2923B002 LiDE100 Color Image Scanner

Having just received and tried out the Canon Lide100 scanner, I am just blown away! It's small (thin, only slightly larger than a closed 15" notebook computer), only needs a single USB connection which power the device (no bulky external supply or second wire), is pretty quick, produces good quality scans and the included software is straightforward to use.Having used a variety of HP and older (5+ years) Epson and Visioneer scanners (none using LED lighting), this surpasses each one in every area. In fact, this was purchased to use instead of an HP network all-in-one because HP's network scan software would never work properly (not to mention that running all around house to put your item on a network scanner turns out to not be that convenient. Imagine!). After reading all the comments and reviews, I selected the LiDe100 with a little hesitation because of the slower rated scan speed than its more expensive sibling, the Canon LiDE200 Color Image Scanner (2924B002). Not only did I save almost $30, but the speeds are still faster than any of the older scanners I had used (about 10 seconds for a color magazine page). Obviously, you don't want to scan hundreds of pages/photos at once, but for a handful of scans at one time, you will probably spend more time preview and storing each scan than the time for the scanner to actually capture the image.Despite some other comments, I found the software easy to install and straightforward to use in my XP/SP3 laptop system. If you want one-button simplicity, no problem (you will have to delve into the preferences if you don't like the default settings). The "auto" settings produced results that were on the vivid side of reality, but still usable and pleasing. If you want to control resolution, brightness, descreening, sharpening... it's all there if you so choose. If you want one button searchable pdf files, it does that too. I didn't care for the included Arcsoft photo software (compared to JASC/Corel Paint Shop) but it's useful if you don't already have photo editing software. Of course, there are limited touch-up/correction capabilities included in the basic Canon tools, along with photo sorting and the like.The built in OCR software is good enough for making searchable .pdf files, but you wouldn't want to rely on it for accurate capture of address lists, technical documents, names or other such text which wouldn't be found in your Websters dictionary. Similarly, you won't get good editable, formatted documents into MS Word. For these, you'll need to pony up for real OCR software, which will cost more than this scanner and it's entire software bundle!Finally, as for resolution, this is not the scanner for film or transparencies, but neither does it claim to have that capacity. Scanning high quality magazine covers at the highest resolution (1200 DPI) produced huge image files where the individual color screening dots could be identified, but that seems to be the resolution limit. Again, more than sufficient for home use, but probably what a professional publishing house would need.So, the bottom line - Best $53 I ever spent on a computer peripheral! Look no further, you won't regret it!

Bought a new laptop, no parallel port.Then read that USB to parallel printer cables will probably not work with older parallel scanners.Saw that it would be cheaper for me to buy a new low-cost USB scanner than to try to adapt my old parallel scanners to my new laptop.Am glad now that I bought this new Canon LIDE-100.If you want to read about all the finer things in life, resolution, saturation, depth, high speed, then read somebody else's review.This review is just from a little guy with a little computer.And simple needs.My new Canon LIDE-100 is simple.Cheap to buy, easy to use, lightweight and compact.Mine is the cat's whisker.Another man may think it's a piece of junk, but I like it.It fit my budget, it fit my laptop, it fit my IQ, and my available desk space.My LIDE-100 has found an appreciative owner.We share mutual respect.It recognizes my limitations, as I recognize its value.I called out for simplicity, economy, good looks, up-to-date features.And this little Canon scanner answered the challenge.<caps lock on>you need only one cable, and it's in the box.<caps lock off>Did I mention that it's really easy to use?For what I want, I want equipment that's easy to understand, and without too many extra features that might could go haywire.Simple tools last longer you know.Yes I could have bought a four-in-one.But you know, if my input or output side of that machine went south, then I'd be making this same decision all over again.Now, stand-alone scanner, stand-alone printer, I don't have all my eggs in one basket.Maybe you didn't want to hear that kind of philosophy, but I stuck it in there anyway.You just simply want to hear my take on the LIDE-100?Awesome.Lightweight, compact, simple, fast, plenty good enough for the average Joe.My real name's not Joe, but you get my drift.C L SmithUpdate-21 January 2010I bought this scanner in early September 2009.3 September 2009 to be exact.Have used it for 4 1/2 months now.The more I use it, the better I like it.Absolutely trouble-free.And very simple to use.C L SmithUpdate #2-23 October 2011I bought this scanner in early September 2009.3 September 2009 to be exact.Have used it for over two years now.Never a minute's trouble.Absolutely trouble-free.Just one of those things that you buy that works like a charm every time.This little scanner is so simple to use.I guess it's one of the best things I ever bought.C L Smith

Scan quality on this machine is not bad, but ONLY if the object you are scanning is totally flat and non-reflective. Objects that are even 1/5th of an inch off the surface will appear rather blurry, and anything reflective will leave streaks in the scan due to the CIS scan head. Otherwise, scanning speed was quick at 300 dpi, but 600 was another story.Only buy this scanner if all you scan are totally flat objects with no recess (like documents or photos), otherwise get a CCD scanner with cold cathode light source or else you'll be disappointed.

I have had different scanners over the years, prior to this was an HP. The HP is a workhorse, but slow and not as sharp as it could be. My new Canon LiDE100 scanner is an excellent step up. The scan quality is superior, and faster. The footprint of this scanner is so small that it can fit into my laptop case. It's powered from the USB cable, so no need to lug a heavy transformer.The software features make it easy to use. But, one of the coolest things about this scanner is that I can lay multiple images on the bed, scan them, and the software will make individual files for each photo on the bed! How cool is that? I use this scanner mostly for for old family photos. It saves a LOT of time being able to scan several photos at once.This scanner / software does not do film or slides, but it does an excellent job of photos, and storing images of important documents.

We wanted an inexpensive scanner, and we got what we paid for. The scanner itself does a decent job of scanning images, but it isn't as quick as I'd like. It was easy to install, and it works every time we need it. We only scan maybe five pages a week, though, so we'd hardly be good judges of durability.