Microtek ScanMaker S400 Flatbed Scanner

I wish there was a way to give this piece of garbage a 0 out of 5 star rating. The software is buggy, and it installs applications that run every time you log in (Mac OS X). They also spent a lot of time making it impossible to disable. br>br>The documentation is written in Chinglish and does not address the most common issues. And check out their "knowledge base" on their support website. br>br>I put up with this waste of time for a few months before it simply stopped showing up on my USB bus. What a blunder I made when I purchased this scumbag. Since this scanner died, I've replaced it with a Canon CanoScan 8400F, which is much faster and comes with much higher-quality software. The 8400F's documentation appears to have been written by English speakers as well. The CanoScan's image quality is also excellent, far superior to what I was able to achieve with the S400 (while it was still functional).

Lennox Summers

| Mar 11, 2021

For the money, this is an excellent scanner. br>br>And no, I'm not affiliated with Microtek; I'm just a happy customer who wants to share his experience with this product. br>br>These days, you never know how well a product will perform until it's too late. br>br>I'm not sure why other people who purchased this scanner had such a hard time with it. br>br>Before connecting the USB cable from the scanner to the computer, I installed the scanner software on the computer, and everything went smoothly. br>br>It's possible that connecting the scanner and turning it on without first installing the software will cause a problem. Since December 2006, I've owned and used this scanner, and I've been scanning flat beds since 1999. In the last few months, I've scanned over 2,000 photos with the Microtek scanner and have had no issues. Windows XP Home Edition is the operating system that I use. br>br>The fact that it has quick launch buttons on the front panel is the main reason I bought this scanner. All you have to do is set your desired scan preferences once, and then all you have to do is press one button, the scan button on the front panel, and the photo will be scanned and opened in your preferred imaging software. To accomplish the same thing with the Epson scanner I was using, I had to make at least 6 mouse clicks, whereas the Microtek scanner only required one push of a button. When scanning a large number of photos, this can be very tiring on the hand because you have to click every option for each photo over and over again. It does not appear to be any louder than the expensive Espon scanner I was using in terms of noise. My scanner is turned on for 8 to 10 hours a day. br>br>It has excellent OCR software for scanning text that can be edited in MS Word and used in documents. br>br>In my opinion, this is the scanner to purchase if you want to save money and reduce hand wear and tear.

Ariel Mendez

| Oct 22, 2021

The seller should then inform the buyer of which Windows versions the software will work with and which it will not.

Yareli Russo

| Mar 23, 2021

I bought this scanner because I needed to scan negatives and the low price and high scan resolution drew me in. You get what you pay for, as they say. Photoshop Elements 2 appears to have been purchased in this case. 0 (35 dollars) and a scanner worth $100. The scans are very sharp, and a lit adapter for negative scans is included. The scanner, on the other hand, is excruciatingly slow. It took nearly 10 minutes to scan a single image from a negative strip at 4800 dpi (4 times the resolution a film developing place puts on a photo cd). It was a slow scan, but one that was crisp and clear. The image was scanned in 5 minutes at a lower resolution (1200 dpi, roughly 1000 x 1500 image, roughly equivalent to a photo cd). br>br>Another flaw is that the negative holder has no "feet," so it will slide across the glass while scanning if your scanner isn't level. Taking the scanner's back off the desk gave it some stability and kept it in place, but it's unfortunate that I had to resort to such a clumsy solution. You get what you pay for, as they say. A 9600 dpi optical scanner for less than $150 is hard to come by. Verdict - It's a flawed image, but it's a nice one.

Enrique Whitney

| Sep 24, 2021

No Mac OSX support***Company on the verge of bankruptcy***. I only gave it one star because I didn't have any other options. I had a Scanmaker E3 for years (purchased in 1997 and retired in 2007) and had no problems with it, but now I've squandered $100. 00 on this was the last time POS was supported. It's been a year since I bought it. Except for the software, which frequently crashes, and their tech support, which is a waste of time and does not support Leopard 10, it performs admirably. The rating of zero is based on a score of 5. It makes me wonder how many more scanners will be unsupported in the future. Their website is frequently down, and other reviews have reported similar problems to mine. I now have an anchor for my boat. Do not buy a Microtek product; instead, opt for Epson or Canon, both of which have excellent user reviews. br>br>Update 6/21/08br>The Microtek website in the United States is currently unavailable. Customer service claims that a driver solution is in the works. I emailed customer service and tech support but got no response. BUY ******ANY******* MICROTEK PRODUCTS AT YOUR OWN RISK! br>br>DO NOT BUY MICROTEK PRODUCTS AT ALL!.

Kyle LEES

| Nov 16, 2021

I needed a scanner and decided on the s400 after reading reviews in publications such as PC World, PC Magazine, and others. I purchased it locally and followed the installation instructions, which included installing software, connecting the scanner to power, and connecting it to the computer via USB. My first scan was approaching, and I was prepared. Unfortunately, the scanner driver that came with the scanner did not recognize it. So I called support on my own dime and spoke with them for over 30 minutes, during which time they advised me to download the latest driver from the company's website, which I did, uninstalling the old driver and installing the new one. It worked for about 20 minutes before the scanner stopped working. So, rather than calling customer service again, I returned the call. I'm not interested in paying for support during the installation process. I'm sure this is a good unit, but it didn't work for me.

Ezra Pham

| Sep 05, 2021