Before purchasing one, it’s important to first go through information that will enable you to make an educated decision. The slide scanner reviews presented here are to help you out with just that.
Photographs are the best way to preserve memories of the events that are close to one’s heart. However, carrying infinite bundles of these memories and protecting them from all weather conditions like humidity and heat can be pretty exhausting. At the same time, what’s more exhausting is that to digitize even a small number of copies is a pretty costly affair.
I am sure most of you are aware of the various types of scanners, among which, slide scanners are used for scanning negative or films, in order to get their digital copies. It is the best instrument that you can use for processing selective stored negatives, at your convenience.
Best Slide Scanners to Buy
An amateur shouldn’t purchase one without going through a few reviews. This year a few slide scanner brands launched their latest models, that added up to the existing ones. Well, here are some of those popular slide scanner brands.
Epson Perfection V700 Photo Scanner
This is a high-end scanner that basically does just about everything you ask of it. The exclusive ‘Dual Lens System’ from Epson, with a decently armed 6400 dpi resolution, optimizes the scan level and clarity of each scan that you perform with this photo/slide scanner. You get scans with professional tonal range and good shadow details. You can perform a batch scan of negatives, multiple slides, and films with medium format. A few reviews online have rated this scanner to be the best there is out there. You will get the Epson Perfection V700 photo scanner in under $600.
Canon CanoScan 9000F
Capable of scanning 35mm slides and films, it comes equipped with a max resolution of 9600×9600 dpi. This configuration will make any old or weathered slide look brand new. Along with sending files to your email, it has an auto scan mode that can take care of a lot of operations simultaneously such as cropping, correcting the color modes, arranging it in the correct formats and so on. It’s a smart and intelligent machine that works efficiently without even needing time for it to warm up. All in all a good model for basic scanning and digitilizing your photos. Priced at $180, it comes off as a fair bargain.
HP Scanjet G4050 Photo Scanner
At a scanning resolution of 4800×9600 dpi, this scanner is well in the competition, and some slide scanner reviews even recommend this machine because of its low price. It is able to remove dust and scratches from slides and photos, can scan up to 16 slides at one go, and it can get rid of red eye in images. Along with emailing your files, you also get to contribute to the environment by consuming lesser energy because of its Energy Star approval. Coming in at a price of under $220, this is a good bargain for some light scanning work.
Plustek OpticFilm 7600i AI
The company claims that this 7200 dpi film scanner which is popular for its multi-exposure and multi-sampling superiorities, is environment-friendly with its new energy saving feature. It is a relatively faster scanner than its previous models, and provides good quality pictures at the same time. It is available with a USB port and supports almost all known computer operating systems including Mac. Its feature of allowing the user to adjust an image manually is a pleasure and quite an incentive for purchasing this scanner. Available under $430.
Wolverine Data SNaP100 Slide Converter
This low-budget scanner is ideal for work that does not need professional undertakings. It’s available in a few colors that make it quite attractive in appearance. As regards its specifications, it’s equipped with a 2.4 color screen to enable you to view your images in real time. The amazing thing about the machine is that its independent of its operations i.e. you don’t need a computer to operate it. It’s compatible with most operating systems and weighs approx 1.1 kg. Available in under $130, this is a real bargain.
Reflecta DigitDia 5000 Slide Scanner
This is one of the fastest slide scanners that we came across during the slide scanner reviews, with a scanning speed of about 90 seconds. It can scan around 100 slides at a single command. This scanner also comes with a 3600×3600 optical resolution, 48-bit scanning mode, Digital ICE technology, and USB 2.0 connection. You can also preview the images for 16 seconds. The average cost of the Reflecta DigitDia 5000 Slide Scanner is now under $1000.
Nikon Super CoolScan 5000 ED Film Scanner
With excellent image resolution of 4000 dpi, this is the best slide scanner that you will probably want to own. It has a range of features that include its ability of minimizing grain, processing good quality images from old faded ones, making optimum use of light, color, and contrast, and removing dust and scratches, to give you really high quality images that an amateur will revel in. It supports slides and film and is armed with a 42-bit color depth. This amazing scanner always scores high on most slide scanners and is available at a price upward of $3100.
The main factors that you need to take into account when you’re buying one are, the speed at which it can scan its maximum load, the depth of its resolution, i.e. higher the resolution the better and clearer the image you’ll get, and how user-friendly it is. While reading through the various reviews online, you will notice that they’re mostly for the amateur, hence, gauge your requirements and then decide on the most suitable one for you.