Scanner speeds?

[Matt J. McCullar]

Many thanks to everyone who responded to my post a week ago about my Canon
scanner. Very useful information! My total scanning experience is limited
to this particular model (D1250U2F), so I'd like opinions from those who may
know about the operating speeds of other makes and models.

When I first got this unit, it took well over a minute for the scanner to do
a complete scan of a document. (The preview took only a few seconds.) That
was when I was using the original USB connection. After upgrading to
Windows ME and USB 2.0, I noticed a definite improvement in scanning speed:
only about 30 seconds or so (I have not timed it exactly, I'm going from
memory).

I happened to mention this to a friend of mine last weekend who has much
greater computer hardware experience than I do and he looked flabbergasted.
He claimed to have used a parallel-port scanner that could do the whole
thing in just a couple of seconds. I forget which make/model he mentioned
(may have been HP), but he said that it was able to go that fast because it
contained a lot of hardware that could do all of the data manipulation
inside the scanner itself, rather than slow down the PC's CPU with it. And,
of course, having 8 bits in parallel helps, too.

Can anyone provide more information? I do have a great deal of paperwork
I'd like to archive onto disc, and any speed improvement I can get may be
worth the cost. But does the increase in scanning speed cut down on graphic
detail? Does said scanner's software allow me to manipulate brightness and
contrast and all that rot? I'm quite pleased with what Canon's software
allows me to do (when it doesn't crash, that is).

Thanks!!!!

Matt J. McCullar
Arlington, TX

 

[CSM1]

Many thanks to everyone who responded to my post a week ago about my Canon
scanner. Very useful information! My total scanning experience is
limited
to this particular model (D1250U2F), so I'd like opinions from those who
may
know about the operating speeds of other makes and models.

When I first got this unit, it took well over a minute for the scanner to
do
a complete scan of a document. (The preview took only a few seconds.)
That
was when I was using the original USB connection. After upgrading to
Windows ME and USB 2.0, I noticed a definite improvement in scanning
speed:
only about 30 seconds or so (I have not timed it exactly, I'm going from
memory).

I happened to mention this to a friend of mine last weekend who has much
greater computer hardware experience than I do and he looked
flabbergasted.
He claimed to have used a parallel-port scanner that could do the whole
thing in just a couple of seconds. I forget which make/model he mentioned
(may have been HP), but he said that it was able to go that fast because
it
contained a lot of hardware that could do all of the data manipulation
inside the scanner itself, rather than slow down the PC's CPU with it.
And,
of course, having 8 bits in parallel helps, too.

Can anyone provide more information? I do have a great deal of paperwork
I'd like to archive onto disc, and any speed improvement I can get may be
worth the cost. But does the increase in scanning speed cut down on
graphic
detail? Does said scanner's software allow me to manipulate brightness
and
contrast and all that rot? I'm quite pleased with what Canon's software
allows me to do (when it doesn't crash, that is).

Thanks!!!!

Matt J. McCullar
Arlington, TX

The speed that a scanner operates at is mostly hardware related. The speed
of the stepping motor that moves the scanning imager down the page.

The speed of data transfer is a function of the data link. A USB 2.0 data
transfer is up to 480 Megabits per second. Or about 60 Megabytes per second.

The amount of data generated is the size of the document and the resolution
of the scan.

Why not check out the new Canon Scanners.
http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/controller?act=ConsumerHomePageAct

The LiDE series has zero depth of field (uses a CIS sensor), so get one of
the CCD types.