Best Scanners

[dcarr]

My scanner died on me today and I have to get a new one. What are your best thoughts on decent scanners between 100 and 400 dollars? Greg I read your review, are you still satisfied? Looking for photo and possibly transparency capability.
Any advice is appreciated.
Debbie

[Doug Nelson]

I'm holding out for the Epson 3200 (to be released any day now).

[Paul Rupp]

I just read that it won't be out in the US till late March.

Looks like a nice scanner.

Paul

[Doug Nelson]

For our UK friends:

http://www.warehouseexpress.com/photo/scanners/epson.html#3200

and

http://www.epson.co.uk/sohoprod/imaging/scanner/perf3200/index.htm

[d_kendal]

If you're on a budget, the Epson perfection 1260 Photo is a nice scanner (which I've had for a couple months now and I really like, hey that reminds me.. I keep forgetting to write a review of it) but the 1660 would be even better since it has the built in transparency adapter. it partly depends what you plan on using it for - very high resolution scans (over 1200 - 1600 dpi) and want the best quality you can get right now then you should go with the 3200 / 2450. if 1600 dpi is ok for you then I'd recommend the 1660 since it's a fair bit less expensive (I can't really say anything about quality since I haven't seen any scans from the 2450 or 3200 so I can't compare)

- David

[chris h]

Thanks for those links Doug interesting to see the UK/European spec now includes the Silverfast prog missing from the 2450. As regards prices I'd suggest any UK prospective customers to look at

http://www.dabs.com/epson/epson2.asp?page=scanner

for a better price and I notice they quote early delivery but I'd treat this with caution.

[denschneider]

i'm looking to buy a new scanner as well. the leader for my needs and budget right now is the epson2450. but one thing i noticed about this thread is that when asked what the best scanners are no one even metioned any other brands. My question is Is Epson That much better than any other scanners?

[KevinBE]

Hi denschneider, I think that Epson is the best for this particular market segment. What I mean is the photo specific flatbed scanner market. There are many other film scanners that are better than say the 2450 or the new 3200 Epson Photo scanners at scanning transparencies and negatives. Problem is these film scanners do only that one function and do not scan photo's. There are other flatbed scanners out there that do better at document scanning than the Epson 2450.

In a nut shell, the Epson 2450 is the best all-around scanner for my needs, which is primarily photo scanning and the ocassional slide or negative jobs. To get better results you will have to spend three times the money or more.

I believe that Epson has more flatbed scanners on the market than any other manufacture. Most others only offer 2 or 3 models in their product lineup.

I hope this helps.

[Ed_L]

I'm using a low end scanner, the Acer 1240UT. I've had it for about 1 1/2 years, and I've been well satisfied with it. Optical resolution is 1200, and it has a lid for scanning transparencies. But if you're scanning 35mm, the resolution limits the size of prints. I bought it because I have quite a few larger size negs, that will allow me to make good size prints. I think it's a good idea to check to see if other scanning software is compatible with the scanner, before you buy one. The Acer scanning software would not allow me to scan certain negs, with good results. After buying Vuescan software ($40.00) I haven't had a problem at all. Vuescan software allows the user to tweak settings while viewing a histogram before making the actual scan. I have no idea how this scanner would hold up with heavy use. It gets light use from me. I think the software has a lot to do with a scanner performing to its limits.

Ed

[G. Couch]

Originally posted by Ed_L
I think the software has a lot to do with a scanner performing to its limits.

Great point Ed...software like Vuescan or Silverfast can really improve a scanners performance. Likewise, a scanner with mediocre software will suffer even if the hardware is very good. I still love my Epson 2450 and find the Silverfast software that came with it to be excellent. I had a Canon scanner before that and was not impressed.

[KevinBE]

Yea Ed good point. I looked at Viewscan but decided to go for the Silverfast AI upgrade. I wish I could tell you how much I liked it but I haven't had much time to play with it. I just used it yesterday for the first time. I will say that I really like the automatic dust & scratches filter. It'll take more time to get familiar with the software because it does have quite a few more features than the LE version. The multiple pass scanning is a great feature, I think Viewscan has that also.

I had an Epson 1240U Photo scanner before the 2450 and I had a couple of problems with it. It had some dust under the glass and it's images seemed too soft, the 2450 images are sharp as a tack.

[Paul Rupp]

I did some testing with my 2450 to see just how much detail it could pull from a negative. A good friend in CA sent me a B&W 35mm neg of a test board for testing lens resolution. The greatest resolution from the neg is about 100lpm (lines per MM) with some quick tests scanning at 2400DPI I was able to get 35lpm from the scanner. In the 35mm world, that would be "acceptable" lens resolution.

Now these tests were done quickly without tweeking, I am sure I could get better lpm with the scanner if I tweek it a bit. But... 35lpm from a flatbed scanner is pretty good in my book!

If anyone has any other ideas to test with this neg, let me know and I'll try them as well.

Paul