2400-dpi letter-size scanner
Product: HP ScanJet 5470 color scanner
From: Hewlett-Packard
Street Price: About $480
Pros: New CCD scanning technology combines up to 2400 dpi resolution and 8 second preview scan speed. Includes front-panel button controls, automatic document feeder and an adapter that scans multiple 35 mm negatives and slides. 8.5" x 12" flatbed. 48-bit colour. Parallel and USB connections. Automatic document feeder is optional.
Cons: Letter-size flatbed can't handle legal documents. Slide adapter scans a maximum of four 35mm slides or negs at once; no support for larger transparencies. Skimpy documentation (which you probably won't need, fortunately).
Introduction
In some ways, there's not much to say about this scanner. We unpacked it, read the "quick install" setup sheet packaged with the unit to figure out how to unlock the scanner head from its secured-for-shipment state, installed the software, plugged it in via the included USB cable and started scanning. There were no unpleasant surprises under Windows Me. We also visited the HP website and confirmed that the scanner is directly supported by Windows XP; we'd expect a similar experience with that operating system. A parallel port-compatible connector and cable are also provided with the unit, permitting use with operating systems that don't support USB, such as the original Windows 95 release or Windows NT 4.0. There is also a parallel port pass-thru, allowing the connection of a printer or (if you're lucky) another parallel-connected device. We did not test this feature, nor did we test the unit's optional automatic document feeder.
Software and Hardware Overview
The package includes the HP PrecisionScan Pro software we've mentioned in previous ScanJet reviews, plus HP's scan-to-web utility and a copier program that allows the scanner and a printer to function like a photocopier.
The unit is somewhat more sleek than most other HP scanners we've seen, with several buttons on the front panel for invoking various functions: scan and send an image via email, scan and print, etc. There's also a power button, although this is not really an on/off switch -- it merely puts the unit into a powersaving sleep mode.
A transparency adapter comes standard with the unit. It provides a top-lit light source, allowing slides or negatives to be scanned at up to 2400 pixels per inch.
Scan Quality
Our first test was to scan a plain white (Chromecoat white) card, to test the scanner's ability to produce images without introducing digital noise. Many scanners introduce significant amounts of coloured pixels in such a test, but the 5470 did an exemplary job of keeping the image pure, as it should. It was also very speedy, completing the preview scan in about three seconds after warming up the lamp. (Warming the lamp, which takes about 20 seconds, is necessary to ensure consistent colour.) By default, the unit scans at 200 pixels per inch. This can easily be changed with a PrecisionScan menu setting. At its highest resolution and colour setting, the unit took four minutes to scan a single business card, yielding an uncompressed TIFF file 105 megabytes in size. The software can also save in a variety of other formats, including GIF, JPEG, FlashPix, BMP, Compressed TIF, etc. The software can also converted printed words to text using I.R.I.S. OCR (optical character recognition) technology, allowing you to avoid retyping texts.
Colour fidelity of scanned images was good, with no appreciable colour distortion or unwanted artifacts.
Conclusion
Overall, we liked the ScanJet 7400 more, but this unit manages to come in at a significantly lower price point -- albeit still higher than that of many "bargain priced" scanners. If you don't need to scan documents larger than 8.5 x 12", and the limited transparency adapter isn't an issue, we think you'll be happy with the quality -- and compatibility -- of this scanner.
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