Fujitsu ScanSnap SV600 Contactless Scanner

[pidgeon92]

This new scanner looks pretty sweet. Can be used to scan books. Comes with ABBYY FineReader for ScanSnap™ 5.0

Video here, book scanning starts at 00:40:

http://content.webcollage.net/apps/c...true&showtabs=

From the Features list:

Easily create your own digital books

ScanSnap SV600 is your ultimate partner to scan books or magazines efficiently. With “Rack2-Filer Smart with Magic Desktop” software, you can scan, organize and create your own digital books.


Step 1: Scan with one button!
Place the book on the mat and press the scan button.


Page Turning Detection
SV600 detects when a page is turned and automatically begins scanning.
Time Mode
Set a fixed time interval and SV600 scans in real time with you.

$795

[owly]

Found a review http://www.documentsnap.com/scansnap-sv600-review/

[theducks]

I just don't understand why the Windows Only marketing


True the product (shown) is being released as a Windows Bundle
But the bundle basically consists of:

1) A specialty use scanner-camera. The hardware
That should be simply treated as a USB connected device so it should (be made) work as a basic scan device that could work MAC and Linux
That could be then sold seperatly (with a 'upgrade' if/when available discount coupon)

2) Image geometry correction software

3) OCR software

Also true, is having a well integrated software package for convenience.
Selling with a software Bundle also can save money (or act as a entry level path to the PRO ver$ion). By why deliberately lock out sales?

My view may be is outdated as I began using computers back in the DOS days where you did tasks more serially

[rkomar]

I have a Plustek Opticbook scanner, and it too was launched as Windows only (there was a Mac driver for it released later). In its case, it uses a proprietary third party bit of hardware to interface to the computer, and use is restricted to whatever platform that third party allows. I don't think that Plustek could release drivers for other OSes, even if they wanted to. Maybe the ScanSnap has a similar limitation.

[pidgeon92]

Originally Posted by rkomar

Maybe the ScanSnap has a similar limitation.

I wouldn't think so.... I have a ScanSnap ix500, and it interfaces with my Mac just fine, both wired and wirelessly. Also with my iOS devices. Strange that they made it Windows only first.

If this thing works as well as it does in video, I'd love to have one, but I don't have a good spot to set up something so large.

[elcreative]

Or it could be the Mac SW is coming later - quote from Fujitsu brochure on compatibility, "Windows 8, 7, Vista and XP. Mac OS software will be available in the second half of Q4CY2013 and can then be downloaded from the Fujitsu website."

[grumbles]

Alas, the unit has no twain drivers which leaves all functionality of the unit with the supplied software. Bummer!

[theducks]

Originally Posted by grumbles

Alas, the unit has no twain drivers which leaves all functionality of the unit with the supplied software. Bummer!

Basically was my grump in post #3

[pidgeon92]

I just received an email that Mac drivers and software are now available, and can be downloaded at:

http://www.fujitsu.com/global/suppor...21a2746a240445

[DaveGadgeteer]

I just got my SV600, and am using it with an iMac on OS X.9 Mavericks with no major problems.
The autoupdate isn't working--there are hints that one has to install the auto update software, but I haven't been able to find any for the Mac, so one just has to check the website and reinstall as needed. There's already been one update since my initial download.

It seems to be doing a good job, but it takes more clicking around than I like for finger removal. As far as I can tell so far, one has to preview the book images, then select the finger removal tool, then click on the finger, then drag one corner of the region to cover the finger shadow as needed, then click Apply, then scroll and click on the next page, then select the finger removal tool again, etc. Oh, one can remove multiple fingers per Apply, too. But note that if you select two finger regions that overlap, they won't be removed properly--each will smear in the color of the other, rather than just merging the two regions as it should. So it is better to drag the one finger region to enlarge it to cover the second finger too, then it works right. Does a nice job.

So, I'd like keyboard shortcuts for selecting the next page and the finger removal tool, then you choose the finger region, then shortcut for Apply, next image, choose finger removal, etc. That would make the process a lot smoother, just the necessary clicks and not all the click click click it takes now.

Another thing I haven't figured out yet is how it knows when you turn a page. If I turn the page right after the scan beam goes away, it doesn't see it, but if I wait a little longer, until the head has gone quiet again, then it usually does. But sometimes it doesn't, and then it seems if I wave my hand under the head it counts that as a page turn. It might be faster just to hit the scan button each time, but I'm not sure yet. It's nice that the scan button is wide, so you can use either hand.

I think it would be interesting to wear white gloves to see if that eliminates the need for finger removal. Likely the shadows would be a problem though. Maybe some flat white paddles with rubbery surface to not slip on the paper? It would save time if one didn't have to do the finger removal.

Someday the software ought to be smart enough to recognize fingers and remove them by itself... it seems a manageable recognition problem.

Finally, I'm looking for a Forum where people discuss topics like this, and I found only this one. Does anyone know of a more active discussion place?

[markom]

Since fingers are situated at approx. the same position on every page, it should not be a problem to put watermark above it or even along the whole side of the page if finger position is not uniform, automatically for all the pages.

Watermark should be the same color of the page i.e. cut from some page margin.

Or maybe to crop all pages instead, if margin is not that important to you.

[pidgeon92]

Does the OCR software care if there are fingers on the scan?

[markom]

Originally Posted by pidgeon92

Does the OCR software care if there are fingers on the scan?

Abbyy Finereader can save text layer only, without pictures and background, as doc or epub file.

There is problem when we want to save document as exact pdf image (with searchable text layer in the background), because fingertips are usually not recognized by Abbyy as pictures but as background and remain visible in pdf.

In that case if we don't have third party software that will remove fingertips automatically for all images, we should delete fingertips manually page by page, or much quicker, by simply cropping the margins at once for the whole document in some image or pdf editor or in Abbyy by reducing the pdf output width after the text recognition or by its crop-tool before text recognition.


There are also a lot cheaper portable overhead scanners that should be good enough for many of average users, such as:

piQx Xcanex

http://www.amazon.com/piQx-Xcanex-Po.../dp/B00DFWCCXS

http://www.youtube.com/results?searc...y=Xcanex&sm=12


HoverCam T5, T3, Neo3 etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOCVGr0ZK30

https://www.thehovercam.com/products/hovercam-t5

Low Cost Document Camera (visualiser, visual presenter) Comparison

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mc2JuB8HJBc


DIY kit method with camera

http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2013/...han-you-think/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4-qM...qnSU3jw27H9Mdd