Buying Portable Scanners for the Office
There are a lot of gadgets these days that require very little effort to learn to use. Devices are created with intuitive use in mind to make sure that end-users don't have to deal with a steep learning curve and read a lengthy tutorial. In fact, not a lot of people even bother reading instruction manuals these days, which makes it all the more important for device manufacturers to produce highly intuitive solutions.
It isn't surprising that there aren't many guides in using a scanner. Whether it's a bulky or a portable one, using a scanner is easy to do on the first try. Of course, with the exception of industrial-sized scanning equipmentthat is riddled with buttons for specific settings and uses.
Unfortunately, when it comes to actually buying devices, specifically portable scanners, it takes quite a significant amount of effort to do so. Sure, it's easy to grab the best-looking scanner at the local consumer electronics store. But it's highly likely that the one bought is going to disappoint. Here are some things to keep in mind when intending to go out to buy a reliable portable scanner:
- Mind the price.
Buying anything requires money, that's a given. With this in mind, it's absolutely important to set a budget with a good price range. You need to know that doing this avoids overspending as well as under spending. However, before even setting a price range, it's important to know the actual price ranges of portable scanners. In addition to this, it's also best to take some notes about how quality may fall off at some point as the price goes down.
- What is the scanner going to be used for?
For small offices that need a scanner simply to scan texts off from documents, it's superficial to spend more for a high-resolution scanner that can keep track of every detail in a photo. This extra power also means extra cost. On the other hand, the office is likely to be scanning some photos a few times; this extra feature might be worth considering. The point is to buy one that won't have unnecessary features.
- Check out the features for each option.
Needless to say that practically every model of portable scanners has different technical specifications and features. As mentioned previously, it's best to choose one that doesn't have a feature or capability that would remain unused. When choosing a scanner for digitally archiving old printed photos, it's most definitely a good idea to purchase one that has high-resolution scanning capability.
- Make sure that it's compatible with the office's preferred operating system.
Some scanners, including flatbeds, run exclusively on one operating system. It's important to know what operating system the scanner would interface with especially when buying in bulk. These days, most manufacturers aim to be cross-platform, but it's still not applicable to every model in the market. Check out a reliable source for this information, such as message boards and actual websites for the products.
