High Quality, Low Cost Scanner
Written: Jan 06 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Inexpensive, Compatible, Configurable, Fast
Cons: Slightly steeper learning curve than some others
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| LDorman's Full Review: AcerScan Prisa 640U Flatbed Scanner |
When my first scanner of many years died a while back, I replaced it with a Hewlett Packard 3300c scanner. That's a mistake I soon decided to correct by purchasing the Acer 640u.
As a computer consultant, I am constantly exposed to the new technology and first hand accounts of peoples experiences. When a friend suggested the Acer, my first reaction was that it was an Acer and he must be kidding. I have to remember to thank him again when I'm done writing this.
Unlike so many other scanners, the 640u is fast, consistent, configurable, and compatible. The fast and consistent are very good things, but let's focus for a moment on the configurable and compatible.
I mentioned above that I used an HP scanner for a short time. I quickly grew to hate that scanner because it would never scan on the first attempt when it was first powered on and the software absolutely would not remember the few settings it would allow me to make.
In contrast, the Acer scanner wakes up immediately from a deep sleep and will scan correctly on the first attempt, consistently and accurately. Further, the Acer allows me to create multiple scanning profiles and remembers my last used settings so that I can get down to buisness. In fact, many programs will allow you to set the preferred settings within the program and you never even have to do more than say scan. This is really nice for document management where you wish to scan a lot of documents.
Contrary to what has been reported in some reviews, the scanner comes with complete documentation on the installation CD. Installation was a snap and, quite honestly, I've never needed to consult the manual.
The software included with the scanner allows one to do the basic image manipulation you'd expect and includes OCR (optical character recognition) and Copy Machine software. Other than a power switch (that can be left on, since the scanner goes into sleep mode with inactivity), there are no buttons on the scanner. For me this is a plus since I was always annoyed when I accidently pushed something from my messy desk into the button. If you really like the extra gadgets, then check out the 640BU which is the same scanner with buttons. :)
I mentioned compatible... with the HP I was constantly running into situations where the driver wasn't compatible. To date, I have yet to have any compatibility problems with the Acer 640u.
For absolute beginners, the 640u may be slightly more difficult to learn than some of the other scanners. However, if you read the manual and take time to learn how to use the software, the results will be much more rewarding.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
LDorman
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Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 0 members
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