If you are just entering into the world of scanning documents to go “less paper,” the choices can be daunting at first.

There are a wide variety of scanners out on the market, and they can be broken into four basic classes. This article is going to focus on document-handling considerations for the smaller Personal and Business Workgroup scanners.

A Personal or Business Workgroup scanner is probably the right class of scanner if you are looking to go paperless on your own desk, at home/work, or you have a relatively small volume of daily scans coming into your office.

About the Classes of Small Scanners:

Personal Scanners: These are the scanners that you will typically find at big-box retail outlets. Some are even included when you purchase a new computer. They are often part of a multifunction printer/copier/scanner/fax machine. These can be an excellent way to get started scanning your personal documents. Flatbed and low-capacity ADF (Automatic Document Feeder) options are typically available. These scanners are best suited for personal family use or for a small, low-paper volume home office. Scanning speed (as rated per page) are relatively slow and their internal components are not designed for the wear-and-tear of significant volumes of scanning.

Business-class Workgroup Scanners: These are the small desktop scanners that you have likely seen in the front of your doctor's office like the Kodak ScanMate i1120. These scanners usually feature a small Automatic Document Feeder and are designed to take up very little space on a desk.

What is the difference between these scanners and the personal scanners? Basically, it comes down to the factors of quality, throughput, and durability. Just like in cameras, where you get a better result from a lens-shutter type than a single-use disposable one, these scanners do a better job capturing an accurate paper image. They typically scan up to 20-40 pages per minute, significantly faster than the personal scanner class. Their internal components are designed to stand up to the wear-and-tear of scanning up to 1/3 of a box of paper per day.

If you are looking for a business scanner to keep up with daily scanning of one or a couple of people's daily documents, this is probably the class of scanner for you. Typically, this class is where you start seeing TWAIN driver support, which is important for many business applications.

Understanding the Spec Sheet:

Before making a scanner purchase, look at the side of the box or the marketing literature to make sure the machine's specs will meet your needs. Small scanners look about the same on the outside, but it is what is on the inside that counts.

Here are some terms that you will want to be familiar with:

ADF: This stands for “Automatic Document Feeder,” and it is an important feature to get on any document scanner! Without an ADF, you will have to place sheets of paper one by one on the flatbed scanning surface (called the “platen”). It doesn't long for that to become a real hassle, especially if you are scanning many documents at a time. Having an ADF means the scanner can take a small stack of papers and feed them through the scanner using a roller system. This will save valuable time.

ADF Feeder Capacity: This is the MAXIMUM number of pages you can put into the ADF. As the maximum number of pages increases, your scanner can feed more documents through in a single run. Determining the average number of documents you will typically expect to scan in a run can go a long way in helping you most accurately estimate the ADF feeder capacity needed. Typically, the ADF feeder capacity increases, as scanner costs increase.

Multi-Feed Detection: This feature includes sensors to determine if the scanner's ADF has grabbed more than one sheet of paper and tried to send them through the scanner. Basic scanners try to sense multi-feeds by looking for abnormally long documents. Slightly more expensive scanners will use an ultrasonic sensor. Multi-Feed Detection is a good feature to have, even on a small scanner, but it is no substitute for being observant as you are scanning!

Maximum Document Size: This is the biggest piece of paper you can scan in a single pass, or at one time. Typically, most office scanners will permit documents 8.5" wide up to 1`4" long (includes letter and legal sized paper). If you have to scan large documents, you will need to find a scanner capable of handling the size needed, or be prepared to prep documents in a way that cuts them up into section sized to be accommodated by your unit.

Duplex Scanning: This means that your scanner is able to scan both the front and back sides of a document at the same time, without an additional pass through the ADF. Unless you almost never have two-sided documents, you will want to spend the extra expense to make sure your scanner duplexes. As a rule of thumb, if 10% or more of your documents are two-sided, you will quickly recoup the price difference in time savings.

Scanning Speed: This is typically listed in ppm or “pages per minute.” Scanning speed is the top-rated speed for that particular scanner, but BE CAREFUL. Your results may differ significantly from what the manufacturer says. Here are a few terms to help you weed through the marketing hype when it comes to scanning speed:

• Page Sizes: Scanning speed is based on page size. Most scanners are rated at Letter-sized pages (or A4, which is the European equivalent). Legal-sized pages will take longer to scan.
• DPI: This stands for “dots per inch.” The higher the dpi, the clearer your scan. It is the best balance of speed, quality, and file size. Most scanner manufacturers list their scanning speed for 200 dpi scans. However, depending upon the quality of image desired, you may actually want to consider 300 dpi, or even higher. Try to find out the ACTUAL throughput of your scanner at the higher dpi settings (300, 600, etc.). If you cannot find information about scanning speed at a dpi higher than at the rated speed, it is safe to assume that the scanner you are buying will scan at slower rate in the real world you expect to use it.
• Color: Most documents are best scanned in black and white, but sometimes you will want grayscale or color scans. Grayscale and color documents have larger file sizes than black and white scans. As a result, scanning in grayscale or color slows down the scanner's speed. On higher end scanners, the color scanning slowdown is much less noticeable than on lower end scanners.

The key lesson with scanner speed is to take what the manufacturer says and compare it to how you will actually use the scanner to try and anticipate what kind of scanning speed performance to expect.

Optical Resolution: This is the maximum dpi that the scanner has available to read images. 300 dpi is typically fine for most informational/document scanning applications However, if you will be doing photo scanning, you will want a scanner that is capable of 600 up to 1200 dpi.

TWAIN: This refers to the software, called a “driver,” that tells your computer how to communicate with the scanner. Typically, you will want to buy a scanner with a TWAIN driver (as opposed to a WIA driver). TWAIN drivers tend to offer better options and more control. In fact, many software applications associated with scanning require a TWAIN-compatible scanner to operate properly. Inexpensive personal scanners often do not have TWAIN-compatible drivers available. If you have a specific software application you intend upon using with your scanner, either now or in the future, then investing in a business-class workgroup scanner is probably a good idea.

ISIS: Intermediate System to Intermediate System, is another protocol that may be used by network devices, such as scanners. However, TWAIN is the most common driver supported.

Interface: This is how the scanner connects to your computer. Typically, most scanners sold today will have a USB 2.0 interface and connect using a standard USB connector.

Typical Average Daily Scanning Volume (Pages): This lists how many pages (on average) the machine was designed to handle. Look at this number closely, to determine how durable the components inside the scanner actually are. A scanner rated for a low average daily volume may not hold up well to higher quantities of documents being scanned through it. This is because the parts used in manufacturing are most likely less durable and more susceptible to wear-and-tear the comes. While the temptation is always to looming 'to do more with less', be sure to try and match scanning volume with rated daily duty cycle. In the end, your investment will be much better realized.

Recommended Peak Daily Volume (Pages): Scan more than this on your high volume days, and your scanner may not live long! Like with Average Daily Scanning Volume, the key is to buy the scanner that is right for you. Under-buying and over-buying are both costly in the long-run.

Getting Help

Before you invest in a scanner, be sure to seek out help before purchasing your scanner. Doing so will assure a properly matched device to meet your scanning needs.

i/oTrak is committed to making paper easier. We are a Kodak Authorized Reseller of Info Scanners, Photo Scanners and a Document Conversion Center. We offer a range of back-office services to help businesses of all sizes with their document needs, including E-Z Scan, E-Z Store, E-Z Shred, and E-Z Send.

Contact one of our client solution specialists today to find out more about our line of quality Kodak scanners or our range of professional services today.