Wireless photo frame that syncs with your phone

Google is snapping itself into your photos. The company secured a patent Tuesday for a wireless photo frame that would work much like the digital one you may already have. So what sets this one apart from the rest?

It would connect directly to your mobile device. The frame, which will display any photo you upload to it, is linked to your phone through a wireless connection. Much like on Facebook, it allows you to tag people in the photo, then imports that tag into your phone's contact list. Since the frame and your phone would automatically sync wirelessly, you would simply tap the face of anyone in a picture and your phone would call that contact. Through the connection, an image of your caller would also appear in the frame when they call you.

As mentioned, this isn't the only digital photo frame on the market, but the advantages to having the full backing of Google — and all of its software — are evident. And Google is known for its simplistic designs, so this frame should be timeless and sleek. You can also bet on it being integrated with your Android, Office suite and Google TV.

So far, it doesn't look like any sort of hardware is anywhere near market-ready. But if this patent is any indication, Google has set a serious framework.