Excellent scans, especially of very saturated originals ; very nice industrial design

Only supports sRGB color space ; random color registration problems on slide scans ; weak driver ; many operations are very slow

The HP Scanjet G4050 is a solid scanner that could use a driver overhaul and a better means of handling slides.

Speedy ; full-featured hardware and software ; FireWire and USB 2.0 connections

No automatic document feeder option ; large ; a bit loud ; driver has some annoying interface quirks ; frequently pauses in midscan to warm up

The Epson Perfection V700 Photo makes an excellent choice for a deep-pocketed photo hobbyist or a pro who needs to scan originals in a mixture of sizes.

Excellent performance for a consumer model ; first-rate, easy-to-use software ; fast scanning at all resolutions ; relatively high resolution

Scans 35mm-format originals only ; no batch-feeder option

The Dimage Scan Elite 5400 II is a good choice for photographers who need to generate high-quality digital images from 35mm slides and negatives.

Easy to use ; ultraportable ; scans fast

Poor scan quality ; expensive ; doesn't work with Macs ; scans in black and white only ; text is illegible at small sizes ; middling OCR software

If you need an ultralight scanner that slips inside a deep pocket, dig deep into those pockets to splurge on the DocuPen.

We compared the 4990's scans to those from a drum scanner and from a Nikon Coolscan 8000ED. Naturally, the drum scanner had the best results, but while the 8000ED was sharper than the 4990, it scored lower on color accuracy. (However, the 8000ED work ...

A versatile and inexpensive model for producing high-quality scans of photographs and film.

Simple, intuitive software interface; can export files to Excel, Quicken, Acrobat, and more; helpful, well-written documentation and user tutorials

Software doesn't recognize handwritten or faded receipts; more expensive than a basic flatbed scanner; shuns Mac users

This compact, intelligently designed sheet-fed scanner almost makes it a pleasure to generate expense reports and calculate itemized income tax deductions.

Simple setup ; compact ; speedy ; full-featured, easy-to-use interface ; compatible with Windows and PDA programs

Inaccurate character recognition ; expensive ; incompatible with Macs

Gateway Inc.

High resolution ; solid scan quality

Hard-to-use software interface needs work ; slow scan-adjustment tools ; lacks version of Digital ICE

This is a great entry-level film scanner for advanced amateurs, but it's not quite ready for pros.

High-quality scans ; legal-size scanbed ; great software

Requires a lot of desk space ; uses Digital ICE technology only for print scans

The best flatbed for creative professionals on a budget.