[wbullock]

I work in a University setting and am in the process of purchasing approximately 10 scanners for a Mac OS X lab. However, before making a purchase I would like to get some expert feedback on what is the best choice for a scanner on the Mac OS X. The scanner needs to be very easy to operate (one touch features would be ideal) and the software needs to actually work! I have some Epson scanners at present that have been nothing but a struggle to work with Mac OS X.3. I would greatly appreciate any feedback that I recieve.
Thanks in advance...
-warren

[Rugby]

what kind of scanners are you looking for ? Desktop, film, what kind of max dpi ...? There are a lot of different scanners out there and there are lots of reviews but you will need to be more specific on what you need them to be able to do (the final scan)

[JackMac]

I have been very happy with my HP scanner (3970) and the buttons work. I'm using Panther on a G5 Power Mac.

[wbullock]

We will need to have a desktop model. We will need to be able to scan images, OCR, documents, etc...
at least 2400 x 4800 dpi and possibility of working with Adobe Photoshop.
Hope this is enough information for a good recommendation.
Thanks again...
-warren

[Rugby]

I will start by giving a link to some review sites:
http://reviews-zdnet...nners/4502-313616-0.html?orderby=-7rvDte&tag=promo2
(you can filter your search here by a lot of factors)

http://www.flatbed-s...iew.org/flatbedscannerdrumscannerli/flatbedscanner[u]drumlinks.html
very detailed with image examples
I have a filmscanner (Nikon LS8000ED) but I hope you get some inputs on your specifications

[doggdamac]

My Epson 1250 & 2450 works great with Photoshop, using either the Epson Twain plug-ins & drivers from the File> Import> Epson scanner enabler menu, or with VueScan.app from Hamrick Software,
however, trying to use just the Epson scanning s/w by itself is a bit problematic....:)
But, I have read good things about several HP & Canon scanners & OS X.....and if your macs have firewire ports & you buy F/W scanners, then data import into the computer will be MUCH faster /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
Stay miles away from Umax, Visioneer, and any off-brand/el-cheapos !

[Grant_G]

I'm quite pleased with both the quality and ease of use of a Canon 8400F. 3200x6400 dpi, 48 bit, flatbed, includes both film and slide scanning attachments and does a lot of photo correction directly through the scanner. I've just this morning scanned a 35 year old print using most of the scanner's features. Photoshop didn't make any further corrections using its auto-correct functions. I haven't tried the OCR capabilities of it, but actually that's more in the software than the scanner anyway. I believe OmniPage SE is included (as is Photoshop Elements 2.0).
It retails for about $150, but I've seen lower prices. IIRC I got mine for around $130.
G

[wbullock]

Thanks to all who posted answers to my question. I will now compare and shop.
-warren

[berg]

I've had 3 scanners in the last 2 years ... two canons and an epson. I would rate the epson perfection 1260 I now have as far superiour to the canons (similarily priced values). Mostly I found the Canon software very frustating and counterintuitive. I also had color reproduction problems with them. I am very happy with the easy interface provided by Epson.
But you said you had a difficult time with the epsons so maybe HP is the way to go, however I have no experience with them. This is just to let you know as poor as you think the epsons are I found the canons to be worse.

[Grant_G]

Hummmph! [See above].
G /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[DarthMac]

I second the recommendation to check out VueScan. I've used VueScan to drive the last 2 scanners I set up (a Canon film scanner and an Epson flatbed). I've never even opened the envelopes the software CDs came in for either scanner. I wouldn't buy a scanner unless I knew I could use VueScan with it nowadays.
If you check VueScan works with the scanner models you're considering you can use it to drive all the scanners. That would allow you to use a variety of scanners with different features but with a standardised user interface.
VueScan details can be found here; VueScan