Scanner Review

Introduction to Scanners

Stand-alone scanners have been somewhat eclipsed by multifunction printers that combine a scanner, printer, copier and sometimes even a fax machine (see our related report on multifunction printers). However, experts say that dedicated scanners are still the best way to convert an aging collection of photos, negatives and slides into a digital format. They are also a better and more capable solution in many cases when converting scads of documents into electronic data.

There are a number of good places to learn about scanners. PC Magazine reviews dedicated scanners on a regular basis, performs testing in a fair and competent way and identifies top models. Macworld features equally excellent reviews, but covers fewer scanners. British sites PC Pro and IT Reviews also produce good reports, and many of the scanners profiled are available in the U.S. Photography websites and magazines such as The Imaging Resource and Shutterbug are good places to learn about scanners for photo professionals or hobbyists, but cover relatively few scanners. Consumer Reports' testing is competent, but discussion about individual scanners is brief, and the latest report is a little dated. User reviews at Amazon.com and NewEgg.com are useful for seeing how a scanner performs in the real world.

Reviews say most modern scanners do a good-to-excellent job of transforming hard copy originals into electronic form. What separates the best from the rest is usability, speed and bundled applications. For example, PC Magazine says that the Plustek SmartOffice PS252 (*est $340) is a fairly capable document scanner that's loaded with the types of features -- such as duplex scanning (scans both sides of a sheet of paper at once) -- that should make it a hit in the office. However, its speed falls short of the manufacturer's claims in many tasks, and it is especially slow in the duplex mode. In addition, reviewer M. David Stone says that usability issues, bundled programs "that don't work together very well," and setup inaccuracies give the Plustek PS252 an "unfinished feel."

Interestingly, PC World gives the scanner a very high rating, even while concurring with most of the shortfalls highlighted by PC Magazine's Stone. Editors there note sluggish speeds and an inadequate optical character recognition (OCR) program, but place greater emphasis on the superior scan quality. User reviews at Newegg.com are similarly split: Owners appreciate the features and scan quality but struggle with usability and hardware issues.