CanoScan LiDE 700F Color Image Scanner, 4800 x 4800 dpi

Pros:+ Powers entirely off the USB 2.0 connection+ Has hinged lid to accommodate books and thicker items+ Has 9600 dpi optical scanning capability+ Scan quality and software is good (let's you save in a variety of formats too)+ Has 35 mm negative scanning ability in a pinch (but is poorly designed, so don't get it just for that)Cons:- 35 mm film scanning feature is badly conceived (fine for a handful of negatives but you wouldn't want to use it to archive hundreds of negatives, for example). If you are seriously considering this scanner for that reason, please read the details below for why I was disappointed with this feature.- Silly online "online help" style manual with customized reader that has no way even to enlarge diagrams (they could have had a simple PDF manual as well, couldn't they?)Summary:Get it if you really need the high optical resolution, otherwise get one of the smaller and more compact Canon models.More Details:I got this model mostly because of the advertised "35 mm negative scanning attachment," as I wanted to archive my entire pre-digital-era photos as digital ones. I have both negatives and prints for all these pictures, but figured that the negative would give better results since it has more dynamic range, closer to the original source, etc. For some reason, I assumed it would scan an entire negative strip at a time, automatically dividing the frames, etc. Nothing of the sort. All it is is a bracket that snaps onto the top of the platen that provides a mechanical guide for the negative strip to slip into, on the one hand, and a "lightbox attachment" to snap above, on the other hand. The problem with this arrangement is that:- The lightbox is only large enough for one negative at at time so you have to lift it up and move it over to the next frame position on the guide manually and then rescan for each negative, one at a time.- Each scan takes 2 minutes(!) at 2400 dpi (which gives you about a 6 megapixel file). This is only to scan a 1" x 1.5" area! So to do a 24-exposure roll would take you a full hour and require your constant presence. Forget about 4800 dpi or higher unless you really really need that higher resolution and have lots of time on your hands.- Mounted slides cannot be accommodated.Even when I did all this, I was not satisfied with the result for 35 mm film scans. 600 dpi scans of 3x5" 30-year-old prints gave better results than 2400 dpi scans of the 30-year-old negatives (both well archived) and my Fujitsu Scansnap s1300 scanner (see separate review) does the prints at about 5 times the speed. The problem with scanning the negatives is that it is very very difficult to remove all the dust and fine lint particles from the negative, the platen, the lightbox, etc., and these are greatly amplified in the scan, not to mention scratches. Even ignoring this, there was no noticeably better dynamic range in the result from the negatives compared to the prints (even the matte-finish prints!), the bottom line being that having both negatives and prints, I got far more visually pleasing results from the prints.For other flatbed scanning needs, one of the more compact Canon models (I do like them for flatbed scanners, as I do Fujitsu for sheet-fed ones) would probably be more space- and cost-effective than this one.

I've had this scanner for about 5 months now and have scanned around 400-500 old photos, some for printing. The scan quality is excellent, and photos I've printed from scans are as good as the original.** Issue with auto-crop on multiple photosAs other users have reported, I also started having issues with the multiple photo auto-crop feature after a couple of uses. I went to the Canon website to look for software updates and downloaded the updated MP Navigator software, scanner driver, and a couple of other plugins. After that, the auto crop started working again..The driver and software versions that shipped with the scanner I purchased in September 2013 were from 2011. The updated versions on the Canon website were issued November 2013 and probably address a lot of common issues reported since this model's release in 2009.I'm not sure if this link will get automatically deleted after publishing this review, but here is the address to the driver and software updates for this model on Canon's website - copy and past into your browser:[...]You might not always get a perfect crop especially with older photos with rounded edges, but there are easy-to-use crop and rotate tools in MP Navigator Ex. You can crop and rotate all your scans, then batch save them to a folder of your choice or one the software auto-creates with the day's date.** Photo QualityScan quality is crisp and clear - as stated above, you can scan up to 9600 dpi. If the scanning software isn't working for you, you can also choose the scanner driver option and use custom settings.I recently purchased the Canon PIXMA MG7120 Printer and Canon Photo Paper Glossy and have printed over 50 photos to send to my grandmother. The quality is simply amazing. Even after over 50 photos, I am still amazed every time I print a new one. You can't go wrong with Canon products when it comes to photos.** Flim ScannerThe first time you use it, it may take about 10 minutes to calibrate the film scanner, but after that you're all set. You can only scan one photo at a time, but it's not too hard to use.Just make sure you check the film or the preview to make sure you're scanning the right side; one strip of film I scanned came out with the date stamp backwards.

Only been using it for two days, but so far I'm impressed on just about every count.I'm using Windows 8 and installation was easy enough, run the setup on disk and restart when prompted before plugging the device in. It didn't recognize at all until I had restarted but once it did it did so immediately and was recognized by Photoshop 7.Things have definitely improved in the flatbed scanner world since my last one, a Umax bought sometime in the middle of the last decade. First off, no power cord, power and data both in the provided cable. Despite that, it scans reasonably fast at lower resolutions and while a 9600 dpi negative scan takes 10 minutes or so, that's somewhat understandable given it's a LOT of data.The scan software is pretty thorough and straightforward (very little customization of the interface, which is good), I prefer to do all my own editing but the scan software does a pretty good job of automatically setting the levels/contrast and descreening (mostly just a very light blurring)if you let it. It also gives you options for what sort of scan you want (photo, film negative/positive, document, etc) and color/b&w/greyscale. Negatives give you the option to go ahead and correct them during the scan so you don't have to invert and adjust. There's basic and advanced options depending on your comfort level. The only drawback observed so far is even B/W negatives default to color despite only needing greyscale.Picture quality is great with good color accuracy and range. At the max optical resolution (9600 dpi) it looks a little blurry at the 1:1 pixel level but trust me, at that level you're probably going to be shrinking and sharpening the image anyway out so it's still more than adequate. The film scanner portion is a little clunky in that negative strips aren't actually locked in so you can easily bump them off kilter and you have to be careful when setting the light down on top of them/closing the lid. BUT once you get that down, I haven't seen any of the problems with negative scans reported in other reviews. I scanned several color and b/w negatives and got great results, they matched the finished photos (both hand and store developed) every time. They were certainly better than the dedicated film scanner I paid a ridiculous amount for a few years back (and twice the resolution).So for half the price I paid for my last scanner I'm getting 8x the optical resolution, 10 times the color accuracy, half the weight, 0 wall warts (the last one you could beat someone to death with) and the ability to scan 35mm negatives/slides. There may be better scanners out there but for a budget scanner this thing is well worth the price.

It works well and it is user friendly. The software that comes with it is at best average. A no frills software. As to getting 9600 X 9600 resolution one needs additional software for that. Well if you are scanning regular pictures it would be alright but in my case I needed to scan documents at very high resolution for elargement. The software that came with the scanner did not cut. I wanted to make dad's doctorate diploma the size of his desk by scanning it and then re printing it on a plotter. Using the canon software, the edges came out really fuzzy. Only with third party software it was possible.

Updated again 12/14/14: This scanner is STILL WORKING PERFECTLY FOR OVER 5 YEARS!! I got it new for $112.98. DO NOT BUY FROM A SELLER that is a highway robber because if they are selling this for more than $150.00, if its even worth that since it was $113.00 in 2009. I would seriously look elsewhere if some greedy seller is asking for over $400.00 to $500.00 for this scanner especially when there are better and cheaper items out since this oldie came out over 5 years ago so don't get ripped off! Remember, what they were selling in 09' for $113.00 is now almost $500.00 for 5 year ancient tech.See 1/10/13 update below. This puppy is still working just perfectly for 2 1/2 years now so far. I'm still very happy with this.I wasn't planning on getting another scanner until I foolishly decided to clean the inside and outside of the glass on my old HP scanner because the underside was cloudy. I got rid of the smokey glass but added lint:( so I checked the specs on this scanner since there weren't many reviews on it and decided to take a chance on buying the LiDE 700F because of the image resolution and price.I couldn't be happier that I messed up the old scanner. This one makes excellent scans and makes things very easy to enlarge when printing. It is also very lightweight and easy to store. One of the better things is that it all works with one USB cord. I really am impressed with the quality of the scan although I don't believe that it actually scans at the speed that is advertised. It does seem slower than what the specs list and that is at the default scanning resolution for me. That issue doesn't bother me though because it fits my needs perfectly. Resolution is easily adjusted but the higher the resolution the slower the scan.I use it (and carry it) between 3 different computers in 3 different rooms. It works flawlessly on Windows XP, Windows Vista 32 bit, Windows Vista 64 bit, and Windows 7 32 bit and 64 bit. It comes with its own software which works well although I prefer to use it through Adobe Photoshop.Picture scans come out excellent and the color correction is great but not perfect. It has restored some old photos very well for me. Scanning text is easy and having the four buttons on the front make scanning for e-mail, .pdf, copies, and scans faster.I do not have slides to scan so cannot comment on the quality of slide scans although I am extremely curious due to the very high maximum pixel count for slide scans.I like this scanner immensely because of the light weight, portability between machines I use, that it requires only one USB plug, and the great scanned images. I do agree with another reviewer that the cover does feel flimsy and could be broken by someone not careful but that does not concern me much even thought I carry this from room to room depending on what machine I need to use. Just use the same care as you would with your laptop and you will be fine.I would not hesitate to recommend this scanner for high resolutions scans for people on a budget. This is a great scanner! I have no regrets having purchased this scanner.BTW: This is my first straying from HP scanners since 1995. Beware HP! Canon has won me over.EDIT: (Addition 3/7/10) Works flawlessly with Windows 95, 2000, XP, Vista, and 7.I also have to retract my statement about color correction. This machine scans so well that the image of something I scanned, using this scanner, was better than the actual item according to the person who bought the item. I was accused of "Photoshopping" a picuture because the image was so much better than the actual paper money the scan was used to represent. It was only scanned (using the scanner software - not imported into Photoshop), cropped only, and not altered using software. Now that's an impressive scanner!January 10, 2013:This is still my only scanner and it still works perfectly. It has NEVER given me a problem and is so easy to stash. I still recommend this scanner unless there's something better for less. I wouldn't know because I've been happy with this one soon headed to year 3 of use.January 25, 2013:I guess this is now one of 2 scanners. I haven't tried the other scanner yet and it was not intentionally picked to replace this scanner. That was for a Vine review and I won't compare this scanner to that because this scanner is spectacularly slim and that one is not.