What is the difference between a photo scanner and a regular scanner?
HP photo scanners
are designed for photographers, with excellent image resolution, highly sensitive color (up to 96-bit), slide and photo
negative holders, as well as the ability to remove red-eye, dust and scratches, restore color, and more.
Dpi stands for "dots per inch." The more dots of information per inch a scanner can detect, the more resolution
it has. Inadequate dpi may result in blocky images. HP photo scanners are capable of a spectacular 4800 x 9600
resolution, far beyond that of regular document scanners.
What dpi do I need to scan at to get great quality photo prints?
The key to deciding what dpi to scan your photos at is deciding what you plan to do with your scan.
Web images can only be displayed at 72 dpi on most computer monitors (100 dpi for high-definition displays). So
if you're planning to upload photos to a website or send via e-mail, then scanning at 72 dpi is adequate.
NOTE: If your scans are at a higher resolution, it's ok. They just won't be displayed any higher than 72 dpi.
Photo prints scanned at 300 dpi are going to look great if they're printed at roughly the same size as the original.
If you're considering enlarging your scanned image from its original size, then a general rule of thumb is to double
the dpi with every doubling in size.
Example: To produce a crisp 4" x 6" print from a 4" x 6" scan, set your dpi to 300 dpi (recommended). To produce an
8.5" x 11" print from a 4" x 6" scan, set your dpi to twice that, or 600 dpi, and so on.
Remember that increasing the dpi of your scan will increase its file size as well, since more information is being
collected.
Bit depth is how much information a scanner gathers to define a given piece of visual information. In short, the greater
the bit depth, the more vibrant color, detail, and contrast in your scans.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) is the process of converting printed characters into digital text that
can be edited on your computer. This advancement eliminates the time-consuming process of transposing text
manually. Select scanners, such as the
HP Scanjet G4050 photo scanner, have this functionality.
Capturing a preview scan only takes seconds and allows you to see your scanned image before completing the final scan.
It also lets you edit and enhance your scan, adjust dpi, resize your image, and more, to make sure your final scan comes
out perfectly.
HP scanners are extremely fast and easy to use. They even offer a set of shortcut buttons for the functions you
use most. The Scan button gives a quick scan with one touch; the Copy button scans your item and sends it to a
default printer to make copies. The
HP Scanjet G3010 photo scanner
even allows you to create a PDF easily using the PDF button available.
All HP photo scanners are now compatible with both Windows and Macintosh operating systems, so you can easily
get great scans no matter what setup you have.
Using a transparent materials adapter, all HP photo scanners are capable of scanning slides and transparencies.
The number of slides you can scan at one time varies with scanner model. The
HP Scanjet G4050 photo scanner
even has an adjustable lid for scanning 3-D objects such as jewelry or mementos.
How much should I expect to pay for an HP photo scanner?
HP photo scanners cost between $99 and $199. If you're interested in a professional quality HP photo scanner with the
highest resolution available and advanced software tools such as Adobe Photoshop Elements, you can pay up to $499.
Printable version
