The Hindu Business Line : 1, 2, 3... and scan

Setting up the scanner was quick and easy - open the package and place the scanner on a flat surface within reach of the computer; connect all the chords (only three: one between the scanner lid and the scanner body, one between the scanner and the computer, and the power chord); turn on the power; insert the companion CD into the CD drive to install the drivers and the HP software for managing images and documents and you are done.

With a new computer, it all takes just a little more time than it took us to write about the installation.

Having set up the scanner so quickly, we were tempted to try at least one scan.

We placed a print face down on the glass and just pressed the scan button on the scanner.

The PC opened up the scanner settings and dialog with most of the options already correctly chosen.

In the dialog, the preview checkbox is turned off by default. Most people would like to see the preview except the few who do mass scanning and will crop, re-orient and correct the scans later.

The saving options look a little complicated.

For instance, the option `saving to a file' is clear enough, while `save to HP Image Zone' opens up the scan in HP's software and the user doesn't know whether the scan is already saved or one should save it from the software.

Scanning from a photographic print was a breeze, with excellent colour reproduction and good detail even when scanned at an enlarged size.

Scanning images from magazines wasn't so easy with the resulting scan showing patterns at larger sizes, especially when the suggested defaults are not used. The resulting scans can be used for computer display and/or for sharing over the Internet, and only for small prints.

The feature where multiple prints can be scanned in one go and saved to separate files was very useful and made scanning many pictures very easy.

Scanning documents for saving as editable text or searchable PDF was good.

However, you have to be a little reasonable about what you throw at it: Scanning a page of text of a sports magazine was easily accomplished, with its neat columns and clear text, but scanning a typical film magazine page, with its many fonts and text sizes and irregular columns, made us wince at the results.

For such pages, scan them as searchable PDFs by all means, but also allow for some text to be retained as graphics in the PDF.

The scanner comes with three plastic holders: one for negatives and transparencies (30 frames in one go); one for slides (16 in one go); and one for medium and large format film (one large format and six medium format frames in one go).

The scanner was competent for negative and transparency scanning. Results at the suggested resolution and size are good sharing over the Web and also to make good postcard or maxi size prints.

You can increase the resolution and image dimensions while scanning to make good cabinet size prints and decent A4 prints.

One may not want to scan all the frames in one strip, and we had some problem figuring out how to select only a few frames from five strips of negatives or transparencies. You know how men are: they don't ask for directions.

After some exploration, we reached for the help file that really helped. Our suggestion: An option for "select pictures to scan" next to the "Accept all" button may help. Anyway, de-selecting specific frames turned out to be simple though not intuitive: select the frame and press delete.

Scanning at default/suggested resolution was very quick, for all media. However, be aware that scanning for larger images and better resolution is a slow process, especially for negatives and transparencies.

The best part of the whole thing is that the scanner is very easy to set up and use - four buttons do all the jobs: one for scanning prints; one for film; one to use the scanner as copier; and one to e-mail the scan.

In addition, you also get HP's image zone and document zone software to view, organise and edit scans.

Overall, at an estimated street price of Rs 16,999, it is a capable scanner, good for office and home use. It is good for offices that use a lot images in their Web sites and brochures.

It is also a good option for people who have a lot of old negatives and transparencies and want to share it with lots of people.

It is a great option for serious amateur photographers who have now graduated to digital cameras but have a huge collection of film work. Also, it is the best option for people who have a lot of medium and large format film to scan and share - there are few good labs that will do this work for a reasonable price.

nagaraj@thehindu.co.in

Pictures by Bijoy Ghosh

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