Vupoint Solutions Magic Wand Portable Scanner (PDSWF-ST44-VP) with WiFi - RED

I am so glad I got this Portable Scanner. I have been working on my Family Tree for 5 years, and I had run in to problems since I had no way when I was away from home to scan. Now I take it everywhere I go. Love this product and HIGHLY Recommend it! Its so easy to use and fast.

Update: It does scan well and decent quality. But it EATS batteries. If you're using this for any amount of time, you'll tear through a pack.Original review:After mixed reviews I was torn on whether or not to buy this but it did exactly what I needed it do to and the scanned quality was good. Anything scanned printed image will only have limited quality because the scanner is going to see the halftone dots but this gets every bit of quality out of it it can. My best advice to users is to go slow, be steady, definitely work on a flat surface that doesn't work. I'm excited to try it out on some of my larger pieces of artwork.

I purchased this to scan client records instead of paying for copying since I use electronic databases anyway. I was hoping this would be a time saver. Not at all. First, as stated, it does not come with a micro SD. Since it did not say it was required to operate the device I was okay with this. Well, it needs one to function. That was a trip to Best Buy and $12 extra. Second, the WiFi connect is slow so I had to wait several minutes to ensure my documents scanned correctly. I tried both my cell phone and computer. Using the connector to my laptop was faster. Third, the paper has to be completely flat on a completely flat surface or you get crooked lines and unreadable text. Literally a crumb throws it off. Papers that were folded were very problematic and turned out hard to read. Fourth, I lost a whole bar of battery in under an a half hour just practicing using it. So I can only imagine how many batteries I would need for this.My smartphone works much better; it takes better pictures of documents, the images are readable even if a folded paper, I can crop image easily and I can instantly send them via email. I'm going to continue to use my phone!

With a steady hand and reasonable expectations for a hand held scanner you can expect some reasonably good scans. I usually scan some articles off science magazines for my Evernote library. This scanner works well for that. You can simply hook it up to the USB port of your computer and simply drag and drop the scans into your Evernote notebooks from the microSD folder. However, this scanner has some serious usability flaws! First, the small LCD screen makes it difficult to read the current settings which all appear at the periphery of the screen within the shadow of the bezel. The format button (which erases the microSD memory) is middle and center and too easy to press by mistake! In a few occasions I had to remove the batteries to abort an accidental formatting of my memory card. There is no cancel button. Setting the date is a primitive process that needs to be repeated every time you change the batteries!(I've discovered that you can preserve the time settings if you hookup your scanner to the USB before changing the batteries). And you will change the batteries FREQUENTLY. Even if you don't scan anything but leave the scanner OFF for a few days your will almost certainly need new batteries when you come back to reuse it (and that is with the WI-FI off!)For transferring to the computer the Wi-Fi is functional but impractical. I no longer use it and I always favor the USB cable which is faster and easier to pair with my computer. Instead of the scanner acting as a router I would have liked the Wi-Fi to permit the scanner to connect to my home network and transfer the files automatically to my computer, like the Eye-Fi 4 GB Connect X2 SDHC Class 6 Wireless Flash Memory Card (EYE-FI-4CN-FF). VuPoint will have to work on these issues before they really have a useful hand held scanner on the market.

I choose 4 stars because of the ease of use, scanning quality, and quick transfer abilities.What I liked:1) Easy to get started. Up and running in minutes.2) Easy settings. After picking image quality and image mode, it runs with a single button.3) Image quality4) Easy to pop the SD Card into a PC or transfer images via USB cable. Also includes imaging software.5) Works best when combined with the $15 scanning table accessory.What I disliked:1) Needs option for a USB Power connection. Drains batteries after about 80 pictures.2) HIgh contrast images are overexposed (e.g. new receipts with a white glossy background). No problems with any other image type. Flat matte images such as old papers or photos work well.Recommend for:- Digital archiving of frail papers or images in combination with the scanning table- Travel- Gifts

This Magic Wand is so useful...especially for classes that do not post notes. It's considerably convenient when you need a copy of someone's notes that you've missed. The wheels at the bottom allows for smoother scanning, so you don't need to hover or scan unevenly.It doesn't come with a microSD chip, so you should buy one together or use one from an old smartphone phone that you aren't using.Overall, it's light, useful, and better when on-the-go.