The Mustek ScanExpress 1248 UB scanner is very old now and due to its age it has become very cheap. I was given this very flat-bed scanner by my uncle, the reason for that act of kindness was not due to his love but due to his computer retail shop being brutally burnt by a gang of thugs.
This ... Read review
Advantages: Scans in both colour and black/white, cheap, runs on most OS's Disadvantages: reasonably slow scanning time
The Mustek ScanExpress 1248 UB scanner is very old now and due to its age it has become very cheap. I was given this very flat-bed scanner by my uncle, the reason for that act of kindness was not due to his love but due to his computer retail shop being brutally burnt by a gang of thugs.
This scanner was built to scan A4 (216mm x 297mm) sized documents, but is quite capable of scanning larger documents separately. You will have the ... ...there, which are selling the Mustek 1248 UB for a much lower price than £53.
Overall I think that the Mustek 1248UB is a very good scanner as I have one, and I have to say that it has been very reliable for the 3 years I have had it. This is not the future of scanning, but it sure does produce high quality scans of any document. And is very cost-effective basically 1. for it's low price and 2. the quality of scanning it provides. more
The Mustek ScanExpress 1248 UB scanner is very old now and due to its age it has become very cheap. I was given this very flat-bed scanner by my uncle, the reason for that act of kindness was not due to his love but due to his computer retail shop being brutally burnt by a gang of thugs.
This scanner was built to scan A4 (216mm x 297mm) sized documents, but is quite capable of scanning larger documents separately. You will have the option of scanning your documents in black and white or in colour. The greyscale depth on this scanner is 16-bit (64k colours), this basically means that the scanner can capture 64,000 shades of grey from pure black (0) to pure white (64,000) with 63,999 grey shades in-between. The colour depth for the 1248UB is 48-bit, which is standard on all new flat-bed scanners. 48-bit is a term given to a colour raster image containing over 281 trillion colours. Most modern large format scanners scan in 48-bit mode and save in 24-bit mode after taking "the best" 16.7 million colours out of the original 281 trillion.
The scanner takes approximately 2-3 minutes scanning colour documents and between 1-2 minutes scanning black/white documents. It weighs just under 3 kg and you have to manually place your preferred document in the required area before scanning (obviously). However, when your document has been scanned you will occasionally be able to see part of the dark background (used to give documents maximum exposure when they are being scanned) in the scanned document. This can be avoided by placing your document in the middle of the scanner's scanning area, which can be a bit of a hassle, will be difficult to get the document in the right position and will waste a little bit of time in the process. If you are still getting unreasonable areas on your scanned document(s) you can always use the tools on the paint accessory to get rid of the unwanted parts.
Please note that this flat-bed scanner will only work on operating systems below Apple's Mac OS X Leapord and Microsoft's Windows Vista. So the operating systems which will allow the use of this scanner are (Apple MacOS 8.6, Apple MacOS 9, Apple MacOS 9.1, Microsoft Windows 98SE/2000/ME/XP). Amazon are selling this very scanner for over £53, but other lesser known online shops are selling the exact same scanner for just under £25 (including V.A.T).
http://www.tekheads.co.uk/s/product?product=603671 - This is a link to a website selling the reviewed scanner at a price well below prices provided by Amazon. I am not sure if you can pay via Pay Pal on this website in order to purchase the scanner. If not there are many alternative online shops out there, which are selling the Mustek 1248 UB for a much lower price than £53.
Overall I think that the Mustek 1248UB is a very good scanner as I have one, and I have to say that it has been very reliable for the 3 years I have had it. This is not the future of scanning, but it sure does produce high quality scans of any document. And is very cost-effective basically 1. for it's low price and 2. the quality of scanning it provides.
I have given this scanner a 4/5 star rating and I would definitely recommend this scanner to potential buyers.
Product Information for "Mustek ScanExpress 1248 UB" »
Scanner
Input Type
Colour
Grayscale Depth
16-bit (64K grey levels)
Grayscale Depth (External)
16-bit (64K grey levels)
Colour Depth
48-bit colour
Colour Depth (External)
48-bit colour
Optical Resolution
600 dpi x 1200 dpi
Interpolated Resolution
19200 dpi x 19200 dpi
Scan Mode
Single-pass
Scan Element Type
Contact Image Sensor
Control Panel Buttons Functions
Scan, copy, fax, email
Manufacturer's product description
Mustek brand has been globally well known for its excellent quality, professional support, and extensive service. Mustek has been recognized by many international magazines and professional organizations for its excellent innovative technology, production capability, and product quality.PRODUCT FEATURES:Compact Color Flatbed Scanner;Quick & easy installation and power supply via USB port;Energy efficient;Innovative Software for image and text editing;Quality results with Mustek intelligent AutoCrop Scanning Technology.