Review on 📷 PANSCN04 Pandigital Photolink 5x7 Photo Scanner - One-Touch (Discontinued) by Robert Corral

We bought this machine based on other positive reviews. However, when we received it today, we found that all the accessories were missing except for the power adapter. It is said to be packed with an SD card, a cleaning kit, a protective case, etc. Also, it appears to be a refurbished or previously returned unit. When we opened it, the protective film looked as if it had been previously removed and then wrapped around the product again. I suspect that the previous buyer sent it back without any accessories. We're trying to get a refund right now, but I want to share my experience. === UPDATE === We are in the process of returning the original unit and have purchased a replacement unit (Revain did not offer a quick replacement solution). The second was delivered and included an accessory pack that was not included in the first order. I immediately tested this device with a stack of family photos that needed archiving. Below are notes from my experience: PROS:1. Scanning is relatively fast - about 10 seconds for 4x6.2. The device doesn't take long to save to a memory card, so photos can be scanned in quick succession (you only need to pause about 1-2 seconds after scanning before feeding in the next photo).3. One of the original reasons for our purchase was the ability to quickly scan photos without using a computer. We needed to be able to visit relatives and quickly scan family photos without having to take our flatbed scanner with us when we travel. This device meets this requirement perfectly. CONS: 1. Our original order arrived with no accessories. We were forced to purchase another unit and return the original for a refund.2. It is clear that labels were used in the design of the device. For example, the resolution setting is indicated by either a yellow or green light - you'll need to read the manual to find out which resolution is indicated by which light. A simple tag with two small lightbulbs would suffice to solve this problem. Instead, they opted for a two-tone, unlabeled LED and left it up to the customer to find out for themselves. Bad usability solution.3. There is no way to set the date on the device (that I can find). This will set the creation date of all scans to 2009. This completely messed up sorting by date in large collections where I scanned some of the images with our flatbed scanner. This problem is not the end of the world but it seems that with a better design a solution would be provided.4. qualitative. Faint lines appear on your scans even after a cleaning cycle. They are only visible when the image is enlarged. If you only use a scanner to archive old photos, this might be acceptable. However, if you want to order reproductions, you should use a higher quality scanner. [I uploaded a sample image to the product page].5. The device only saves in JPG format. If you want an image in a different format, you must use a computer.6. There are only two resolution settings: 300 dpi and 600 dpi. Acceptable, but lower and higher settings in addition to these two would help.7. Strong compression. Each image is stored in a file, which apparently should be much larger. This indicates that the images are heavily compressed before being saved to the card. This may explain the "blurry" images reported by other customers.8. Many of my test photos had a small tick in the bottom box with names or dates I want to keep when scanning. However, the Auto Cut function usually cuts the notes down the middle. This could be understood by cutting off the entire white border (including the notes), but cutting it off in half seems odd. Also, some photos were cropped incorrectly and I had to go back and scan them again.9. alignment. The scanner automatically downloads the photo, which is great. But even if the photo appears to be going straight through the device, the scan is actually tilted about 10 degrees. A quick edit helped fix this, but it was annoying, especially when the photos appeared to be going straight through the device.10. The file naming convention restarts each time photos are deleted from the card. This can cause problems if you hope to dump all scans from multiple separate scan sessions into one directory. (The computer will ask you to confirm that you want to overwrite the original file). We were forced to create a new directory for each scanning session and then use a renaming application so all images could be placed in the same directory.11. As already mentioned, the cables are in an awkward place. If they are connected, they can easily block the outgoing photo after scanning. Again, simple engineering could solve this problem. The ports should be either on the right rear of the device (where photos will not fit) or on the side. CONCLUSION: We will definitely leave the device as it is a very convenient solution for scanning a photo collection without a computer. Our main goal is to archive some of the old family collections which number in the thousands. These scans will only exist in digital form and are unlikely to be reprinted in the future. Weak lines and poor quality are enough for "uncritical" digital archiving. However, if we ever come across a "key photo" that we might want to reprint in the future (e.g. a portrait of an ancestor), we always use a flatbed scanner. It's slower but produces much better images that can be used for reprints. A few simple changes would make this scanner interesting and fun. Unfortunately, this unit probably cost less than what we paid, which wasn't much.