12-10-01
Starting today, and for the next two weeks, we will be bringing
you a special series of Buyer's Guides dedicated to the holiday
shoppers that also happen to be terminal procrastinators.
These guides will cover a variety of categories and price
ranges.
Today we look at three FireWire
scanners, the Expression 1680 Pro from Epson, the ScanMaker
8700 Silver from Microtek, and the PowerLook 1100 from Umax.
Of these three, the Expression 1680 is the most flexible,
offering SCSI and USB connections in addition to FireWire.
The Scanmaker 8700 offers both USB and FireWire and the PowerLook
1100 just FireWire.
Generally speaking, FireWire scanners are intended for professional
use and carry price tags that reflect this fact. Although
USB scanners can be had for under $100, FireWire scanners
start out at $399 and can reach upwards of $1,400! FireWire
scanners offer better image quality thanks to higher resolutions
and optical density
rates. Scanners with higher optical density ratings will
do a better job of picking up detail in dark areas of scanned
images. High resolution scans will hold up better under magnification.
The other obvious advantage FireWire scanners hold over their
USB counterparts is speed. USB
offers a theoretical maximum transfer rate of 12Mbps (megabits
per second) while FireWire offers 400Mbps. While this difference
is impressive, don't be disappointed if your FireWire scanner
doesn't scan 33 times faster than your USB one. Transfer speeds
are an important consideration when shuffling hefty files
from your scanner to your machine, but other factors will
limit the speed of scan jobs; the speed of the scanning element
and on board processing time for example.
Update: Faithful reader "C.R." pointed out that
Epson's long anticipated Perfection 2450 Photo scanner has
begun shipping recently. The 2450 sports both USB and FireWire
connections and a 2400 x 4800 resolution.With a $399 MSRP,
the 2450 is the lowest priced scanner we have seen in its
class. Of the stores we track, only J&R, MacWarehouse,
MacZone and Outpost list this scanner and of these four only
Outpost has it in stock. Thanks C.R! Virtual
Traveller review.
Notable Quotes
Expression 1680 Pro
"With an optical sampling rate of 1600dpi x 3200dpi
and a maximum density of 3.6D, the Expression 1680 Pro is
a major league player and comparable with devices costing
a good deal more." — MacUser
UK
"The Expression 1680's commanding 1,600-by-3,200-dpi
optical resolution lets it scan fine details normally lost
in the interpolation process of inferior scanners ... Epson
continues to make quality high-end scanners that are must-haves
for graphics experts."— MacAddict
ScanMaker 8700
"To classify the ScanMaker 8700 as anything but a professional
designer's tool would do it an injustice. This is a fast,
powerful and versatile A4 scanner for the most demanding of
graphics users seeking equal quality from transparency and
reflective scans. — MacUser
UK
PowerLook 1100
"In a veritable zoo of scanners, Umax presents a pretty
unique animal in the Powerlook 1100. It's a sharp and sensible
solution for budget-minded publishing and design professionals."
— MacAddict
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12-10-01
