Munich (dpa) – The days when scanners came in one variety – flatbed – are long gone. Today's models don't take up much space and sometimes even fit into briefcases and laptop carriers. But these mobile scanners are not for everyone. It is true, individual scanners are facing tough competition as more people get their scanning needs performed at home by a multi-function device that includes a printer and a copier. But there is hope for the standalone variety. “The sales numbers are still notable,” says Reiner Wichmann of the German Society for Consumer Research (GFK). People still need them for specific purposes, like scanning while on the road or for text recognition. For that, there are handheld scanners which must be moved over the document to be scanned. There are also mobile document scanners with paper-feeding devices included. Regardless, these new models are compact, usually about 30 centimeters wide and about 5 to 10 centimeters tall – about the dimensions of a roll of paper towels. Most weigh less than one kilogram and get their power through a USB cable. Prices start at about 200 euros (265 dollars). Of course, they have their limits. Mobile scanners with a feeder device won't help you much when it is time to scan a page in a book. And, while they can process pictures, many experts say the end result is not worth the effort. “Most mobile scanners deliver poor performance with pictures. Even the best devices only provide merely acceptable quality,” says Rudolf Opitz, an editor at c't, a German computer magazine. Mobile scanners are really just for pure utility. “If I'm a business traveler going to a lot of fairs and conventions and need to digitize a stack of paper quickly, then a scanner like this is unbelievably practical,” says Opitz. Some manage 15 pages a minute. But note, if you're focused on fast data transfers, you should get a model that supports USB 3.0. One advantage of mobile feeder scanners is that they tend to have OCR software for text recognition provided by the manufacturer. This function turns scans into text files that can be searched and copied. “It's usually no problem with uncomplicated standard texts,” says Gernot Flink, a professor at the computer science faculty at Dortmund Technical University in Germany. He says business letters are a perfect example. Previously, certain kinds of font were needed if recognition software was to work. “But that's not the case anymore,” says Fink. “Standard fonts like Times New Roman can be recognized by the scanner with no problem.” Scanner quality is also no longer a decisive role for whether text can be recognized, at least not so long as resolutions register at 300 dots per inch (dpi) or more. But problems can crop up with originals that have a mix of details. Varying sizes of font, a lot of special characters or graphics elements can cause problems even for the best text recognition software. If your scanner did not come with that software, you can search for a free open source OCR program like Tesseract or Cuneiform, advises Fink. “They really don't work any differently than commercial options.” They're also an option if the prepackaged text recognition software isn't up to muster. “You usually can't tell before purchasing what kind of text recognition is included with a scanner,” complains Opitz. “There are major differences in quality.” Hand scanners are yet another separate breed. These are usually thin, cylindrical devices that are pulled over documents by hand, meaning books are not a problem. But the fact they're handheld can make text recognition a problem. “It gets hard to have a uniformly similar scanning result,” which is precisely what's important for text recognition. To make up for the problem, some handhelds come with rolls or threads to stabilize the scanning operation. Another advantage of the handhelds is that they can usually work without being attached to a computer. “The scan results can then be stored on a SD card temporarily,” says Opitz, meaning handhelds can easily be taken into a library for copying needs. They usually cost about 70 euros. And if you have a lot of scanning to do while you're traveling, there's always the option of taking your flatbed scanner with you. “It's not as comfortable as with other mobile devices, but it is possible,” says Opitz. That's because this class also has some new relatively light and compact models that get their power via a USB cord. But they also rely on a different technology and don't produce quality to the standard of other models, especially if the scanned item is not pressed right up against the scanner's glass plate. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/tauxz Tags: IT, Mobile, Scanners Section: Tech
