I had the 4870 for a while, and it's the first scanner I've owned that I'm
perfectly happy with except for the fact that it's not also a large format
scanner. When I first noticed that the 10000XL existed, I also purchased
that (without the transparency adapter).
Results scanning prints are identical. The differences in the scanners are
the size of the scanning bed (obviously larger items are scanned without
cropping on the 10000XL, or more items can be scanned in a batch). The lamp
used in the XL requires no warmup, unlike the 4870 (a minor detail). The XL
also accepts a rather expensive network adapter, which might be useful in an
office environment (I use a USB extender which allows me to place the much
larger XL on a shelf in the closet, while the smaller 4870 stays next to the
computer). I believe the transparency adapter also would cost about the same
as a 4870 (you can compare yourself).
For transparencies, the 4870 has the advantadges of twice the resolution
(4800 vs. 2400) and digital ICE correction. I can't see getting the
transparency adapter for the XL when that scanner doesn't do ICE and scans
at half the resolution. 2400 DPI is overkill for all but the tiniest print,
but I prefer 4800 for a 35mm slide. I guess it depends on what you're
scanning.
But the XL would have some advantadges in scanning transparencies. The XL
has an adjustable focus, manual or automatic. The 4870 is fixed. The
adjustable focus has no apparent effect on print scanning (that I can see),
but I imagine it would have a discernable effect on material held slightly
above the glass, and scanned at its highest resolution. And obviously a lot
more items could be scanned in one batch on the XL.
Although the 4870 has the advantadge of twice the resolution and digital ICE
correction, be advised that ICE doesn't work for ALL film. See page five of
the following for those limitations:
http://files.support.epson.com/pdf/pr48pr/pr48prps.pdf
Summary:
XL:
adjustable focus
larger scanning bed (more scans per batch)
no lamp warmup
network adapter option (extra cost)
4870:
twice the resolution
digital ICE correction
I have the XL because for large format prints it can do what the 4870 can't,
and for that type of media, half the resolution is more than enough. But for
transparencies, the 4870 is best.
If 2400 DPI is enough resolution for your needs and ICE isn't required,
and/or scanning large batches is your priority, then the XL might be your
choice. Or if the network capability is a requirement.
