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Top 10 Scanners

We evaluate new scanners from Microtek, Mustek, and Umax--but only one scores a slam dunk.

Richard Jantz

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This month we tested three new USB scanners, all designed for the small-office or home user: the Microtek ScanMaker 4800, Mustek's BearPaw 2400TA, and the Umax Astra 4450. Of the three, only the ScanMaker 4800 had the right stuff to make our Top 10 chart. Thanks to its high-quality images, good overall performance, and winning price, the ScanMaker 4800 takes over the number one spot, replacing its predecessor, the ScanMaker 4700.

On the corporate side, three veteran scanners continue their reign. The HP Scanjet 7450c, a one-stop scanning station that comes with an automatic document feeder and a transparency adapter, maintains its top position. The other two corporate models on the chart--both designed for business users, graphics professionals, and serious photographers--are the robust Microtek ScanMaker 8700 Pro Design and the powerful Epson Perfection 2450 Photo, which debuted last month.

Powerful Scanning for Less

We've noticed a trend: High-resolution, 48-bit-color scanners are popping up at the low end of the price spectrum. Though Microtek's ScanMaker 4800 is the first $100 scanner with 1200-by-2400-dpi resolution and 48-bit color to grace the Top 10 Scanners chart, it isn't the first model we've seen with those specs at that price. Acer's S2W5300 and Umax's Astra 4400 are both 1200-by-2400-dpi USB units capable of capturing 48-bit color, and both are priced at $99. But neither performed well enough to place on the chart.

The other new scanners we reviewed this month--the $140 Mustek BearPaw 2400TA and the $130 Umax Astra 4450--are also 1200-by-2400-dpi units with 48-bit color. Neither performed as well as the Microtek model, however.

Richard Jantz is a freelance writer based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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