Xerox DocuMate 152

Two buttons on the top of the upright scanner launch either simplex (one-sided) or duplex (two-sided) scans. A function button selects which of nine customizable scan tasks is active (such as scan to searchable PDF, scan to printer, and so forth), indicated by an LED. A blank label to help you remember what each numbered function does is also included. One minor quibble: The power switch is located on the back of the scanner, and would be easier to reach if it were on the front.

The DocuMate 152 delivered mixed results in our speed tests. It took nearly 2 minutes (114 seconds) to scan a 15-page, single-sided text document (at 300 dpi), making it the slowest model among our test group on this task. In comparison, the next-slowest scanner, the Canon DR-2050C, took 94 seconds; the Epson GT-2500 turned in the fastest time, 38 seconds. The DocuMate 152's speeds for color scans were much more competitive: It scanned a two-sided color page at 300 dpi in merely 18 seconds, just behind the fastest time, 17 seconds, by the Fujitsu ScanSnap s500. Ultimately, the DocuMate 152's slow text scans resulted in average overall performance.

In image quality, the DocuMate 152 earned ratings of Good for its color scans and for how well it rendered monochrome pages. Both tests resulted in text that was generally clear and readable, but also somewhat darker than in the originals. In the monochrome document, some of the finer detail in line art was missing, and in the color scan some of the shades (such as blues) looked slightly darker than in the original.

The relatively compact Xerox DocuMate 152 comes with a variety of software, but its overall speeds and image quality are merely average.

Richard Jantz