Top 5 Best Photo Scanners on Amazon

Sieeka Khan, Tech Times 18 December 2020, 02:12 pm

Professional photographers and those who take pictures as a hobby or for memorabilia often turn to photo scanners to digitize their prints.

Most photo scanners are equipped with amazing features such as high resolution and the ability to scan slides and negatives on top of photo prints. There are even scanners that include software to help retouch scans and to help remove scratches.

Although its main purpose is to scan photos, some include optical character recognition or OCR software for general-purpose scanning.

What to look for in photo scanners

There are numerous photo scanners available on the market, and it offers a wide range of capabilities and prices. Low-cost photo scanners have limited features.

The best photo scanners to get are those that can handle slides and film negatives. These types of models come with plastic holders or frames that fit numerous slides or negatives and secure them in place while you scan.

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Also check the modes, as it should have basic and advanced ones. The basic mode will select the scan settings for you, while the advanced mode will let you customize the settings. In this way, you will have a choice on what you want to do while scanning your photos.

Go for photo scanners that have dust and scratch removal capabilities. The dust removal feature works really well, but make sure that the scratch removal feature is works too as it requires a hardware-based solution.

Epson FastFoto FF-680W Wireless High-Speed Photo and Document Scanning System

The Epson FastFoto FF-680W Photo Scanning System can scan thousands of photos as fast as 1 photo per second. It has safe touch technology so you don't have to worry about scanning photos that are up to 8.5 inches wide. It also lets you scan postcards, Polaroid photos and panoramas.

The FF-680W lets you restore, organize and share photos. it also offers file organization tools. The FF-680W has flexible scanning features and it offers modes to make it easier to share, archive and enlarge photos. It can handle different sizes in just one batch.

The Epson FastFoto works really well as long as the photos are not curled from age. The installation can be tricky for some and the explanation of how each button and modes work is vague.

Fujitsu ScanSnap iX1500 Color Duplex Document Scanner

The Fujitsu ScanSnap iX1500 has a double-sided scanning feature with advanced paper feeding system. You can scan documents, receipts, business cards and photos.

The scanner is massive but easy to use. It has a 4.3 inch touch screen system that allows you to scan easily. You can transfer the items that you've scan to your preferred destinations such as Dropbox, Google Drive, desktop folder and more.

ScanSnap iX1500 connects via USB cable or via WIFI. You can scan through the WIFI connection to your laptop, tablet or your smartphone device. It has built in software that organizes and cleans up the documents with automatic blank page deletion, cropping and more. It has a scanning speed of 30 ppm, with 50 page ADF or automatic document feeder.

Although the quality of the scanned photos are really good, the type of items that you can scan with this device is limited. Unfortunately, you can't scan artworks and fine photos.

Canon CanoScan Lide 400 Slim Scanner

The Canon CanoScan Lide 400 Slim Scanner offers high speed scanning as fast as 8 seconds. It has USB Type-C cable. The USB Type-C cable lets you have just one cable for both data and power.

Thanks to the scanner's 4800 x 4800 dpi resolution, you can preserve detailed photos. You can enhance images and restore color. It also has a dust removal feature so rest assured your photos will look great.

The CanoScan Lide 400 also has an auto scan mode, so it automatically detects what you are scanning. It also has a built-in PDF button so you can save your scanned items in pdf format immediately.

Despite having numerous features, the CanoScan Lide 400 can't scan film or negative slides. You can still put the film in but it does not have the proper holders and the processing features needed to scan a film or negative.

Epson WorkForce ES-400 Color Duplex Document Scanner

The Epson WorkForce ES-400 can scan up to 35 ppm. It has Single Step Technology that captures both sides of the photo in just one pass.

The scanner lets you scan stacks of paper easily, thanks to its 50 page Auto Document Feeder. You can scan receipts, documents, photos, business cards and IDs. It supports Operating Systems Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, Windows 10, Mac OS X 10.6.8 10.11.x.

With the intuitive Epson ScanSmart Software, you can scan easily. It also lets you email your scanned items, preview them, upload them and transfer them to your preferred destination. It also has an automatic file naming and object recognition save time.

Although the Epson WorkForce ES-400 lets you scan any item easily and it has numerous features to make it easier to save and send the scanned items, you will be sacrificing a bit of speed as it is not the fastest scanner on the list.

Canon ImageFORMULA R40 Office Document Scanner

The Canon ImageFORMULA R40 Scanner can easily convert your documents into digital formats to help you stay organized. It can handle different types of documents, from photos, receipts, reports, business cards, long documents, contracts and more.

The ImageFORMULA R40 scanners are fast and efficient and it can scan both sides of a document at the same time in high-quality colors, at up to 40 pages per minute. It has a 60 sheet automatic feeder and a one touch operation.

If the ImageFORMULA R40 is connected with the IRIS software, you can create OCR files from your scans. You can go for either Word files, PDF files or even RTF. However, you won't be able to use ZONAL OCR because it does not offer this function.

So what scanner should you get? With so many choices, it can be overwhelming to pick a model. The best way to go is to know which features you want the most and prioritize them when looking for a photo scanner.