Scanner Reviews

Scanner Quality ***
Copier Quality *****
Printer Quality *****
Cost per page *****
Speed *****

Basically if you need a good scanner you probably still want to buy one. Although, if you spend less than $100 on a non CCD scanner you probably won't get anything better.

I took a stack of documents to local stores and tried probably 10 different laser copier/printer/scanner machines made by HP, Canon, Sharp, Xerox, Samsung, etc. HP's and Canon's were a little better in photo print quality, but Canon only has 2MB of non-expandable printer memory (even though up to 8MB can be used for copying). HP copied at a rate of about 2-3 pages per minute (no joke!) unless you wanted to rip off 20 copies of a single page.

Brother had the most solid machine and it actually even copies different sheets pretty close to the rate claimed. HP's had broken paper trays at most stores and Canon's seamed to always have paper jams. Samsung's were similar to Brother but they looked old and the toners were all used up at all but one of the places I went to.

I don't have anything bad to say about my Brother other than the scanner isn't great for making scans of photos. The scanner is lightning fast though for OCR type grayscale scanning.

I SEND AND RECIEVE ABOUT 50-60 PAGES A DAY EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK MY FAX IS ABOUT 2 YEARS OLD AND STILL GOING LIKE NEW BROTHER MADE THERE BEST MULTIFUCTION MACHINE WITH THIS ONE IT WILL BE HARD TO TOPA 6-1, MACHINE FOR THIS PRICE WITH THIS KIND OF REALIBILITY IS HARD TO FIND

This is the best MFC out there -- no question. It scans at lightening speeds with the automatic sheet feeder. The printer prints very fast too at 21 ppm. Terrific controls, with multi-line display. This machine is built to last. I spent several months comparing all of the MFCs out there. I really needed a good scanner with a sheet feeder, but wanted to have the flexibility of a flat bed (for things that won't feed through a scanner. This unit does it all. Brother is definitely leading the way with this one!

(Please ignore the rating.) This leather carrying case also fits the CPen 800.

If you collect business cards, then this is a cost effective way to get the data into your ACT!, Outlook or a number of other databases. You'll save money and have more accurate data.

The software parsing works unbelievably well. In lay terms parsing means that the software knows what is a company name and what is an email address and puts them into the right place, unless the font is highly graphical. The older models couldn't read white type on dark cards, but this one can. Also, once you receive it and have the box sitting on your desk, it seems intimidating to install, but it only takes about 1/2 hour to install so that the data goes automatically into ACT!.

I test alot of software/hardware products but most of them I return. The card scanner and the palm pilot are my two staples. This product I not only use but demo. It's very impressive. And years later clients thank me for having recommended it.

I shoot black & white 35 mm. Previously relied upon either a Polaroid SprintScan 4000 or drum scans. The 4870 produces gorgeous scans and is easy to use. I'm very happy with my purchase. SilverFast has proved to be a dissapointment for use with B&W negs. I would probably have purchased the regular 4870 vs. Pro version if I had it to do over again.

My mother-in-law is a retired art professor unable to paint or draw any more. I set her up with a Mac Cube and Epson Scanner 2500 equipped with the Transparency Adapter. The adaptor install was very easy and went together in a few minutes. The Adaptor, however, came with no documentation so we had to rely on the 2500 manual--and that was lacking. But the online setups made sense and it was not long until she had the system running great. She is cataloging a career of slides and negatives. This is a great value and a must upgrade for the scanner.

We've used the HP 9100 scanner in our office since it was first introduced - (eight-ten years ?? ago).... We use it in our business to scan our daily incoming faxes and important mail to our network for managers to read. Faxes are also automatically emailed to managers at remote sites. This machine has resulted in a remarkable improvement in efficiency. No more lost faxes!
The machine paid for itself the first few months in paper reduction alone.
We also scan all of our important business documents for off-site storage.
Last year, after many hundreds of thousands of cycles, our original machine gave up the ghost. HP exchanged the machine for a new one at a greatly reduced price, and we were back on line with little downtime.
We're very happy and strongly recommend this machine for scanning and storage of large quantities of documents.

I'd finally had it with my 4-year-old Canon Multifunction (C555). The fax worked fine but the printer was unreliable, torpid and, because the cartridges kept drying up, frightfully expensive. Despite my wife's warning (she's been having trouble with HP-OSX compatibility issues), I opted for this HP 4215.

When it arrived, I was immediately cheered by a box that was less than half the size of the Canon's. Upon opening it, I was further encouraged by a handy yet complete printed manual. (The Canon's was all online, and the printed-out materials seemed like a life-time of reading.) In 10 minutes I was ready to go--cartridges installed, program installed on my Powerbook, telephone line, USB cable, power cord all hooked up. The unit seemed too light and compact, the set-up too easy and automatic, but I went to a Word document, clicked and waited. Not for long, because the printer not only handled the document in record time but presented me with copy that was sharper than any I'd ever seen.

Next I went on the internet, found a richly textured, page-sized color photo and clicked "print." Same result. The machine speedily delivered a bright yet detailed and subtle color print that was an improvement on the original, even with the cheap copy paper I was using.

My plan was to keep my workhorse Epson for the bulk of my printing and use the HP for faxing, copying, and scanning (all of which it does both better and more efficiently than my old Canon). But the HP is simply too good to be anything less than a starting player. I can't remember ever being more impressed with a device, especially one this complicated, and happier about a computer or office-related purchase.

In spite of my singular success with this particular model, I've learned not to make blanket judgements about a brand or manufacturer based on one particular experience, especially in this field of competitive, rapidly changing technology. My wife just gave up on her HP printer and exchanged it for a Canon.

This is a great keyboard. I have windows XP and I use it to log on and off my user accounts. The finger print elimanates passwords. I hope you get it. It is a needed product.