Advantages: Affordable, solid, good quality and you can rest cups of tea on top! Disadvantages: Sometimes slow to scan and other scanners do have better quality
We have had out Microtek Scanmaker 3600 for well over 5 years now and it is still going strong and doing the job for our entire family. I'm not sure how much we paid for it, but it was not a lot because we just wanted a basic scanner that could scan in documents. It is very reliable, easy to use, with a suitable range of features but has the tendency to be a bit slow occasionally.
1. Looks, Design and Size
The scanner is fairly good looking, quite elegant and fairly compact. It measures approximately 17" long, 10" across and 4" high so can fit into most desktop areas. It has a solid build to it and rather funky curve on the lid that gives it some added style. Furthermore, the main surface is flat and you can easily rest your cup of tea, lunch or bits of paper on top! The white colour is easy on the eye and fits in to most rooms ...
Advantages: Durable, Programmable, Easy to Set Disadvantages: Too Slow for Offices, Quality Pictures Require Changing Settings
The Microtec ScanMaker 4850 flatbed scanner might seem obsolete due to its quality, being half of what more modern scanners can offer, and the fact it is not a part of a multi-functional copier, but you should not be assumptuous about this device.
Instead of reviewing the mechanics and energy consumption of the scanner, this summary will provide you practical information about the technology in question.
The scanner came with an USB wire and power cord, instruction manual (it was unnecessary, as all you have to do is plug it in and install the software), installation CDs (multi-lingual, one for Max, one for Windows) with plenty of software including Microtek's scanner applications and an OCR application, which is gold, as it turns your scanned material available for editing in Word.
Value for Money
I've gotten this ...
Advantages: Spec for price Disadvantages: Its apparent design fault
Please note: I'm a Mac user so the software issues here are Mac-specific and I'm unable to comment on how the 5900 runs with a PC; however, the hardware issue is machine-non-specific!
I bought my first Scanmaker 5900 from GHQ Computers, a reputable store in Britain which specialises in Apple software and hardware. I'd tried several computer superstores locally to no avail. It cost £125 + VAT from GHQ (online) in May 2004.
My choice was governed by budget and special requirements, i.e. I needed 4"x5" transparency scanning. Many scanners provide 35mm film adaptation, but most of those that offer large format fall into the very expensive, 'arts professional' bracket. Up until that point, I'd had a Scanmaker X6 with Light Lid and been reasonably happy with it, though its output quality had certainly declined over the 4 year period. My ...
Product Information for "Microtek ScanMaker 5700" »
Scanner
Input Type
Colour
Grayscale Depth
14-bit grey
Colour Depth
42-bit colour
Optical Resolution
1200 dpi x 2400 dpi
Interpolated Resolution
9600 ppi x 9600 ppi
Scan Mode
Single-pass
Scan Element Type
CCD
Bulb / Light Source Type
Xe-gas cold cathode fluorescent lamp
Scan Speed
4 ms / line (colour)
Compliant Standards
TWAIN
Control Panel Buttons Functions
Scan, copy, email, Scan-to-Web, OCR
Scanner Speed Details
4 lines / sec - greyscale
4 lines / sec - colour - 600 dpi
8 lines / sec - colour - 1200 dpi
Scan Density Range
3.0D
Manufacturer's product description
ScanMaker 5700 features 1200-dpi optical resolution and 42-bit sample depth while offering both FireWire (IEEE 1394) and USB connections to host. This latest generation scanner is also equipped with the FilmView (patent pending) light-lid which allows users to scan both reflective and transparent materials in one scanner with an exceptional level of quality. What makes FilmView light-lid unique is that it has a value-added light-box on its top where users can preview and select the proper slides or films to be scanned. ScanMaker 5700 is also the first scanner equipped with smart buttons for both one-step OCR and e-community photo sharing. The ScanMaker 5700 not only meets the demands of users for scanning outstanding quality images, it also provides the easiest way of achieving them.
