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Buying Guide for Scanners |
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Typically a scanner does the task of converting physical documents into electronic
documents. This finds application in a variety of enterprises from data centers to media agencies. There are
different types of scanners inherently suited to specific applications as also they share a common thread of
characteristics. The more you go scanning for a scanner, the more interesting it gets. And it is very important
that you have thoroughly scanned through its specifications.
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Types | Specifics | Features |
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1 - Types
1.1 - Handheld Scanner
Handheld Scanner as the name suggests is compact, can be held in the hand and hence is portable. These kinds of
scanners cannot scan large pictures, since their scan heads are hardly 4-5 inches wide. Scanning a whole picture
with a handheld scanner would seem more like a patchwork. The most common type of handheld scanners, we come across
on a day to day basis are the ones used in supermarkets to scan the barcode.
1.2 - Flatbed Scanner
Flatbed scanner is most commonly used for scanning photos, pictures and, small documents. Though it is almost a foot
wide and a couple of feet long, it is quite compact. The functioning of this scanner is more like a photocopier.
It consists of a glass sheet, which termed as “Flatbed”. The picture/document/photo to be scanned is
placed on this sheet. A glass sensitive bar scans through the picture, and stores its digital version in the computer.
A basic general purpose model is priced around $150 whereas a high image quality scanner would cost more than $350.
1.3 - Sheetfed Scanner
In a Sheetfed scanner the picture/document/photo to be scanned, moves over the light sensitive array, unlike the
Flatbed scanner. Sheetfed scanners are relatively more compact than flatbed scanners. Prices for Sheetfed scanners
range from as low as $150, to thousands of dollars for high-end ones.
1.4 - Slide Scanner
Slide scanner also known as film scanner or transparency scanner, is particularly suited for professional scanning
applications. It is widely used in the media/graphics and publishing industry to scan negatives for making digital
positives, slides, films and transparencies. Other types of scanners cannot scan these kinds of images because the
light array and the sheet are placed on the same side. These scanners are expensive and the price range for good ones
begin at $1200. However, you could get cheaper ones for approximately $750.
1.5 - Drum Scanner
Drum scanner is another high-end application scanner exclusively used by professionals in print shops and pre-press
industry. It has a drum that is almost a meter long and it can scan a number of films at one time. Just one drum scan
itself will cost your $50 to $100.
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2 - Specifics
A scanner is quite defunct without a computer and its operating system. A scanner is primarily used to convert hard copies into digital images. These images can be edited and made into hard copies again. The connection to the computer is generally done via USB for basic scans. Firewire or SCSI enables rapid scan of heavy images. However, they are expensive compared to USB. Make sure your computer has the relevant ports that connect to the scanner. The scanner generally comes with bundled software. It is necessary that this software is compatible with your operating system. Generally, most people need a scanner to scan personal photos for display. For this a minimum resolution of 300 dpi is required, which is available in most scanners today.
Now, you need to go about asking yourself a few questions.
- What is it you are going to use the scanner for?
- Do you own a PC or a MAC?
- What is the configuration of your system you will be connecting the scanner to?
- What Operating System is installed in your PC/Mac?
- Would you be scanning images or documents, pre-dominantly?
- How often will you be scanning? What would be the work load on the scanner each time you scan?
- Are you an amateur or a professional?
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3 - Features
3.1 - Bit-Depth
A scanner has a memory which remembers certain amount of bits per pixel of the image to be scanned. This is known as
bit-depth. The larger the bit-depth, the better the quality of image scanned. Look for a scanner that has higher bit-depth.
A bit depth of 24 is considered to be good. Scanners with bit-depth of 30, 32, 36, 42 and 48 are also available.
3.2 - Resolution
Resolution refers to number of pixels in an image. The more the number of pixels the better is the clarity of the image.
They are measured in pixels per inch or dots per inch. A scanner has two kinds of resolutions – optical and
interpolated. Optical resolution gives better image quality than interpolated. Interpolated scanner is ideal only
for enlarging images. An optical resolution of 300 dpi should suffice an average user. For heavy images, a scanner
with dpi 600 can be opted.
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3.3 - Speed
The speed at which the scanner is able to scan an image is vital. This is of special importance, if the scanning has to be done on a very large scale.
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3.4 - Memory and Storage
Once scanned, the image can be stored as a JPEG or GIF. But the resolution of this image is high, which makes the size
of this file rather large. Hence it is important to have at least three times the memory of the image scanned so that
the process of scanning does not slow down the computer.
3.5 - Warranty
There are scanners offering a variety of terms. The best warranty would be extensive and would cover service/replacement
of most of the parts.
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