Umax Astra 2000U Flatbed USB Scanner (PC/Mac)

Umax Astra 2000U Flatbed USB Scanner (PC/Mac) Reviews

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Umax Astra 2000U Flatbed USB Scanner (PC/Mac) Feature

• True 600 x 1,200 dpi optical resolution
• Superior CCD scanning technology
• USB interface
• Windows and Mac compatible
• Single-pass scan

With driver software that makes the scanning process easy and a USB interface that makes setup simple, the Umax Astra 2000U offers hassle-free scanning. This scanner also includes a comprehensive software bundle for editing and managing your images.

To set up the Astra 2000U, we followed the included quick-start guide. We connected the USB cable from our PC to the scanner and the AC adapter cable from the scanner to the outlet, dropped in the CD-ROM, and followed the Umax setup wizard. The software setup process, although automated, was lengthy, taking about 15 minutes.

To test the Astra 2000, we started an imaging application on our PC and used its Scan command to scan a magazine photo. The Umax VistaScan driver software started automatically and, after a short delay while the lamp warmed up, showed us a preview scan. (VistaScan consistently waited for the scanner's lamp to warm up even after the lamp was already warm.) VistaScan has Beginner and Advanced buttons at the top of its window; the Beginner screen includes icons for color photos, printed material, text, line art, and Web images. We selected the working area on our preview scan and clicked the Color Photo icon for a final 300-dpi scan, which took 45 seconds. VistaScan automatically exported the image to our graphics application. The image had an unsightly moiré pattern, so we repeated the scan using a magazine descreening option. The new scan took 110 seconds and showed a significant improvement. A third scan at 600 dpi took 125 seconds but looked only marginally better than the first scan.

To test optical character recognition (OCR) abilities, we scanned a single page that contained two columns of text plus some line art. The scan took about 50 seconds, including OCR translation. Caere's OCR software ignored the line art and created a two-page document with a single column of text, which it then exported to Microsoft Word. The two-page formatting was unexpected, but the interpreted text was correct and the OCR software did a decent (though not perfect) job of recognizing fonts. You'll want to explore the well-chosen bundled applications, which are designed more for home use than for business.

Pros:

• PC and Mac compatible
• Easy hardware setup
• Detailed printed owner's manual

Cons:

• Lengthy software setup

The UMAX Astra 2000U is the ideal scanner for home and office. It features intelligent scanning software that simplifies the scanning process. With the new USB interface, setup is truly "Plug and Play". Just plug in the scanner, install the software and you're up and running in minutes.Use scanned images to add excitement to your documents, reports and Web pages, or share images by e-mail with clients, family and friends. With the included software you can archive photos and important documents, copy, fax and more! This combination of exclusive hardware and powerful software will be one of the most fun and useful computer tools you'll ever use. Explore your creativity and make your documents come alive.

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Feb 14, 2011 02:51:03