All-purpose flatbed scanners group test review - page 9
powerful low-cost scanner
Review date: 22 June, 2003. Review by: Simon Williams
This is the only one of the six scanners to be designed as a landscape device; wider than it is deep. Depending on how and where you're going to use it, this layout could be convenient. There are five easy-use buttons along the scanner's long edge, which initiate scan, copy, OCR and e-mail functions. The fifth button is programmable to launch an application of your choice.
One of the highlights of this scanner is its Scansoft PaperPort software. This provides good control of your scanned documents and enables you to feed them directly into the appropriate application, so OCR documents go to your word processor, while colour prints are scanned to a graphics program, such as the excellent Photoshop Elements which is bundled with the scanner.
The OneTouch 9020 comes with a transparency adapter built into its lid. While it only scans a single slide or negative at a time, it does so quickly, completing the scan in under 30 seconds. Other scans are also commendably quick for a device of this price, with the 8 by 8-inch colour print scanning in just 12 seconds.
Scan results were not that good, with an unpleasant yellow cast over skin tones by default. You can compensate for this, using the well-designed scanning interface in the Visioneer driver, but it's annoying that you can't get better results without adjustment. Compensating for scanning shortcomings is made easier by the facility to save and reload custom presets from within the driver. Overall, the specification and facilities of the OneTouch 9020 are good, but scan quality is below par in its default mode.
Company: Umax
Contact: 0870 9064400
Company: Canon
Contact: 0800 616 417
Company: Visioneer
Contact: 01483 445480
Company: Epson
Contact: 0800 220546
Company: HP
Contact: 08705 474747
Company: Microtek
Contact: 01327 844880

