can be manually overridden to provide a full-screen picture both ends.There is still no option to check the picture from your own camera without starting a video call to someone, but I have discovered that if you go into the "Photo Booth" app from the home screen, you can see what your camera is seeing locally without starting a call.WhatsApp does not work reliably. Incoming calls frequently don't "ring" on the Portal, and after a period of time the Portal TV will stop working altogether with WhatsApp, complaining that my phone is not connected to the Internet (it is). You then have to delete your WhatsApp account from the Portal (which triggers a confirmation code sent to WhatsApp your phone, demonstrating that it really is connected!) and then re-add it again. Of course, this loses hidden contacts list, so you have to set this up again. I've since given up on WhatsApp, and now just use the Portal TV for Facebook calls, which seem to be much more reliable.Portal-to-Portal Facebook calls work brilliantly, and the picture quality is excellent.I have tried out the Alexa functionality, and this seems to work as you would expect, but it's not a feature I use regularly.

18.3.2020

I have been so impressed by this device that I am writing my first review. I live in Chicago and my parents and sister in the UK. Mom is 88 and has been recently diagnosed with Alzheimer's and Dad is 90 and pretty fit and "mostly" with it, although has never used a touch screen before in his life.First I had to buy the folks a new cell phone that was able to download apps (they didn't have a smart phone) which was easy. Took their old one into Tesco mobile, upgraded to a Nokia 2.2 for GBP75 and they ported the number. Set that up with a new gmail address for Dad and downloaded Whats app. Didn't want to go the Facebook route as it seems like accounts get blocked if there is no other online presence,which there isn't. Added contacts to WhatsApp and tested all was working.Opened up the Portal. The 15" Plus is big. Obviously 15" screen, but then there's the base and camera on top, so close to 22" tall. The base is deep too (about 6" plus cable coming out of it, so placing on a mantelpiece probably won't work in most cases. Followed the on-screen instructions, connected to Wi-Fi and downloaded the latest software. Super easy.Next I added some contacts to favorites, and that was it. Increased font sizes, increased volume and done. What's great is that on the home screen, all that shows is the pictures of the favorite contacts. All Dad has to do it touch the screen, touch my icon, click video call and sit back.The call quality is amazing in both directions. They are both hard of hearing (Mum has two hearing aids) but have no problems with this. They can sit back in their chairs and still hear me, and I can hear them perfectly. I'd stopped calling them so often because it was so hard to get Mum to hear, now with this, I can chat every day. They don't have to hold a phone or worry about which buttons to press to put a phone on speaker. So simple and I can see how well they look (or not), see the flowers I sent etc.I still have can't believe the camera quality on this either. The way it widens to show the whole room when there's more than one person is incredible and when just one person is talking, it zooms in on them. Then widens when someone else joins the conversation. It's almost like being there.We have some care appointments set up for them this week and can't be there, but Dad will call us when the carer arrives and we can be in on the conversation. And yes, you can add other callers to the call, so both my sister and I can talk with Dad or the carer at the same time.I paid a little over the odds for it (from Argos) as I wanted it next day, but Amazon have it at a great price. Even at the price I paid, I'm totally satisfied.Sure it doesn't do that much, but what it does do, it does exceptionally well. If you're considering this as a tool to keep in touch with anyone, especially older folks, you won't regret it. Amazing!

10.1.2020

This is a fantastic piece of kit, although it does take some patience to get it set up and find out what it can do. I wasn't sure about it at first because it says it takes about 15 minutes to download the software and it actually took a few hours, but that may have been because of our slow internet connection. Also I was a bit disappointed that the instructions supplied were minimal, but actually it's pretty intuitive.My wife is an avid Facebook user and she's always contacting friends on Messenger and WhatsApp, so she was absolutely thrilled with it and has been spending hours playing around and finding out what it's capable of.The unit itself is a smart black box with a 10" screen and once the power supply is plugged in it sits anywhere,

26.1.2020

Well done facebook, but there is a lot of room to make the Portal TV better. Arrived in a small box size of a brick, very well presented, inside with the Portal tv, a remote control, a power cable and a "getting started" guide. There is already to problem for me, one is that the power cable is not with a standard USB end but the biggest problem is that HDMI cable not included. For this price I would expect to have an HDMI cable included in the box, now I have a £150 worth of gadget but pretty much useless until I go to the shop and grab a cable.The Portal is a lot smaller than I thought which is definitely an advantage, I would not like to have a bulky something to have around my TV.

23.1.2020

Before you get this, I think it's very important for you to know what you want. If your primary requirement is for a fixed camera/ receiver, which you can use to communicate with your loved ones while you, for example, prepare the dinner, this is good. It comes with a built in stand; the camera and screen are both excellent quality, with the camera actually following you around the room and focussing itself. The microphone also seems to be able to pick up sounds very well from a reasonable distance. If that is your primary requirement and you are already on Facebook, then this may be for you. If you are thinking of using it as a second tablet- installed permanently on your kitchen or elsewhere,

8.1.2020

I wasn't sure what to make of this. A standing tablet from Facebook which only appeared to work as a video screen with their WhatsApp and Messenger services. Would it be one of the gizmos that would be quietly shoved into a drawer after a few weeks? After all, who uses Messenger for video calls? Its generally Facetime of WhatApp, and that's the thing. You really do need a Facebook account to use this. However...here's the good news. It turns out it actually doesn't more than that. It has a browser which means you can use it like a regular tablet and bring up sites. For example, I brought up my BBC iPlayer account and set it as a listed app on my screen so I can watch the news when I'm making the tea.

23.1.2020

Purchsed 2 of these devices for grandparents so I can get my phone back off my 18 month old boy who loves to video call..Was a little dubious at first but a great discount deal on 2 made me take a punt .I have to say I am very impressed not only with the build quality but also with the functionality. The portal mini is non intrusive and sits in the sideboard like a photo frame. The set up was simple and took less than 10 minutes although the initial software update did take a little while which I was surprised at given its a new product.The tracking camera is what sets this apart from other video calling options.

1.6.2020

Bought for my very elderly and tech fearing grandma to keep in touch more during Covid19. My Grandma can just about turn the volume up on her tv (no exaggeration) so I was apprehensive about this. Fortunately she has broadband installed as it was no extra cost with her phone package so this was well worth a shot. To say it's the best thing we've done in a long time is an understatement! After a little teething problem setting it up (parental controls on the broadband account stopping it connecting correctly) it's been a godsend. We set up a blank FB profile to get messenger and then just added the family and friends she wanted to be able to keep in touch with.

4.5.2020

Just before lock-down, our whole family purchased facebook portals. They have been invaluable for us to all stay connected. The unique thing is the way the camera follows you around, so I can cook and chat to my Mum, or do the washing up without having to hold my phone to video call. Also really important as we have a toddler who never stays still, so now I don't have to follow him around with the phone anymore when video chatting and the call can get us all in the picture at once. Having this hands free way of video calling is so useful and we can chat whilst having dinner. Storytime, the interactive games you can play with each other and the built in Alexa for music (on which the lyrics come up on the screen)

20.5.2020

I purchases 2 of these as during lockdown my daughter had our first grandaughter, so i had one delivered to my daughters address and one for me and my wife. Setting up is really easy and use is easy too, i love the way the camera changes the shot to include as many people as possible, it means my daughter can deal with her new baby while chatting and we get to be involved (hopefully we will get to hold the baby soon). The sound from the Portal is really clear and it has volume controls on the side. we also use the portal to store all the new picture of our grandaughter so it acts as a digital photo frame when not in use, and manages to bring a smile to my face when i see new pictures appearing.

3.7.2020

I bought this for my parents during lockdown. I set it up for them and there have been times when they haven't worked out how to use it, but I think they are getting the hang of this now.It's been great for keeping in touch remotely, but we haven't managed to set it up with Whatsapp because you need a smartphone for that (and they haven't got one, hence the portal).So it's only been used with Messenger.My dad is blind, so he cannot see the screen to answer it, so the one thing that would be great is if he could answer it using the Alexa app, or he could call people on it using Alexa, We tried to setup Drop-in, but that didn't work. That would really help if this functionality was added and I have to confess,

14.11.2019

We have bought a 4 of these now to give to family members as they are so good. Picture and audio are really good, you can focus and zoom onto individual people so that anyone in the room that dose not want to be seen will not be on the camera. The tracking feature is very impressive and pans around the room to fit all people into frame or just the people who it’s focused on. There is a lens cover and also a button that turns the camera and mic off completely which gives you peace of mind for privacy. There is also the AR feature that is quite fun, allowing you to change your face, put hats and glasses on and changes your voice etc....

25.4.2020

Not a big fan of Facebook due to their data harvesting and trolling reputation but was persuaded by a friend who uses this regularly to give it a go. On his recommendation I did and it's got to be said it's a great system, very easy to set up and use and the video and audio clarity is superb. Due to Facebook's big brother rep i switch it off at the mains when not in use and use WhatsApp as the connection medium whenever possible. A lot of the negative reviews seem to be either driven by a misunderstanding of how the system operates and it's regional limitations or the dislike of FB. I have Amazon Prime so do use the Alexa feature but you don't need an Amazon account the use the Portal,

24.11.2019

Massive screenVery easy to setup and to use.Video tracking is very good. Zooming in and out and tracking u walk around the roomMessenger and WhatsAppThe only thing negative is that if you setup to English uk language you can’t use the portal voice commands But Alexa works perfectBut if you change to English / Canada language then portal voice commands work but the Alexa speaks in a American sound and doesn’t always understand what u are saying. So I keep mine on English uk language and do not use the portal commands. But I am sure it will all work together soonI can ask Alexa to show me my front door camera with no problems.Play my prime Alexa musicEtcSo very good but I’m sure it will get even

8.6.2020

Sick of seeing all the reviews damning it because they couldn't set up[ Facebook accounts for elderly relatives.Yes, having Facebook does help get the most out of having Portal but it is by no means an essential. You can connect just as well with a Whats App account and it works incredibly smoothly using either so if you don't want to go to the hassle of setting up a FB account then just create a Whats App account instead.I have found this invaluable during lock down and have spoken to family across the world with no issues and it beats gathering around a mobile phone or tablet screen when their uis more than one person in the room.

Facebook Portal Mini 8" - Reviews

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