B
Brian Shapiro
The scanner I've had for a few years has broke down, so I'm going to
need to buy something to replace it. I've had a Canon CanoScan N1220U,
which I bought because I needed a lightweight scanner which I could
carry around with my laptop to libraries and other places.
Eventually it started to break down, when I put heavy books on the
glass the scanner would sputter and not scan properly, and just
recently it became stuck in a sputtering mode and won't return back to
normal. I also had a problem where if the USB cable wasn't plugged in
well, horizontal colored lines would appear on the scan. The
sputtering problem may or may not be because I didn't take good care,
and things happened like a chair was accidentally put on it to make a
dent in the lid.
One of the scanners I'm considering buying is a Canon LiDE model,
there is the 25, 35, 50, and 80. I'd probably buy the high-end 80
model. All of these models, strangely, are thicker and weightier than
the N1220U. There's a Visioneer scanner about the same size as the
N1220U but I'm not sure I want to buy from them and it has lower specs
than similar HP or Canon scanners.
The top advantage of the Canon LiDE scanners is they gain their power
completely through the USB connection, which is useful to me as a
mobile user. I am worried that relying on the small power from USB
means the scanning will be slower though.
I'm also considering buying an HP Scanjet 4600 or 4670 see-thru
scanners, the only difference between the two I'm aware of is the 4670
can stand up vertically. An advantage of these scanners is that the
glass is placed over whats being scanned and the top is see through so
you can see whats being scanned. I've also read a review that the
4600/4670 is completely quiet while scanning, while the LiDEs make a
high pitched noise. This is important, because of where I plan to use
it most, libraries.
The HP scanner is thinner and lighter, but its also larger in width
and length.
I'm also wondering about the scan quality of each of these models. The
N1220U had good scan quality to me, though the colors on scanned
images didn't really match the actual pictures, but I've seen that on
all scanners I've used. I've read reviews on both the LiDE and
4600/4670 which say both have problems with quality, color and
graininess. The reviews gave better scores to the HP, but remember I
thought the Canon I owned was good enough quality.
I'm mainly going to use it to scan pictures from books or other
sources. The scans will not be for printing but for viewing on a
computer so don't need to be as large. I'd also want to know which is
more convenient to use with book scanning, including considerations
such as that some books need to be pressed down so the pages are flat.
The price between the two is not a concern to me.
If anyone can help...
Brian Shapiro
need to buy something to replace it. I've had a Canon CanoScan N1220U,
which I bought because I needed a lightweight scanner which I could
carry around with my laptop to libraries and other places.
Eventually it started to break down, when I put heavy books on the
glass the scanner would sputter and not scan properly, and just
recently it became stuck in a sputtering mode and won't return back to
normal. I also had a problem where if the USB cable wasn't plugged in
well, horizontal colored lines would appear on the scan. The
sputtering problem may or may not be because I didn't take good care,
and things happened like a chair was accidentally put on it to make a
dent in the lid.
One of the scanners I'm considering buying is a Canon LiDE model,
there is the 25, 35, 50, and 80. I'd probably buy the high-end 80
model. All of these models, strangely, are thicker and weightier than
the N1220U. There's a Visioneer scanner about the same size as the
N1220U but I'm not sure I want to buy from them and it has lower specs
than similar HP or Canon scanners.
The top advantage of the Canon LiDE scanners is they gain their power
completely through the USB connection, which is useful to me as a
mobile user. I am worried that relying on the small power from USB
means the scanning will be slower though.
I'm also considering buying an HP Scanjet 4600 or 4670 see-thru
scanners, the only difference between the two I'm aware of is the 4670
can stand up vertically. An advantage of these scanners is that the
glass is placed over whats being scanned and the top is see through so
you can see whats being scanned. I've also read a review that the
4600/4670 is completely quiet while scanning, while the LiDEs make a
high pitched noise. This is important, because of where I plan to use
it most, libraries.
The HP scanner is thinner and lighter, but its also larger in width
and length.
I'm also wondering about the scan quality of each of these models. The
N1220U had good scan quality to me, though the colors on scanned
images didn't really match the actual pictures, but I've seen that on
all scanners I've used. I've read reviews on both the LiDE and
4600/4670 which say both have problems with quality, color and
graininess. The reviews gave better scores to the HP, but remember I
thought the Canon I owned was good enough quality.
I'm mainly going to use it to scan pictures from books or other
sources. The scans will not be for printing but for viewing on a
computer so don't need to be as large. I'd also want to know which is
more convenient to use with book scanning, including considerations
such as that some books need to be pressed down so the pages are flat.
The price between the two is not a concern to me.
If anyone can help...
Brian Shapiro