What you should pay attention when buying a scanner
Contracts, documents, old photos, more and more is being stored digitally. A scanner helps and even offers some additional functions. We show you what to look for when buying a scanner. Scanners scan the document with the help of sensors and then convert them into digital form.
Before you buy, however, you need to be clear about what you want to scan. For example, in rare cases it is possible to scan Polaroids, slides or negatives with a multifunction device.
If you depend on quality, speed and accuracy as well as the software supplied, it is advisable to buy a device that only specializes in the scanning function.
Which Scanner is right for me?
A flatbed scanner or a feeder scanner is recommended for the simple scanning of documents. The feeder scanner is about the size of a printer and therefore takes up a lot of space.
Whereas the flatbed scanner is similar to the size of an A4 sheet of paper and is hardly noticeable on the desk. The flatbed scanner is ideal for individual documents or newspaper advertisements.
As soon as several originals have to be processed one after the other, the feed scanner scores. Instead of having to insert each page individually, it pulls in independently, page by page.
If you don’t scan much, you can be satisfied with a hand scanner that you drag over the relevant passages. Almost every manufacturer of scanners also offers devices with a high sheet throughput. Such document scanners specialize in archiving important documents such as files, delivery notes, invoices and the like.
You usually have to buy a separate device for slides and negatives. A transparency unit turns a normal scanner into a photo scanner. When buying, you should therefore ask whether a transparency unit is available.
If you have a lot of slides, you can also consider whether a special scanner for slides could be considered. This scanner is able to hold a whole range of standardized magazines. These are quite expensive, but worth considering for owners of many slides.
Note when buying a scanner!
You should also make sure that the resolution is correct. So if you value high quality, you should look for devices with at least 2,400 dpi, for photos, slides and negatives it can be 9,600 dpi.
In the case of flatbed scanners, the connection between the cover and the device should also be able to be pulled out so that thicker documents, such as a book, can also be processed. In addition, the scanner should not lack proper software for the scanning process and post-processing