The prospect of digitizing documents can be daunting if you are not familiar with the latest imaging technology. You can select a scanner that has the right features for any type of physical document. Whether you plan to scan receipts or invoices and use optical character recognition to automatically detect and extract data or capture high-quality images of delicate historical records, find out how the leading scanners make digitization easy.
Dedicated Document Scanners
You can choose from several types of devices for a digitization project. The first decision you should make is whether your project only involves scanning or you could benefit from a four-in-one device that can scan, print, fax and copy. You can look up how to scan printer to computer to determine whether you prefer to use a dedicated scanner or multifunction model.
A dedicated document scanner is only used for scanning. These devices are the easiest to use for digitizing physical documents. Within this category, you can choose from mobile models, duplex models that scan two-sided documents, scanners with an automatic document feeder, contactless models or cloud-enabled scanners that simplify the backup process.
Mac & PC
It is important to select a scanner that is compatible with any systems you already use. Some scanners come with drivers and software that only work with PC or Mac. You can also find a wireless monitor or scanner that will work with any device, including specified smartphones and tablets.
Once you set up a cloud scanner, you can use these models without connecting any devices. A scanner with direct scan-to-cloud functionality requires Wi-Fi connectivity and a linked cloud account, but can then scan and upload images directly to cloud storage. These models typically have touchscreens for ease of use.
Compare Scanner Features
Beyond compatibility and connectivity, it is important to factor in the imaging features of scanner models. The type of physical documents you plan to digitize will determine the importance of resolution. Based on your preferences for scanning speed and resolution, you can scan at 300 dots per inch or 600 dpi.
If you are digitizing documents for permanent records, you may prefer to use a scanner that complies with the Federal Agencies Digital Guideline Initiative guidelines for still images. FADGI or other guidelines could be relevant to the documents you plan to digitize. Image capture guidelines are comparable to the difference between ANSI and ISO keyboard standards for data entry.
Start Digitizing Documents
Once you invest in a scanner that has the right capture and resolution features for a particular document type, you are ready to start your digitization project. The early stages of these projects often entail a learning curve and involve some trial and error.
As soon as you learn how to scan documents, process image captures and save scans in the best format for your needs, you should be able to digitize any quantity of physical documents. The right scanner can help you to quickly capture documents at your preferred quality and expedite any digitization project.
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