to be honest I love these kind of threads as it can be super helpful, it’s the reason I started the Audio Hardware Reviews/Thoughts thread as I’d sooner trust the opinion of the community than some AI written click-bait trash article.
For me my current scanners are.
Plustek OpticBook 3900
I’ve had this scanner for about 3-4 years now and I love it a lot. Some people don’t seem to like Plustek much but I haven’t got much to gripe about. I got my one “second-hand” but it came in its original packaging and looked like someone had used it maybe once or twice.
It has a CCD sensor so it works great with things that aren’t perfectly flat, and can go up to 1200dpi if you want it to (although I just stick with 600dpi for the moment).
It’s certainly not the slimmest chicken in the coop but it has a sturdiness to it that is reassuring.
My biggest gripe and dissapointment with it is that although it promises edge scanning which is useful for scanning bound books, the 6mm cut-off means that any book or magazine that prints close to the spine will have data missing. Maybe one day I can get the 4800 which has only a 2mm cut-off.
The software is pretty simple and a set and forget affair, I might however be tempted to try out some of the software options posted here.
As for results, I think they’re pretty decent all be told. Colours are accurate enough, but I like the idea of using a colour grade on the plattern to try and match things up.
Plustek OpticSlim 1180
Outside of MusicBrainz I have a need to scan larger and odd-sized documents, tired of sticthing together 4 or 5 A4 sized images together I opted to buy an A3 scanner.
Of course this means dealing with a very bulky appliance regardless, but the 1180 seemed like the best of a bad deal with its relatively low profile design.
This one I managed to buy brand new through a gift card I won, but at the time I did not fully realise the differences between CCD and CIS. The 1180 is unfortunately a CIS scanner, which means when scanning things like oversized magazine pages or newspaper, if the article isn’t perfectly flat the image becomes disorted and out of focus. With the relatively light lid on the unit, I have found that sometimes you have to keep a bit of pressure applied to ensure the article stays as flat to the plattern as possible.
As for software its much the same ordeal as the other Opticbook I own, and the results (considering its a CIS sensor) are pretty good. However I don’t think it’s a great solution all be told, and if you’re happy to have a max DPI of 800 then the A320E is likely a better option (being CCD).
Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300i
Through doing IT support nonsense for a paycheck, I often get handed retired equipment from offices and such. Most of the time these are undesirable appliances like printers or ancient VGA monitors, but sometimes you can get scanners.
One of those was the S1300i which is a really neat little device, it’s very small and portable. I guess you could say its a “document scanner” vs a normal flatbed, meaning it really only wants to scan things that are unbound and flat (although I have had so-so success in putting stapled items through it). If you’re prepared to debind things then this device is a TIME SAVER. I managed to scan a 1100 page catalogue with this in about a day, which would have likely taken me 3 days with a flat bed.
The software takes some getting used to but once set up with the profile you want its a breeze to use and can out put some really nice images.
My issue with it (and many others) are that becuase of the design, documents that may be a little delicate or damaged can get chewed up by the rollers. In the early test days I lost a few pages of a rather thin motoring magazine to it as it began to chew up the pages.
If it helps sell it, Jason Scott actually bought a much fancier ScanSnap to scan load of computer magazines he came into and he raved big time about it. Although he did modify the rollers to not be so aggressive.
Epson Perfection V200
I picked this up for £5 about 10 years ago and it was my favourite flatbed scanner. Sadly it broke after I put it down on the floor and stepped on it like an idiot, but I hope to get another one again sometime.
It was quick, the image quality was great and again it was CCD. The software also didn’t make me want to die which was a plus as Epsons printer software often brings me out in a rage (like most printer software).
I still look lovingly at these on eBay and such thinking about getting one again.
The only irritation I had was that (before I Godzilla’d it) I lost the AC adapter and they used a really odd DC jack.
Canon LiDE 300
Utter trash never again.
After a few years of owning a Canon MX925 AIO printer that I adored (it could print on CDs!), I decided to give one of their flat bed options a try. The MX925 seemed great - it was small, portable, and could run entirely off USB for power and data. It also stated that it could do 2400dpi scans.
That last part ended up being an apparent lie - no matter what I did with the awkward as hell software it would sit there and refuse to scan anything above a 600dpi image. Along with that it has a CIS sensor (which again I didn’t know about at the time) and I thought the results it gave me were pretty poopy in comparison to my dear Epson V200.
It was swiftly returned to Bezos’ Warehouse and Emporium (Amazon) and the £50 returned to me.
Thanks for coming to my TED Talk about scanners
