2018 Scanner Round-up

The start of the New Year is a good time to clean out your old paper files and get a fresh start.  But it’s also the beginning of tax season when we all need to keep track of the many records and receipts needed to file our returns.  And with the recent changes in the U.S. Tax Code, it’s probably a good idea to hold on to paper records a little longer than usual.

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There have been more than a few changes in the document scanner market since we published our first scanner round-up last year so here’s a fresh look at some of our old favorites and some of the new models we have looked at.

Brother ADS-1500W

This was the first dedicated document scanner we reviewed and after many years, this workhorse is still going strong.  If you are in a small to medium office, you may want a scanner that is a little more robust but for home use, this compact two-sided scanner is still a great choice.

Read our full review here.

Epson Workforce DS-560

This is a solidly made unit with an excellent document feed system that gives you a choice of a USB or wireless connection.  The automatic document feeder handled everything we put into it with no paper jams or mis-feeds.

Epson provides two different scanning applications for the Mac and a free Epson DocumentScan app for the iPhone which both work well.

You can read our full review here.

Epson Workforce ES-300W

This battery operated duplex scanner still offers a high capacity automatic document feeder with exception scanning speeds.  Unfortunately, the small size does lead to some trade-offs.

Like most of the scanners we have seen with this small form factor, there is no output tray of document capture mechanism.  That could lead to a bit of confusion if the scanned paper wind up falling on the floor. We would have also appreciated some sort of carry case since this is billed as a portable scanner.

Those minor issues aside, this is a powerful scanner that will make quick work of even the biggest scanner jobs, while on-the-go.

You can read our full review here.

If the battery power and Wi-Fi options are not important to you but you want the same easy-to-transport design, check out the Epson Workforce ES-200 which offers all of the same great functionality at a lower price.

Epson Workforce ES-500W

The Epson Workforce ES-500W is well built and the 50 sheet ADF will get you through those large scanning projects without breaking a sweat.. This is a tough piece of hardware that has a look and feel that says it is ready to take on the day-to-day challenges of a small office. With a 4,000 page daily duty cycle and the included Epson software package, The Epson Workforce ES-500W should stand up to whatever you need it to do.

Read our full review here.

Epson FastFoto FF-640 Photo Scanner

As people move towards iPhone photography and digital photos, the days of the printed photo album are quickly fading into a memory.  For anyone with a large quantity of printed photos that they want digitized, the Epson FastFoto FF-640 is the best scanner we have seen to date.

The 30 photo ADF and scanning speeds that approach 1 photo per second will surely make quick work of what otherwise might have been a long drawn-out process.

The FastFoto application is well designed and does a nice job of helping you keep those newly scanned photos organized.

With the ability to double as a high speed document scanner, you can be confident that you are not buying a specialized piece of hardware that will sit on a shelf when you eventually finish your photo scanning projects.

You can read our full review here.

Epson Perfection V19 Flatbed Scanner

Sometimes you need to scan something other than documents.  The Epson Perfection V19 Scanner is a great entry level scanner for the occasional scanning project involving photos or large items like book pages.

The small profile of the scanner and its USB power make this almost a portable scanner and could certainly fit in a backpack or other bag if you wanted to do some scanning remotely.

The Epson Scan software is a robust package and the multiple scanning modes lets you decide just how much control you want over the scanning process.

One feature that we especially liked was the ability to place several prints on the scanner glass at the same time.  The software had no trouble identifying the multiple prints and allowed us to crop each one individually.  When we completed the actual scan, the software produced an individual file for each of the prints.

You can read our full review here.

Dropped from this year’s list was the NeatConnect Scanner.  Earlier this year Neat announced they would be changing their focus to the Neat software and would be getting out of the hardware business.

There is certainly no shortage of great scanners to choose from and with the variety of features and options, there is sure to be one that is perfect for your needs.

Do you have a favorite scanner?  What are some of your toughest scanning projects and how do you get through them?  Why not join the conversation and leave a comment below.

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