Product Description

Dual roller guiding system, Scansoft paper port software, Rechargeable feature , USB port to download ... Read more

Features

• Windows compatible; USB interface, cable included
• Scans text and graphics at up to 200 x 200 dpi
• Scan text and images up to 8 inches wide and 36 inches long
• Dual-roller guiding system for smoother scans
• 2 MB of flash memory; automatic USB-powered battery charging system

Reviews (3)

Great product
I got it, installed the software, and it works really well.I now use it a lot more that I planned.Don't plan on photo quality scanning - use it for information that you need to keep, but don't care how it looks.

I have since upgraded the software to PaperPort version 9 and that works with the Planon driver.PaperPort 10 does not.

The Rechargeable Batteries Rock!
I had the previous DocuPen (DPEN-BW) model and it worked excellent to my needs as a lawyer.

Now Planon introduces a new DocuPen version with rechargeable battery feature like the batteries used in cell phones/laptops, but in this case the R700 model recharges through the USB cable.

The two rollers is another nice addition, it allows for more parallel rolling/scanning of the page.

Again I am simply amazed with the new rechargeable battery feature.I intend to buy some more for holiday gifts this season for my friends who are in the legal industry as well.

DocuPen is the perfect tool for the road warrior
Easy to install and easy to use.
I used to have the older model (DocuPen BW) but after knowing that the new model featured rechargeable batteries I decided to buy it (my son inherited the BW and now uses it at school)
Since I bought my DocuPen R-700 I have been carrying it around with my mobile and my notebook and it is almost like having my whole office on the road.
The scan quality is good for my purposes (it is 100 dpi, not a 1600 dpi flat bed scanner OK?) and the best part is that I don't have to look for photocopy machines anymore.
I have heard some complaints about the installation but it worked perfectly to me and have not found any problem (I use XP). If you follow the instructions on the screen you should not have any problem at all
Anybody working on the road should have one. ... Read more

Product Description

Scanning color negatives can be a tricky business, even for experts. But with the DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 II, you can take advantage of a new Film Expert algorithm that draws on decades of Konica Minolta expertise in photofinishing and optical imaging technology.As a result, you can get consistently beautiful results without the hassle of manually adjusting scanner settings to match the different exposure characteristics and color balance of various types of negative film.The DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 II boasts class-leading 5400 dpi resolution that transforms a single frame of 35mm film into more than 42.2 megapixels of rich, 16-bit color data. Designed specifically to meet the demands of people who are serious about image quality, it captures every detail and tonal nuance of the original, allowing you to produce stunningly beautiful large-format prints*.16-bit analog-to-digital signal conversion and a wide, 4.8 dynamic range deliverover 65,000 gradations in each of the three RGB color channels. The result is smooth shading of color tones, with excellent shadow and highlight detail.There's no need to compromise on scanning area when you're working with filmstrips, because the DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 II offers edge-to-edge 24mm x 36mm scanning that captures 100% of every frame.Multi-sample scanning allows images to be scanned 2, 4, 8, or 16 times, significantly reducing random noise in shadow areas and revealing subtle tonal gradations tha ... Read more

Features

• 35mm film and slide holders; advanced color restoration
• USB interface; PC and Mac compatible
• 5,400 dpi optical resolution with 42.2-megapixel sensor
• User-selectable 8 or 16 bits per color channel, 4.8 DMax
• High speed scanning at 25 seconds per frame

Reviews (1)

The Photographer Determines the Quality of the Scanner
The photographer is the limiting factor. Period. I am sorry, if one takes a blurry picture and scanned on this wonderful optical 5400 resolution and complained that this scanner is a lousy scanner yielding blurry images...this does not make sense!

I will admit that this scanner's resolution is astounding. What seems to me of the crisp images I see on my light table only reveals the **flaws** in my technique as a photographer and *not* on the scanner!

// The Review of the Scanner //

Software: Konica Minolta Utility.

Effective and intuitive. The scanner software is capable to the extent that one does not have to resort to third party softwares like VueScan or Silverfast.

Build Quality: lightweight hence plastic. This does not result to "cheap" feeling. It has a quality appearance and handling.

Film Holders: 4-Frame Transparency and 6-Frame Negative. These two holders are both built of plastic and again, I re-state that although plastic-built, they do not feel cheap in quality.

// Color Accuracy //

No scanner is perfect and no scanner will give the exact match. There is always the initial tweaking during the scanning and the final tweaking in Photoshop or some other image editing software. The scanner is as good as the person operating it.

// Final Conclusions //

I recommend this scanner to any one on a budget. For me personally, it was either the Nikon V ED or Konica Minolta DS Elite 5400 II. I picked this item because it was new on the market and that it has 5400 optical resolution instead of Nikon V ED's 4000 DPI.

If one desires more review / further input. Use Google or visit Photo.net and type in "Dimage Scan Elite 5400 II" in Photo.net's "Search" button. ... Read more

Features

• Includes detachable USB 2.0 cable
• Stores and organizes business cards electronically
• Produces 3-4 second color and 2-second monochrome scans
• Includes software to search and manage card storage
• Weighs just 8 ounces

Amazon.com Product Description

The ScanPartner FI-4120C color duplex workgroup scanner offers substantially faster speeds than its predecessors, possessing duplex and color capabilities of up to 25 pages per minute, boosting efficiency for your business's decentralized and low-volume scanning efforts. This model is equipped with a 50-page automatic document feeder (ADF) with double-feed detection for smooth paper flow. With its advanced ADF design, the paper path is almost linear--from thin slips to thick business cards and postcards, the transport moves pages steadily and without stress.

Photograph-friendly dual 600-dpi CCDs (charge-coupled devices) scan both sides of a document at once for maximum efficiency, and the scanner's selectable dual interface accepts either SCSI-2 or USB 1.1 connectivity. It also comes equipped with Adobe Acrobat 5.0 software to convert any document into an Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) file. Other in-box applications include ScandAll 21, a TWAIN utility, and QuickScan. Onboard JPEG hardware compression assists with large files. The unit is backed by a one-year warranty. ... Read more

Features

• Adobe Acrobat 6.0, ScandAll 21, and QuickScan utilities
• SCSI-2 and USB 1.1 interfaces (selectable); PC only
• True 600 dpi optical resolution; scans up to 25 pages per minute
• Dual-CCD array scans both sides of a document simultaneously
• 50-page automatic document feeder handles think and thin media

Reviews (7)

Excellent product
I first saw this scanner when I went to the hospital for a routine procedure and was impressed with its small size and speed. The employee who was scanning told me what a pleasure it was to use. I was hooked, and after doing some research, I bought it to use at home to replace my flatbed scanner. I scan receipts, warranties, bank statements, brochures, books, etc. I usually use it with my desktop pc, but it is so light and small that sometimes I take it into another room to use with my laptop.

This is not an inexpensive unit, but I decided the convenience and performance was worth the expense for home use. I have not been disappointed. The difference between using this and a flatbed scanner is night and day.

Setup was relatively simple, although the instruction manual did not mention that it was necessary to install a separate USB driver from the installation cd in addition to the twain and isis drivers that are necessary for the scanning software that comes with the unit. If you are a computer novice this might pose some difficulty, but I doubt a computer novice would spend this much money for a scanner to use at home or in the office.

The scanner comes with two separate scanning software programs. I prefer QuickScan, which lets you set up different profiles depending on what kind of documents and files you are working with(e.g. pdf for a brochure, tiff for a black and white receipt, jpeg for a color picture, etc.). This is a very handy feature since it permits scanning different kinds of documents with a minimun of time spent changing scanner settings.

The duplex feature is what really sold me on this scanner. I recently cut off the binding of a paper back book and scanned several hundred pages into a pdf file in less than ten minutes. It's also very handy to scan an invoice that has all kinds of fine print on the back.

Like any other device, you need to do some experimenting to customize it so it performs the way you want. If you do, you will not be disappointed with this product.

Worth it
This is not a cheap scanner, you already knew that.But I think it is worth the price if you have lots of paper you want to turn into ones and zeros.I had a few cardboard boxes full of paperback books that were taking up too much space, but I didn't want to throw them out.I cut off their bindings with a band saw and ran the pages through the FI-4120C and turned them into PDF files -- about 200 books, somewhere around 30,000 pages -- only cleaning out the paper dust every few books.I won't say it never jammed, but it jammed seldom enough to be highly productive, and it always had a good reason when it did, like residue binding adhesive.All the scans were excellent quality.I leave it set up on the computer desk because it doesn't take up much desk space.When bills or bank statements come in I scan them and throw away the paper instead of letting it pile up.A good, reliable commercial-quality document scanner, and rebuild kits are available for the rubber parts that wear out.

Excellent scanner.
I have used this scanner in my office for over a year with zero problems. It's fast, quiet, and efficient. And it does a great job with both letter and legal size documents. The automatic document feeder works well with documents up to about 50 pages long.

The instructions for installing the software drivers were a little confusing. I recommend going to Fujitsu's website and downloading and installing the latest drivers. The download contains a setup file that automates the driver installation process.

The scanner comes with USB and SCSI cables (use one or the other), Adobe Acrobat 5.0, and pretty much everything you need. Personally, I prefer PaperPort 9.0 software (not included) for scanning and organizing documents. So, I did not evaluate any of the other software (besides Acrobat) that comes with the scanner.

All in all, I highly recommend the 4120C for small office and workgroup users.

A great scanner
This scanner is a bit pricey but is well worth it if you have to archive a large amount of paper.Beats hands-down the models from Visioneer.I like the duplex feature, fast warm up of the lamp, and speed.Interface is very good, compared to Visioneer or HP.I would buy another one again.

I'm buying my second one...
We've used this scanner in our office for almost a year, scanning hundreds of pages per week.The problem is that having this has encouraged us to scan a lot more stuff (and have a lot less paper laying around), so there is a big line for the scanner.So I'm buying a second one! ... Read more

Product Description

Fujitsu ScanSnap is ideal for simple document scanning, archiving and distribution of business documents: invoices, price lists, contracts, government reports, financial reports, shipping waybills, press releases, press clippings, advertisements, business cards and more. A 50-page ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) provides a convenient and fast mechanism for digitizing your documents. ScanSnap will convert paper documents into high quality digital images and scan double-sided documents at an astounding rate of up to 15 pages per minute! ScanSnap automatically recognizes whether documents are black and white or color, and deletes unwanted blank pages. The scanner offers incredible flexibility, capturing paper-based information, from business cards to legal size documents. ScanSnap includes the office productivity tool Card Minder, an application designed to scan and export business card data into Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, Act!, GoldMine, or CSV files. Only ScanSnap helps keep you in touch! ... Read more

Features

• PC compatible; 1-year warranty
• 600 dpi resolution keeps text and images clear
• Scans up to 15 double-sided pages per minute
• 50-sheet automatic document feeder
• Automatic de-skew, image rotation, and paper size detection

Reviews (13)

Tiny and toylike, but excellent
This is the VW Beetle of the scanning world -- tiny and toylike, but excellent. While archiving an extremely large amount of papers of various conditions and sizes, I was pleasantly surprised to find this scanner scans all the way to each sheet's edge -- essential when scanning materials with notes written in the margins. Easily handles smaller sized papers (but items of oversized width cannot fit into the 8.5 inch wide feeder). I was also impressed that the blank page detection sensibly ignores staple holes or other binding marks on otherwise blank pages. Automatic color detection is sometimes fooled by aged paper or coffee stains into scanning in color -- but then again coffee is a color after all. The paper path is very direct (slides from top to bottom) so if paper ever jams (as it will if you try to put cardstock through it without bending it first) it is easy to pop open and remove the sheets. Includes Adobe Acrobat.

An update to my review: I still love it, but, I have three criticisms:

It is best when set for "black and white" only, and bear in mind that the black and white images it captures are high contrast. If you want to capture shades of grey you'll still want a flatbed scanner. So I've been doing the bulk of my scanning with this Fujitsu, and I set aside items that need more careful flatbed work. It has been a real time saver.

Secondly, the color accuracy of this scanner is exceptionally poor - sufficient for capturing a bright red "VOID" mark stamped on a form, for example, but not suited for anything requiring nuanced colors.

Thirdly, the software's optional "deskew" function, which is sometimes useful for leveling out any badly typed pages, only works on pages that are completely full of type. Indeed, any page with wide open spaces, such as a title page or a page with only a single paragraph of type, will end up worse if the option is on. A perfectly typed (but brief) page will end up up to 5 degrees off kilter if the "deskew" option is on. This is obviously a software limitation which they should fix.

In review, this is a great high contrast black and white scanner that will dramatically reduce your need for a traditional flatbed scanner - but it won't replace it entirely.

I LOVE it
This little unit is one of my best purchases.It is very compact, which is the first thing I love about it.It is super fast...press a button and zip the file is done!I like the fact that everything is a pdf file.Even the fact that the files are saved as strange numbers is no problem because I simply save each document giving it the same name as the document, ergo a pay stub is saved as "pay stub."Works for me!

I felt the price was kinda steep at first...but once I got the machine setup, the price did not bother me at all.

No Paperless Office yet
I bought this unit on the strength of previous positive reviews here, and anyone who really wants a paperless office had better read what I found before buying. First, to my fellow reviewers, I'm pretty surprised to find that no one addressed this, because it's pretty obvious and you find out right away that whatever you scan in with ScanSnap becomes either a PDF or a JPG. Folks, these pdf or jpg files are basically pictures, not text, therefore you cannot do a text search to find something in all those paperless files you've generated. So, other than getting rid of the paper and file cabinets, what the heck is the point of doing all that effort, putting up with occasional jamming (yes, it does happen) running files through this machine and having a lot of pictures that you can't search except if you have a truly wonderful filing system that will anticipate your every search need.
Now, we can put aside the jpg's as just silly for the paperless office, but the pdf's CAN be made text searchable with the included Adobe Acrobat 6. But here's what you've got to do: first you scan in the papers, then you have a pdf file that you will need to change the title from something like Untitled 0008.pdf to whatever, so you can basically find stuff. But for real text searches, you then go into Acrobat and select its Paper Capture function and start it. Paper Capture will attempt to take each page, OCR whatever readable text is there, and then hide that ocr'd text underneath the pdf picture that we see on our screen, and embed it within the pdf file. I found that when I scanned stuff in at ScanSnap's Normal scan speed, some of the pages that contained both text and pictures would not be recognized and the Paper Capture process stopped until you told it to keep going. So some of your pages would not be text searchable. I found that this was greatly improved by scanning stuff in a slower speed, but then that takes away from the fun of how fast Normal is (there is no waiting for warmup for scans to start, that's really neat!).
I for one will not get rid of my paper files so I can either have a lot of pdf pictures of the sheets of paper that I cannot do computer searches for key words on, or go through a whole 'thing' to add ocr subtext and take all that time and energy. In short, good try, but this item is not ready for prime time, and reviewers, let's have a little better critical thinking before we blather about how great a product is!

Useful but needlessly limited
The strengths of the ScanSnap are compactness, speed, and duplex scanning. It is well made and does its job well. But it suffers from self-inflicted wounds -- problems that could have been avoided by simple changes in firmware -- that limit its utility needlessly.

While I don't find the lack of a TWAIN driver too much of a handicap, there is a major limitation in its ability to scan many documents well: lack of a grayscale output. Monochrome documents are automatically output as black-and-white (1 bit/pixel). Depending on the typeface, this can severely degrade readability and suitability for OCR. It also means that continuous-tone images reproduce very poorly.

Paper handling is fairly good. It does jam fairly frequently but is easy to clear and usually does not tear up the paper. However, it automatically outputs a file at the end of each batch scanned, which means no more than 50 pages. When scanning a longer document you have to merge successive files.

Don't plan on using your computer for anything else while the ScanSnap is snapping -- it ties up your computer fairly thoroughly.

Will O'Neil

Nothing else like it!
Have had it for around 18 months now (the previous model of Scansnap).Sure it has some quirks (scan quality is not like a flatbed, sometimes doc feeder misbehaves)...but still giving it 5 stars.

This thing is *fast* - joy to watch it work.

Its one of those products that re-defines a category like iPod or Tivo, once you have it, you cannot be without it.

Has had a measurable impact on me over the last year - my college notes, over 10 years old, from the garage are slowly all scanned in, so are half my product manuals and bits of random paper.Its so much easier to search for something sitting comfortably in a chair on your computer looking at PDFs than sifting through dusty papers.I can instantly pull out any bill going back last few years.

Before I bought this I tried a flatbed with an ADF attachment, which was a big waste of time (I think Microtek's).I still use a flatbed for nice color/photograph scans.

Overall, I thought I would use the OCR more than I do - its not worth the extra effort (I even bought Omnipage for this).Acrobat writer that comes bundled is very useful however, more than I would have guessed.

Other minor issues: 1. I ended up replacing the pad assembly at 8k sheets (10k recommended), documents were not getting fed correctly. 2. Sometimes the image is too light, even at the darkest scan setting.

Footprint is good and compact, saves desk space. ... Read more

Product Description

CardScan is a desktop device that quickly and accurately scans the printed information from business cards into the correct fields of a powerfully searchable, highly compatible electronic address book. In seconds, CardScan enters more cards than you could type in hours. Then, powerful software helps you search, sort, and use that contact information more efficiently.Introducing the CardScan Personal, a highly portable, convenient business card scanner for users with basic contact management and lighter card scanning requirements. Use it to quickly and accurately turn business cards into sortable, searchable records on your computer, PDA, or smart phone. ... Read more

Features

• Simple to use; 1-year warranty
• Produces 2-second monochrome scans
• Includes software to search and manage business card storage
• Weighs just 7 ounces
• Attached USB 2.0 cable

Amazon.com Product Description

Scan and store all your business contacts quickly and easily with the IRIS Business Card Reader II. Perfect for scanning new contact info at trade shows and fairs, or as a handy addition to your office desktop, this lightweight (just 220 grams) and portable color scanner will save you from hours of tedious data entry.

An optimized OCR engine quickly and accurately converts scanned business cards into database records and CardIris organizes the information and automatically sorts it into appropriate fields. CardIris offers automatic orientation, de-skewing, cropping, field analysis, and even zoom options.

With user interface language options in six languages, the IRIS Business Card Reader II supports you almost anywhere in the world and recognizes character text in up to 55 languages. The USB interface lets you connect easily to most computers, laptops, and PDAs. Contact info can be directly exported with a single-click into Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, Symantec ACT!, IBM Lotus Notes, Palm OS, FrontRange GoldMine, vCard, HTML and comma delimited text. The IRIS Business Card Reader II also offers synchronization with Pocket PC, Outlook, ACT!, Lotus Notes, Palm OS and Goldmine. ... Read more

Features

• USB connectivity; menus in 6 languages
• Lightweight, portable business card scanner
• Scans business cards and photos up to 4.2 by 12 inches
• Exports directly to most contact-management software systems
• Recognizes characters from 6 to 48 points, grayscale, and color images

Reviews (6)

Not compatible with WIndows XP
I was very dissappointed when I got this product and tried to install on my computer with XP and got the microsoft warning that it did not have the "digital signature" and not therefore certified compatible with Windows XP and could cause damage. The response from Iris was they didn't pay Windows for the validation: but similar products (Cardscan, NewSoft Presto, and BizCardReader) whose demosoftware can be downloaded do not have this problem, each having the appropriate "signature".

Not for American ACT!Users.Five stars for non ACT! users
the bad news:I purchased and returned the card reader because of a few "glitches" when converting to ACT! First, it does not convert telephone numbers in USA format XXX-XXX-XXXX.You must add 01 or else the conversion is made in the Notes section and requires a copy and paste into the telephone field of ACT!Second, you cannot add any fields, such as ID/Status, which results in "lost" contacts when you import into a large database.

The good news: Easy installation, superior recognition and no-nonsense to use.Definitely recommended for non ACT! users

Not much of a time saver. Works 50%
I am dissapointed that I cannot return this to Amazon for a full refund after trying it. The OCR is not as good as expected. It is completely usless for about a third of the cards I've tried. Fewer than 10% work perfectly. I feel I have to thoroughly scrutinize every entry because of numerous minor mistakes. My girlfriend told me not to buy it and I should have listened.

A great little scanner!
I work in purchasing at a manufacturing company and needless to say I see a lot of business cards. I've tried manual methods of organizing them, with little success. The IRIS scanner cannot be beat for simplicity and quality. The OCR software may leave a little to be desired, but has a fair success rate. The scanner also does a very nice job on 4X6 photos. (...) this is a good deal!!

I liked the unit so much a bought a second one for home, just to scan photos, as it is SO much faster than my flatbed scanner.

Great Quality and Portability
After getting this reader and getting use to putting the cards in the correct way I love it.I love the fact that it is powered via the USB port.The quality is great and the text recognition is wonderful.I have scanned multiple business cards from conferences that I attend.I love the fact that I can export the contacts and separate them from the different events.The price is also reasonable.

The portability is a plus and I would recommend its purchase. ... Read more

Product Description

The MFC-8220 is a 5-in-1 Laser Multi-Function Center® machine that truly outperforms any other laser sheetfed all-in-one product in its class! The MFC-8220 is not only a laser printer and a feature-rich standalone fax, but also a full function copier and B/W scanner. Also included is PC Fax capability, allowing you to send and receive faxes1 via your desktop PC.

In addition to producing sharp, laser print quality of up to 2400 x 600 dpi (HQ1200), the MFC-8220 prints and copies at an impressive speed of up to 21 ppm/cpm. The MFC-8220 comes equipped with a 250-sheet adjustable paper tray for letter or legal size paper and an optional second 250-sheet paper tray is also available2. Both USB and parallel ports are standard3 and the MFC-8220 is compatible with Windows®, Mac® and DOS® Operating Systems.

• Fastup to 21 ppm
• Up to 2400 x 600 dpi (HQ1200) printing
• 3-color LCD display for easy operation
• 33.6K bps Fax Modem
• 32MB memory
• Windows® and Mac® compatible

Features

• Parallel and USB interfaces, optional networking; PC and Mac
• Prints, scans, copies, standalone and PC faxes
• Up to 2,400 x 600 dpi print resolution
• Up to 21 pages per minute printing and copying
• 300 x 600 dpi monochrome scan resolution, 9,600 dpi enhanced

Reviews (1)

Nice machine
I just bought the mfc8220 after almost seven years with an older brother mfc 4350. It was still going strong, but the drum needed to be replaced, and prices have dropped so much it made sense to upgrade.

The printer is wicked fast. The industrial design is top notch. Print quality is good. Paper handling is good. It integrates with my favorite scanned doc management applciation, paperport.

If you want a laser, instead of inkjets that are slower and cost much more to run over time, and you don't need an integrated flatbed scanner, this is the one to get.

Brad ... Read more

Product Description

The Strobe XP 200 is the ideal solution for business users who need a fast scanner with a small footprint. The Strobe XP 200 fits perfectly between a keyboard and monitor and scans approximately 6 pages per minute. Strobe XP 200 is tightly integrated with ScanSoft PaperPort Deluxe making it easy to organize your life and work. Now you can scan and file all of your documents and photographs electronically right alongside your electronic documents from Microsoft Office, PDF files from Adobe Acrobat and image files from numerous other applications. ... Read more

Features

• 600 dpi resolution, 48-bit color, 16-bit grayscale
• Visioneer OneTouch and AutoLaunch technology
• ScanSoft PaperPort Deluxe 9, ScanSoft TextBridge Pro 9 OCR, ArcSoft PhotoImpression 3.0
• USB 2.0 interface, includes cable; Windows compatible; 1-year warranty

Amazon.com Product Description

Just when you thought scanning couldn't get any faster, crisper, or sleeker, along comes the new HP Scanjet 4670. This small but mighty scanner will revolutionize the way you think about scanning. Sized to fit in a drawer, briefcase, or even vertically on a bookshelf, yet versatile and durable enough to scan oversized and three-dimensional items, it’s the perfect fit for a home office, family room, or college dorm.

Everyone can find a use for this handy machine. Be more productive by converting memos, blurry faxes, and other text documents into editable text using optical character recognition (OCR) software (no more retyping!). Scan photos and documents and instantly e-mail them to family and friends without a PC. Make a photo inventory of heirlooms or other valuables. Or scan negatives and slides using a transparency adapter to create an archive of your photos.

So how do you actually scan?

For single pages, simply follow these steps: Pull the top edge of the scanner, rotating the scanner forward in the holder. The scanner can rest against the front edge of the holder. Position the item face up in the lower left corner of the holder, with the top of the item facing left. Use the media placement tabs on the holder to position the item. Return the scanner to its original position on the holder. You can see the item face up through the scanner glass. Press the Scan button. For books and other thick materials, simply place the scanner flat.

Give mobility a whole new meaning
Now that you telecommute, your family room is more than a family room; it’s your office. Space is a valuable commodity, so the slim HP 4670 scanner is an ideal fit in both form and function. Being able to scan oversized items has been a lifesaver for those drawings you frequently e-mail to the office for approval; especially because it’s as simple as placing your scanner on the easel, scanning the drawing in sections, and letting the ArcSoft Panorama Maker software automatically and seamlessly "stitch" it together. One click of the Instant Share button and you mail the entire list of recipients at once.

When the workday ends, you place your scanner back on the bookshelf, where it’s safe and out of sight. Best of all, if you absolutely must finish those presentation transparencies on a Saturday, the HP 4670 is as mobile as you are. Just grab your scanner, transparent materials adapter, and laptop, and head to your favorite quiet spot. Whether you're sitting on the floor or in an office, the unique Scanjet technologies (high-end color separation; accurate, flattened scanning bed; and lots of other automatic color-balancing, restoration, and enhancement features) give you professional, polished results … no matter where you are.

Get the whole picture
One of the most fun and unique things you can do with your HP 4670 is create gorgeous panoramic photos (even 360° panoramas). Simply scan your image in sections and the Automatic Stitching feature in ArcSoft Panorama Maker software (included) will automatically reassemble oversized images for printing. You can combine horizontal, vertical, or tiled sets of images.

Save space
The HP 4670 is so slim it fits on a bookshelf or in a briefcase. You can store it vertically, like a book, so it’s perfect for a college dorm or a combined family room/office area. But don't let the ultra-thin design fool you: It’s made to move around and take with you. We even drop-tested the scanner from three feet! So if a sibling riot erupts, triggering an accidental fall from the table, the HP 4670 will survive unscathed.

The windowpane is tough polycarbonate plastic and tempered glass to resist chipping, scratching, and breaking.(That’s the same stuff used in many safety hardhats, motorcycle helmets, and riot shields.) The frame is secured with 12 screws (twice as many as most other scanners), and trimmed in rubber to absorb shocks. The carriage has a special mechanical design that protects the sensors and their wire bonds.

More features:

• One-touch operation.
  Four-button design makes it easy to perform common tasks:
  1. Scan
  2. Copy
  3. Instant Share
  4. Power Save
• Six-second-preview scan
  Get speedy confirmation of a successful scan! Precise image placement. Look through the see-through scanning window to "frame" and place items just where you want them.
• Cross-platform adaptable
  The HP 4670 is Windows 98-, 2000-, Me-, XP-, and Mac-compatible.
• Complete high-speed connectivity.
  Compatibility with USB 2.0 specifications allows plug-and-play installation of peripheral devices. Exclusive HP technology. Charge coupled device (CCD) scanning brings together an innovative combination of a new, thin optical system and CCD scanner technologies. CCD captures light more efficiently than other methods, and produces a grain-free print.
• Sharpen up
  Resolution is a measurement in dots per inch (dpi) of the sharpness and clarity of an image. The HP 4670 has 2400-dpi optical resolution, producing crisp, clear, vibrant images. With 48-bit color, you'll also see clear photos with brighter yellows, richer reds, and cooler blues.
• Scan anything
  The versatile HP 4670 can scan anything from books and photos to oversized items.
• Variable orientation
  An easel comes with the scanner, so you can use it vertically, horizontally, face-up or face-down, for large format or hard-to-capture items. Slides and negatives. Attach the transparent materials adapter (TMA) to capture images from slides and negatives. Use the HP Memories Disc Creator and HP Instant Share software to create and send fun--digital photo albums -- to family and friends. (The software is included.)

Included Software
The HP 4670 comes equipped with cool photo software already in place:

• HP Photo & Imaging Software with HP Memories Disc Creator and HP Instant Share feature
• HP Scanjet copy utility
• Suite of electronic help tools
• Adobe Acrobat Reader
• ArcSoft Panorama Maker
• IRIS ReadIris Pro (for Windows)
• IRIS ReadIris (for Macintosh)

Features

• Vertical see-through digital flat-bed scanner
• 2,400 x 2,400 dpi maximum optical resolution
• 48-bit color depth, 256 gray levels
• Included transparent materials adapter
• USB interface, PC and Mac compatible

Reviews (50)

Works well all the time
I work in the editorial department of a magazine.I constantly scan text, as well as photos.This little scanner has held up tremendously.I have never had a problem with it -- since day one --- and I've had it about a year (when they first came available).It has done some very heavy-duty work and has done better than any previous scanner we have had.

Stylish Scanner That Works Fine
I have only had my scanner a month, but I have had no problems with it. I do a lot of OCR scanning, and I use both the IRIS softwear that came with the scanner and OmniPage, and both work fine. (I ordered in the newer version of the IRIS softwear, but found I wasted my money, because it has a different number (10 instead of 8), but both are exactly the same. It has been my experience that what really counts is not the scanner itself but the softwear you use with it. A cheap scanner with good softwear works better than a more expensive one with so-so softwear. Also, I like the sleek looks of the 4670. At this point, I am perfectly satisfied with the ScanJet 4670.

Started off fine 6 months ago but now the software crashes
It worked perfectly for some time.Hence two stars on average during the time I have owned it.Today I'd probably rate it zero. Note later comment at the end.

Currently of the two HP software programs one currently refuses to recognise the scanner.The other recognises the scanner, scans, crashes, the full windows XP message to Microsoft but the scan is available after the crash.That's OK but it adds to the time taken to scan.

Little relevant assistance appears to be available from the HP site.

It has the latest drivers from HP etc.I do have a suspicion about the number and type of connections in the cable between the scanner and the computer, fewer better connections might resolve some of the problems.

So when it worked, it was great, the negative scan wasn't quite detailed enough but scanning diagrams worked fine.

Unfortunately given the number of problems with this scanner has had from a number of people, not only just out of the box but after a period of time you might want to treat it more as a disposable scanner rather than go through the hassles of returning it under warranty etc.

If you are looking for a reliable scanner I really recommend you look elsewhere.

Later comment.I noted that an admin account could still scan so that meant the scanner was probably still working on the hardware side.Windows did give an error message at the operating system level.Then working with HP tech support the problem was resolved by reinstalling the software. The problem appeared to be on the USB side.The reinstall involved using regedit to remove traces of the old software.In my view this should not be necessary and is not something I would ask a lay person to do.So for now its back working.

Didn't even work for an hour
I bought the HP Scanjet 4670 based on research on Amazon.com and Consumer Reports where the item came highly recommended as a best buy.

After over an hour installing everything, it took several "clicks" to open any of the 5 desktop icons automatically loaded - none of which make it clear which is for the scanner and which is for the entire scanner/editing program.

The scanner scanned one and a half documents successfully and one photo. Slides scan dark and grainy and require lots of photo touchup to bring up to speed and is hardly worth the effort.

In the middle of the second scan, the light jammed 1/2 way across the scanner and wouldn't budge. There is no power button so the scanner cannot be turned off and on again to reset. Restarting the computer several times and detaching the USB and power cables made no difference.

A call to HP customer support said the problem with the desktop icons not opening was improperly installed software. The problem with the slide adaptor was probably hardware and they would replace. The problem with the scanner itself was unidentifiable until the software was uninstalled and re-installed. The call lasted over 25 minutes because I had to "register" the product with them, even tho I told them it was probably going back.

After another hour uninstalling and re-installing, the software could not be recognized and would not install properly. It has also caused a serious slow down in several other programs I am running and a few quirks I never had before.

Not worth the time and energy and certainly not worth the money. Will be returning tomrrow.

FYI - I am not a beginner when it comes to computers - I wrote my own HTML website, install and uninstall hardware and software all the time and often troubleshoot for friends and family. This should not have been an all day project. Additionally, I am running Windows XP as my operating system on a Dell Celeron.

I have been a fan of HP products for years but this scanner has seriously marred their record.

TERRIBLE BANDING PROBLEMS
i've bought and returned 5 of this scanner (both 4600 and 4670). all with the same problem with the banding no matter what i scan and it's not just on the image but the whole scan area. i'm on a mac powerbook g4 with all the trimmings and latest os.

hp support is useless and all they can do is replace. but after a few of this nonsense, i made them refund everything. but since i love the design so much i thought if i just start over and maybe i'll get lucky. no such luck. i just opened mine and it's the same problem so i'm packing it right up and getting something else. ... Read more

Product Description

Convert documents into PDF files at 22PPM

The Xerox DocuMate 250 Scanner is a compactand effective hi-speed scanner perfect for workgroupsand other decentralized scanning applications.By eliminating seldom used optionssuch as duplex capability and a SCSI interface,Xerox offers this model at a price that enablesbusinesses to achieve high levels of productivityby distributing fast cost-effective scannersthroughout the organization.

The DocuMate 250 has a 50-page AutomaticDocument Feeder that scans 22 pages perminute (22¹ ppm). It features 600x1200 dpioptical resolution, 48-bit color, Hi-Speed USB2.0 interface and scans everything from checksand photos up to legal-sized documents. It alsofeatures one of the smallest footprints availableof any ADF scanner on the market.

The DocuMate 250 includes TWAIN andCertified ISIS® Drivers plus the followingsoftware.

• PaperPort Pro 9 Office is the easiest way to turnvolumes of paper or photos into organized digitalfiles that you can quickly find, use and share.PaperPort’s native support for the standard PDFformat brings you the power to scan, annotateand email documents and photos in a format thatensures everyone can view and print them on anycomputer. Stop wasting time looking for paperdocuments scattered around your home and office.
• TextBridge Pro 9.0 quickly turns scanned documents into editable,formatted text. You can use the text in virtuallyany word processing, desktop publishing, orweb publishing program.
• QuickScan is a standalone, out-of-the-boximaging solution that provides all the necessarycapabilities for high-speed ISIS® based scanning,image enhancement, viewing, annotation, andprinting of images for both black-and-white andcolor pages. Developed by Pixel Translations,the creators of ISIS, QuickScan’s strengthsinclude features such as batch ... Read more

  Features

  • Fast USB 2.0 interface, USB 1.1 compatible
  • Sheet-fed scanner with 50-sheet capacity auto document feeder
  • Up to 600 x 1,200 optical resolution; 48-bit color
  • Converts documents to PDF format at up to 22 pages per minute
  • Includes TWAIN and certified ISIS drivers; generous software bundle

  Reviews (3)

  Double-Sided but Half-Baked
  This product fairly reeks of the "rush to release" syndrome. The instruction manual comes with several separate "Errata" sheets attached, correcting misinformation inadvertently printed in the manual. If you use this scanner, you can't have any drivers for any other Visioneer scanners on your computer, which is frankly ridiculous -- for a scanner that costs $1000, you'd think the software engineers could devise a driver that doesn't cause such problems, especially since many people own more than one scanner. What's worse, they're not kidding -- I uninstalled the Documate driver and returned the scanner for a refund, but I still can't get my other scanners to work, because the Documate software screwed them up. This scanner is way too much trouble for the money. I wish I'd never heard of it.
  Update -- 4/2005 -- if you're looking for a duplex scanner, you're better off with the Fujitsu FI-4120C2. I found it, and it's excellent.

  Excellent!
  I have to scan medical documents, sometimes 4 or 5 at a time, to .pdf.Interfacing with Acrobat 6 was a problem at first, but Acrobat 6 Prof and Standard have an update, 6.0.2, and after that, I had no problems.This machine is FAST.Zip, zip, zip!Done!The software interface is simple and unobtrusive.I use a program, MacroExpress, to facilitate the process,and this is the only software I've used (two others so far) that adapts almost pefectly.The warmup time was a problem for me in the past.I dictate reports, then attach other documents to the finished products.If one inserts the sone-to-be scanned documents in the scanner as one is nearing completion, it warms up, and by the time I'm ready to scan, it's over in a matter of seconds.I spent a significant amount of time searching for the best if not perfect scanner.This is it.
  
  The product support was friendly and good, and I didn't have to wait too long to talk with someone when I was having trouble with the Acrobat 6 interface.Coming from a flatbed scanner without auto document feeding, I feel like the ape in the beginning of 2001 Space Oddessy, my leg bone just morphed into a space station.

  This thing is AWESOME.
  For the past several years I have used Epson flatbed scanners for both personal and business use. My Epson scanners provided a very good scan quality, and at a decent scan speed. The Epson software interface was ok, but not the greatest. Last week I decided to take a chance on this Xerox Documate 250, and I'm really glad I did. This thing rocks! I am amazed at how fast it scans stuff. And the scan quality is great. The software that comes with the scanner is really good, too. Much more user-friendly than the Epson software. Another neat feature is that this scanner will scan directly to PDF format. So no more cumbersome file conversion from JPEG's, BMP's, etc. I am seriously considering buying another Xerox Documate 250 (or another Xerox Documate model) for home and/or business use. I'm that impressed. I don't write many product reviews, so that should tell you something about this product. ... Read more

Product Description

The IRISPen Executive is an outstanding and professional pen scanner solution which allows an instantaneous data entry into ANY Windows or Mac OS application (such as word processors, e-mail software, on-line databases, spreadsheets, accounting software etc.).The IRISPen Executive is compact and portable and is installed in 5" by a simple plug-and-play. USB powered, it doesn't need additional battery allowing you to easily connect it to your laptop, desktop or tablet PC and to use it wherever you go!Simply slide the IRISPen Executive over the text you want in your application and it is instantly encoded with an accuracy rate near to perfection! Use the text-to-speech function for a comfortable auditive control of recognized data. ... Read more

Features

• USB interface, PC and Mac compatible
• Text-to-speech technology in 10 different languages
• Scans up to 3.15 inches or 1,000 characters per second
• Supports up to 55 languages
• CardIris Limited Edition and ReadIris Pro trial software

Reviews (3)

Believe it!
I did hours of research on hand held scanners and almost did not purchase ANY do to all the confusion.I took a chance and Bought the IRISpen Executive scanner.In only a few minutes I had the software loaded (painless) and was scanning material from everything I could get my hands on.Once I learned how to hold it for my hand posture (5 minutes)it was a snap.I have read other reviews and can not figure out why anyone would not want this... it is fantastic.It is much faster then typing.In a few minutes I had scanned pages of material that I had collected for over a year.I am not a techy kind of guy so this was awesome.I give it 5 stars!I can only scratch my head If someone cannot figure this out.

Not that great
After two days with the IRISpen, and many, many attempts trying to make it work properly, I found I could type my notes from my textbook much faster than dealing with the IRISpen. The pen does what it says, but can also make a mess of what you are trying to scan. When you are reading and studying, you need a flow of concentration. You can get a flow of concentration by highlighting text and/or typing what you see as important in the text. However, if you are using the IRISpen, you are concentrating on seeing if it did its job and fixing its mistake.

The pen also lockups and causes Windows and Word to act funny, which is not reassuring.

I gave it a shot and decided to stop wasting my time and just type my notes the old fashion way. I even conducted a little test, and sure enough my notes were clearer and took less time when I typed the same information I was struggling to scan.

I am thinking about looking into the hand-held scanners... but sadly those don't look much better.

Think twice... and be ready to return if things don't work out. Mine is going back in the morning.

EXCELLENT PRODUCT!!!
I have had this for over a year, and after a little getting practice, it works great. It is almost like highlighting text, and it works with any application. ... Read more

Product Description

Photo-quality with up to 4800-optimized dpi (on HP premium photo papers and 1200 x 1200-input dpi) or optional six-ink color printing (available with separate purchase of photo cartridge, not included). Fine detailed scanning with up to 1200 x 2400-dpi optical resolution (up to 19,200-dpi enhanced), 48-bit color (48-bit color Windows only). Features HP's exclusive photoret color layering technology for brilliant photo-quality results. Prints up to 19ppm in black and 15ppm in color. Copies up to 19cpm in black and 14cpm in color. Print 4" x 6" borderless photos on HP premium plus photo paper. Unattended multi-page faxing, scanning and copying using a 35-page automatic document feeder. Reduce and enlarge originals from 25% - 200% HEWOJ6110 HEW-OJ6110 808736330831 0873633083 ... Read more

Features

• Printing, scanning, faxing and copying
• 1,200 x 1,200 dpi print and copy resolution
• 2,400 x 1,200 dpi scan resolution
• 19 pages per minute copy speed
• USB interface; 1-year product warranty

Reviews (91)

Very buggy
something is always freezing, not working, or conflicting.also, a slow machine.go for something newer.

Trash
This machine is a constant frustration.Out of the box, the software is buggy and has never worked right.Tech support is poor, and they are able to do little more than parrot the instructions that come with the machine.Constantly jams when sending faxes, freezes up when sending large faxes, and has never successfully scanned an item.I operate a small business and thought this machine would cover several bases at once, but have been constantly disappointed.HP should be ashamed for putting this garbage on the market.

Buggy Software
So mom needed help scanning and e-mailing some documents. No problem. Hit the "scan" button on the OfficeJet, and go, right? Wrong. Hitting the button would bring up an HP splash screen on the computer, but it froze there. Lesson learned: the "scan" button on the machine is useless.

Then we went into the "HP Photo # Imaging Gallery" software. It worked for 3 scans, but on the 4th one, it appeared to scan fine, but the document file never showed up in the gallery window.

We tried it with another scanning application, and again it appeared to scan fine, but the software never received the data. No error, nothing.

I tried downloading a "critical update" for the HP software, and it arrived as an executable WinZip file. Unfortunately, it tried to unpack to a directory on C: but the computer in question doesn't have a C: drive, so the WinZip self-extractor said "Drive c is not a valid drive, unzip operation canceled" and exited.

Anyway, I then noticed the link that lets HP analyze your system for needed upgrades, but it found that the driver for the OfficeJet was up-to-date.

My HP Scanjet also 3300C has funny drivers. They don't like it when I disconnect power to the scanner before "disconnecting" the scanner in Windows. I think it used to crash Windows, before I upgraded the drivers. Now it merely complains. But it shouldn't complain at all!

Also, my uncle tried getting the fax part to work, but he hit an unresolvable problem (I don't remember what it was).

At work, we also use a different model of OfficeJet for faxing. That has problems feeding paper, and it just doesn't work as well as the Brother machine that sits beside it.

From now on, I can't recommend any HP device with a scanner, due to the poor quality of the drivers. But to be honest to myself and HP, I still like my Deskjet 970CSE. And the OfficeJet 6110 prints fine, which is why I give this 2 stars instead of 1.

Wonderful Multifunction Printer
I pruchased this unit so I could make copies for Sunday School and do light faxing and scanning.I have to use the unit increasingly for scanning documents into my computer.

So far, I have had no problems to report on this unit.

Took It Back For A Refund Just In Time
I bought this one because I wanted the flat glass for the copy function. However, it wasn't worth it. This printer tries to do too much, is cheaply made, and has a user-unfriendly menu. The software is full of bugs. You will be spending many hours trying to figure things out and calling India where customer service seems to be located. I was very lucky to get it back to the store within ten days for a full refund. And as you might figure, the store was a pain in the neck and said that they couldn't believe that I was having trouble with this model. Duh! ... Read more

Product Description

The Irispen Express is a fast and accurate hand held pen scanner. ... Read more

Features

• USB interface; Windows and Mac compatible
• Instantly scans text and numbers into your computer
• Recognizes up to 1,000 characters per second
• Accurately recognizes up to 55 different languages
• 2 programmable pen buttons

Reviews (18)

It works as promised
I received the IRIS Pen Express a day ago, installed the software and the pen and started using it right away.I am pleased with the pen scanner.It works as represented and is quite simple to use.I wanted the pen scanner for small scanning jobs out of books etc (I practice law and will use the product in legal research and writing projects).For larger jobs, I will continue use a flat-bed scanner.

The IRIS pen is fast and amazingly accurate right out of the box.I carefully considered competing pens and decided to go with IRIS--so I have no experience with QuickLink or other competitors.

I think the reviews which are very tough on the IRIS Pen are unwarranted.The IRIS Pen is a very good product.I'm rating this a 4 out of 5 stars but it may be a 4.5 (and nothing is a 5).

Poor Quality
I saw the mixed reviews of this product, but decided to take a chance anyway, and ordered it. It was a bad decision. Trouble started right away when the installation CD didn't work. Amazingly, it simply didn't contain the installation files. I called IRIS tech support and they emailed me a link where I could download the installation files. I downloaded the files and then was able to install the program. Next, I read all the Help instructions (yes, I really did that ), calibrated the pen and started to scan some text. Well, I tried and tried, including recalibrating the pen several times, but mostly what I got was garbled text. It simply doesn't work very well.

The pen has three blue buttons on it, one large one and two smaller ones. However, the documentation doesn't explain what they are for. So, I called tech support again and asked them what the buttons were for. The tech support fellow said the large button was just there - it didn't do anything. He said you could program the other two buttons to enter carriage returns, paragraphs, and other commands, or you could just ignore them if you want.

I went back to trying to get the pen to scan text, but eventually gave up, boxed it up, and returned it to Amazon.

A pain at first but it seems to be getting easier.
Initially I wanted to kill myself, this thing had a 80% failure rate on all words scanned.. After getting the hang of holding it properly (the guide wheel must be completely flat against the paper) the failure rate dropped to about 15%-5% of the words scanned.
It will almost always mess up when you are scanning the left side of a book and you reach the binding, and you must move it at a medium speed (to fast and all you get is gibberish)

After reading the website it looks like the IRISPen Executive software would produce better results, and they want $99 bucks for an upgrade (anyone know if it is that much better?) $250 total is a bit heafty.

I hoped to get a little better performance from a software update, but when I finally managed to find something on their site dated 5/2004 it turned out to be the same revision I was running but these files real dates where a little older (one was 3/2004 not so bad but the other was 8/2003 egh that seems pretty old for an update).

Anyway hold on to your software disk very tightly because I don't think you can just download the software again if you loose it.

Other small problems my pens buttons don't always work, you can't assign any key to it (I needed backspace). And when it doesn't scan things in right it can be a pain in the butt to correct it.
Also my pen lost communication a few times and I had to unplug and replug it in to get it working again.

Overall it was worth the price (even though I overpaid by $30 #$*

IrisPen Express has a chip problem, but warranty covers it
I can't really rate this item yet, as I haven't been able to test it out.There was a problem with my IrisPen that prospective customers should know about, but that I think will be resolved in a day or two.

I *just* got an IrisPen Express from Amazon.com--it arrived in the mail this week.

Now, I'm pretty computer savvy, but after trying for a half hour to get it working, I had no luck. When I calibrated the pen, it would say "calibration complete," but then it wouldn't scan anything. And when I tried to re-calibrate, it would say "calibration error."

So I gave up and called the company's technical support.

**IMPORTANT**: The tech support telephone number printed in the IrisPen materials is WRONG. I dialed it and the person answering was kind enough to give me the correct number. It is:

1-800-447-4744.

Once I got through to tech support, I was greeted by a very helpful employee. He had me read to him the numbers on the white sticker on the USB plug. My number was IP31BG2004080491.

He said that my pen was one of about 600 pens that had a faulty chip installed in it.This chip overheats very quickly, making the pen essentially "freeze up." He could tell that mine was one of the faulty pens because that number I read to him was within the range that they'd identified as having the problem.

He said that they will IMMEDIATELY be sending me, via UPS, a new pen that they have tested themselves to ensure it works.He requested that I then use the box the new pen arrives in to return to them the old pen.

I expect to receive this pen in the next two business days.

So: IF YOU HAD THE TROUBLE I HAD SETTING UP YOUR PEN, *or* if your pen FREEZES UP after using it for a while, call the IRISPEN technical support at their REAL number: 1-800-447-4744.

When I receive my new pen, I'll come back and let you know how it works.

Do not buy it!
I strongly discourage you from buying this product. Driver did not install on my brand new Windows XP system. My husband, who is a professional Microsoft Systems Engineer with all the possible Microsoft certifications and 15 years of Windows experience, could not make the driver work. Customer support in US does not respond to any requests. Headquarters in Belguim does not answer the phone during working hours. I wish I saw all the negative reviews on Amazon before throwing money on wind!
... Read more

Product Description

The popularity of digital imaging is continually on the rise. It is involved in numerous professional applications as well as home use for e-mail correspondence, Internet web sites, and cataloging on CD. Minolta's DiMAGE Scan Elite 5400 makes it easy for 35mm film camera enthusiasts to create professional-quality digital images from their film slides and negatives. With 5, 400 dpi resolution, advanced lens optics, simple scanning and image-processing procedures, plus USB or FireWire interfaces, creating beautiful digital scans is "quick as a click." ... Read more

Features

• PC and Mac compatible
• Single-pass, 35mm film and slide scanner
• 16-bit A/D conversion, 5,400 dpi image resolution
• Grain Dissolver, Digital ICE, Pixel Polish software
• FireWire and USB 2.0 connectivity

Reviews (4)

Unit good when it works, problem is it doesn't always work.
I purchased this unit in Dec 2003.Scanned a few slides, then came back to in a month later.The unit would not load or unload slides.It made all sorts of grinding noises.Minolta fixed it under warranty.When they shipped it back, it had a damaged face plate.I stupidly did not bother to call them back and demand it to be fixed again.I did not care about minor cosmetic damage to the face plate.I subsequently scanned over 500 slides with it with good results.I did not use if for several months, and now the unit is dead.Won't load or eject the film holder.Now Minotla claims it is damaged and not under warranty.Before you buy this unit, look for others will similar repair problems.I wish I did before I bought this scanner.Not recommened do to thepoor workmanship and faulty design that requires frequent trips to the repair shop.

ok but inconsistent and disappointing
I've tested this scanner for two weeks now, and I must admit that despite it doing excellent slide scans, I am worried
about numerous items that may force me to return it.

I'll start with the good: It does excellent slide scans
at 2700 dpi and these come through in about 4 minutes,
pretty consistently and beautifully sharp. The saturation seems only very slightly lacking and I've
been noticing some deficiency in the yellow end of the color balance, but I also have to admit they are very sharp and
perfectly acceptable for a scanner at this price. The Elite also does excellent scans of very dark images, for
instance night shots, which exceeded the capacity
of my last slide scanner.

There remain other problems, however. Top of the list is the results from color negatives. Granted, the results from
my Nikon Coolscan III also suffered the same deficiency in
saturation but I bought that scanner in 1999 and figured
this would be a solved problem. When you scan a negative
in this unit, expect to have to readjust it, a hassle with
negatives for which there may be no real reference
(ie prints, etc) I've gotten beautiful rich prints from
Kodak negative film and these scans just do not come
anywhere near that richness of color. You'll do much better
to scan prints from a flatbed.

Of equal or more concern is the slapdash look of the software included. There was little or no attention paid
to the look of the user interface, which leads me to distrust the value of many of the suppposedly automated functions, such as noise reduction and dust and scratch removal.
The prescans seems to be superfluous. Nikon's
software left this in the dust. I know for a fact that the color adjust is basically for show only. It doesnt appear to
update as you adjust it. Anyway, it's advertised as some
remarkable support ware for scanning which it is not.

The most serious concern is the occasionally wild
variations in scan times that occur when scanning
negatives, however, and the varying times of setup
when you leave it unattended after scanning.
I've seen this unit take from 6- 20 minutes(!) per image at the 2700dpi negative setting
and why it should take so much longer than the slide scan
is a mystery. What's worrisome is the variation in
function.In all fairness, the loaders allow you to load
and leave 4 slides or a strip of six negatives. While the scanner works, you can take a break or snack. I really
appreciate this function and you won't find it elsewhere
at this price. The unit has a thin long profile, and the firewire
makes transfer much faster than any USB scanner will muster.

However, the variation in function and motor noise, cheap appearance of the software, and online rumors make me wonder about the long-term durability of this item, so
proceed with caution. Buy an extended warranty, I guess.So far so good on the slides, though, and that's what really counts, since my experience until now has shown me that negative scans are not gonig to be great at the sub-$1000
price point. They're certainly sharp enough, but Minolta,
where's the color saturation? Telling me to adjust
it in the crappy interface is not a sufficentt answer. And
what in golly's name is the focussing button for?
How am I going to accurately focus a laser on a
small piece of emulsion? Does this mean that this
thing goes out of focus easily? GREAT. That's YOUR
job, Minolta. Mine is to focus the camera.
I'll be looking to another company from now on.
I expect to see a software update if you want to keep the
business of a PRO photographer.

Faulty design useless for serious work
Please, check out postings on serious digital photography forums before even considering this scanner. I would suggest the Digital Darkroom forum at www.photo.net (you can search for DSE 5400 related threads) and especially the Film Scanners forum at www.photo-i.co.uk.

Regarding my personal experience with this scanner, my unit was faulty right out of the box (the "green lines" problem, see forums for more). As of now my (less than one month "old") scanner has been at Minolta repairs service once where it was cleaned. NOTHING was actually done to repair the problem despite the truckload of info (including my original slides and their scans) that I'd assembled for the repairs service. In the next few days the scanner will be shipped out for repairs again but I have a big suspicion that my problem will be ignored just as the first time.

This is what I think about this. Yes, if you are lucky to get a perfectly operational unit, it would produce excellent scans for you. However, my feeling is that Minolta is pushing a poorly designed and tested product that is inherently faulty and susceptible to various quality problems. Currently the risk of getting such faulty unit is fairly high, and if you read this post then you know how you will be treated by Minolta repairs. Minolta appears not to be an honorable company. There is a big chance that if your unit is not operating as it should it will not be repaired but you will not get a refund for it either.

Minolta 5400 - Great Scanner - Easy to use
This is a wonderful machine.Software installed first time, not common for scanners, and worked first time.I have a ton of stuff on my machine (XP/Pro) and found no conflicts.
Best film/slide holders I've seen.
3 scanning modes available.
Easy which does a quite good job, but with little ability to change settings and full which lets you adjust everything.The third mode is batch which lets you set up to scan all negs or slides in the holder.
The full mode can be used within Photoshop (or Photoshop Elements 2 which is included).
Shadow detail is stunning.
All film scanners are slower than flatbeds and this is no exception.An ultimate negative scan (Maximum input resolution, Maximum output resolution, 48bit color, Digital Ice) takes just under 4 minutes and produces a 233Meg Tif file.But you seldem need quite that quality. Most scans would be about 1.2 minutes to 3 minutes.Negatives take longer than slides.
You must have USB 2 or Firewire!You could connect this to USB 1.1, but speeds, especially at the high end would be terrible.
My only complaint is that you can't tell the software the length of the film strip.My of my film is in 4 negative strips and the software always scans the whole holder which is 6 long.
Highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description

Visioneer Strobe XP200 Sheetfed Scanner The Strobe XP 200 is the ideal solution for business users who need a fast scanner with a small footprint. The Strobe XP 200 fits perfectly between a keyboard and monitor and scans approximately 6 pages per minute. Strobe XP 200 is tightly integrated with ScanSoft PaperPort Deluxe making it easy to organize your life and work. Now you can scan and file all of your documents and photographs electronically right alongside your electronic documents from Microsoft Office, PDF files from Adobe Acrobat and image files from numerous other applications. ... Read more

Features

• 600 dpi resolution, 48-bit color, 16-bit grayscale
• Visioneer OneTouch and AutoLaunch technology
• ScanSoft PaperPort Deluxe 9, ScanSoft TextBridge Pro 9 OCR, ArcSoft PhotoImpression 3.0
• USB 2.0 interface, includes cable; Windows compatible; 1-year warranty

Reviews (2)

Tough to feed
I have to admit, there is a lot of power to this scanner and its software and many options to choose from. But I have only had 3 out of 10 scans that were successful. The machine doesn't grab regular office paper well, and there is a plastic flap on the back that you lift up or down depending on the weight of what you are scanning, but it comes falls off when you try to adjust it, and for me it has yet to feed regular copy paper through the light weight paper setting. It is sleek and small, but the 2 large cords take away from the space saver point of view. Thanks

Use some sense.....
GOOD review follows! First, this is NOT the best choice for PERFECT scans of photos or fragile documents. It does a perfectly adequate job with snapshots and newspaper clippings, an EXCEPTIONAL job with color or B/W letter-size material. It scans for fliing/fax, OCR or color images, up to 600 DPI.
If you are careful, you can easily feed sheets into this device without trouble. Be patient. It has an included software application that allows scanning multiple succesive sheets to one document, for convienence...but you can separate the pages later! Cool. Or you can group different scans to one document later. Cooler!

The image editing software is pretty darn good. Why? Because it has a decent selection of tools while not being overly complicated to use. You can use it as a desktop-type filing system too.

Some versions of the "Paperport" software export scans to PDF! If you understand what that means, you'll jump for joy...

But you know where the Strobe REALLY excels? You can quickly scan a document, drag it to Word and have about 95% immediately recognized as an editable Word file. Very little re-typing. How many times do you need some information IN your computer at school or work that exists only in a printed form? Wow! And you did this in about 30 seconds...

The Strobe is not perfect, but it does many jobs well enough to overlook that it is not the best solution of any ONE job. But it's the 90% solution for a TON of jobs! Buy it. You will not regret it.
... Read more

Product Description

Iris Business Card Reader For Mac The IRIS Business Card Reader II is the perfect tool to scan and automatically encode your business cards into your favorite contact manager. From your paper business cards to your updated address book, there are 3 easy steps: the country choice, the scanning and the export. It’s very easy, fast and accurate! You’ll never retype a business card again!Select the country of your business card. Drop the card into the scanner: it is automatically scanned, recognized and encoded! Your cards are converted in electronic contacts in record time. ... Read more

Features

• Recognizes cards from up to 53 countries, optional Asian character support
• Macintosh-compatible business card and photo reader
• Up to 600 dpi resolution; USB connectivity
• Recognizes characters ranging from 6 to 72 points
• Your choice of 6 interface languages

Product Description

The Strobe XP 100 is the perfect companion for the mobile executive. Compact enough to fit neatly on your desk and pack easily alongside your laptop or in your briefcase. Portable enough to take anywhere because it's powered through the USB cable. Powerful enough to scan and organize all of your documents, photos, articles, brochures and business cards. Whether you're in the office or on the road, the Strobe XP 100 will lighten your load.

Strobe XP 100 is tightly integrated with ScanSoft PaperPort Deluxe making it easy to organize your life and work. Now you can scan and file all of your documents and photographs electronically right alongside your electronic documents from Microsoft Office, PDF files from Adobe Acrobat and image files from numberous other applications.

Print to Desktop
Print from Windows applications directly to PaperPort, great for saving receipts from web stores

Faster than Ever
Up to four times faster at generating thumbnails than PaperPort 7

PaperPort Links
Drag scanned documents to the PaperPort link bar to edit them in your favorite applications

PaperPort Deluxe 8.0
The fastest way to visually organize photos scanned and electronic documents. Provides thumbnails for popular electronic files with built-in viewers for PDF, Word, Excel, and Word Perfect.

ScanSoft TextBridge Pro 9 OCR
Quickly turns scanned documents into editable, formatted text. you can use the text in virtually any word processing, desktop publishing, or web publishing program.

ArcSoft PhotoImpression by Visioneer
Edit, retouch, and enhance images simply and quickly. Apply special effects with point-n-click interface. Numerous templates for cards and calendars are included. ... Read more

Features

• USB interface
• USB Bus-Powered
• Portable scanning solution
• 600 dpi, 36-bit color
• Inc. PaperPort 8, TextBridge Pro 9 OCR, ArcSoft PhotoImpression 3.0

Reviews (21)

Use some sense.....
GOOD review follows! First, this is NOT the best choice for PERFECT scans of photos or fragile documents. It does a perfectly adequate job with snapshots and newspaper clippings, an EXCEPTIONAL job with color or B/W letter-size material. It scans for fliing/fax, OCR or color images, up to 600 DPI.
If you are careful, you can easily feed sheets into this device without trouble. Be patient. It has an included software application that allows scanning multiple succesive sheets to one document, for convienence...but you can separate the pages later! Cool. Or you can group different scans to one document later. Cooler!

The image editing software is pretty darn good. Why? Because it has a decent selection of tools while not being overly complicated to use. You can use it as a desktop-type filing system too.

Some versions of the "Paperport" software export scans to PDF! If you understand what that means, you'll jump for joy...

But you know where the Strobe REALLY excels? You can quickly scan a document, drag it to Word and have about 95% immediately recognized as an editable Word file. Very little re-typing. How many times do you need some information IN your computer at school or work that exists only in a printed form? Wow! And you did this in about 30 seconds...

The Strobe is not perfect, but it does many jobs well enough to overlook that it is not the best solution of any ONE job. But it's the 90% solution for a TON of jobs! Buy it. You will not regret it.

Pissed
Visioneer did an excellent job taking my money and giving me nothingin return.The software is extreamly unflexable(proprietary format, automation is faulty, very few useful settings).The scanner itself never worked properly.It cuts of pages too soon, no mater how many times it was calibrated, the pages twist as they go through sometimes, the switch to make it scan doesnt always work, it doesnt grab the paper evenly, etc.

On top of all this, they have NO customer support.They dont even exist beyond their website.I have tried to email and call any number i can with no luck.

Avoid all Visioneer products!

does not even earn one star.
this product, just like some other visioneer product, is WORTHLESS, because it is unstable. Sometimes it works just fine, other times does not work. terrible support. they do not even have 1800 number listed on their websites and they close at 4:00 pst.

Good idea. Lousy execution
This is my fourth-and probably last--Visioneer scanner. And I plan to return this one. If you already have PaperPort (I had version 9.0) you have to completely UNINSTALL it in order to add this scanner. (Huh?) And removal is not straightforward. (Read some of the troubleshooting instructions on Visioneer.com; they should be embarrassed.) The uninstall did not work, so I had to download 2 different files from Visioneer.com to clean up the mess. Finally, PaperPort 8.0 installed, but it never found the scanner. Prompted by the web site, I deleted the twain files on my computer and installing a downloaded driver-which resulted in a strong Microsoft warning that this file was not compatible with Windows. At one point, PaperPort would consistently close immediately after being opened-it didn't crash, it just closed itself.

Meanwhile, the tech support number included in the scanner package was "disconnected or no longer in service." The number provided on the web site has hours so short that I can't use their support for my home computer. And have you tried their touted "SARA" to troubleshoot a problem? Don't bother.

These are just a few of the problems I encountered. I had been perfectly satisfied with my old Strobe (which was also a headache to install), but Visioneer doesn't support Windows XP for the old Strobe. (I don't trust them to support the next OS upgrade either.) If you like nightmares and complex computer challenges, then Visioneer scanners are for you. As for me, I'm going shopping.

small size makes it ideal for new, niche uses
EDITED: After one year of use, my earlier claims were overly optimistic.The hardware seems good, as far as it goes, but the software is ridiculously buggy and unreliable.
------------------------------
First--this is not a flatbed scanner; so keep one handy.This is not a high-speed sheetfed either; don't try to use it for those purposes and things work out well.SOMETIMES.

Ideal for portable scanning--the kind of scanning where you go into a library, or an office, or other location.Use it as a fax replacement for printed docs, as an alternative to photocopying and carrying, as a convenient device for sorting and recording receipts, bills, and what-not while traveling on the go, and it works great.

Many earlier gripes compared this scanner to very different products--or simply slammed it for lack of support. (Concur: the support sucks, the downloads don't work - and reinstalling drivers adds SPYWARE - that BMupdate.exe is ugly).

The interface seems intermittent (REVISED: TOTALLY UNRELIABLE): sometimes, I have to unplug/replug the scanner after a particularly long job, and it seems pretty random.That slows things down, but isn't a fatal flaw.

Still, for real estate, student, legal, design, and other niches, this scanner is ideal.Don't like it for it's portability?Try lugging a flatbed or fullsize sheetfed + power supply to the library! ... Read more

Product Description

HP Scanjet 7650 Scanner Fast, high-quality scans at up to 12 ppm (6 ipm duplex) unattended using an automatic document feeder that holds up to 50 pages. Warms up quickly—preview scans in about six seconds. Document management software, ISIS and TWAIN drivers included. ... Read more

Features

• Includes 35 mm film adapter and USB cable
• Up to 2,400 x 2,400 dpi optical resolution
• 48-bit color, 256-level grayscale
• 8.5 x 14-inch scanning area
• 50-sheet automatic document feeder

Product Description

The Strobe XP 450 PDF is the ideal solution for business users who need a fast document scanner with a small footprint. ... Read more

Features

• USB interface, PC compatible only
• 600 x 1200 dpi resolution, 48-bit color depth
• Up to 20 pages per minute scanning speed
• Automatic document feeder
• PaperPort Deluxe 9 and TextBridge Pro 9 OCR software

Reviews (5)

Great hardware, horrible support
I have used PaperPort/Visioneer scanners for close to a decade, and loved them all.For some reason, though, their code gets worse and worse and their "support" simply does not exist.
For some reason, in order to install a new scanner, you have to remove all vestiges (even hidden ones) of the prior scanner software and drivers.Forget installing TWO scanners (I have both a Visioneer flatbed and a Strobe XP 450).

Is it too much to ask to get support for an item that costs $650?

EXCELLENT SCANNER
I FIRST STARTED USING VISIONEER PRODUCTS IN 1996.THIS IS A CONTINUATION OF VISIONEER'S SUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS TO PRODUCE LOW COST GOOD LOOKING SCANNERS THAT TAKE UP LITTLE ROOM AND ARE EASY TO USE.THIS MACHINE WORKS WONDERFULLY, AND IS CLEARLY COMPATIBLE WITH ADOBE AND WORD PERFECT.IF YOU ARE USING THIS FOR YOUR LAW PRACTICE SPEND THE EXTRA DOUGH ON THE XP450.THE FEDERAL COURTS ARE GOING PAPERLESS AND THIS IS THE TOOL TO KEEP UP.

IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE INSTALLATION CALL THEIR TECH SUPPORT STAFF THEY ARE VERY HELPFUL.YOU MIGHT HAVE TO WAIT 10 MINUTES FOR SOMEONE TO ANSWER BUT THEY WILL GUIDE YOU THRU THE PROCESS.MY PAST PROBLEMS WITH VISIONEER PRODUCTS WAS GETTING THE COMPUTER TO FIND THE SCANNER AND THE FIX INVOLVED THE REMOVAL OF FILES FROM PREVIOUS SCANNERS.

XP 450 Constantly loses Connection
I use this in a law office/buiness setting with an IBM laptop running Windows 2000.The problem is if I do not scan something for about an hour, the scanner loses its connection and you have to turn it off and back on to get it to scan.A royal pain in the you now what since the power button is on the back.I called Visioneer support and they said "That is the way it works - if you do not use it it loses connection."I think that is BS.My HP did not. If someone else has problem and a fix, let me know.Otherwise, our office just nixed buying 50 more of these since I was the test case.

Finally a quiet reliable small footprint scanner
Thia is a great scanner. It is quiet, fast, and the document feeder works flawlessly.Be careful during installation.After installing Paperport, it continues on to install the driver without pause. The last screen tells you to connect the USB cable before selecting the 'finish' button.If you are not reading the screens, you could miss this and have to uninstall and reinstall which is messy. Other than that I highly recomment this. I have gone through 3 HP and one Canon scanner before finding one that fits the bill perfectly.

Excellent workgroup scanner
I've reviewed and used many scanners over the years.Each is inevitably a compromise. However, the Strobe XP450 is by far the best that I've tried so far in its price range. It's fast. relatively resistant to jamming, easy to set up, and has less skewing than most automatic sheet feeders. It's also very compact and reliable. Highly recommended. I use it in a law office setting and it's been one of the major reasons that I have been able to move away from paper based files toward a much more efficient digital law office. ... Read more