feedback on plustek film scanners wanted

[back alley]

are these scanners any good compared with nikon, canon etc?

my canon is a scsi and it looks like i won't be able to hook it into the macbook so i need to find a compatible scanner.

these came up in a search and the prices are certainly very good.

any info appreciated.

 

[varjag]

They're OK Joe. I use one for 2 years now, and it compares well to Coolscan V I've used for couple of months. Nearly all the photos in my blog (see signature) were scanned with it.

It comes with castrated version of Silverfast (8-bit color channels only), and full color depth but primitive and inconvenient original software. Vuescan IMHO is a better match if you scan a lot of slides, however for properly exposed BW I found Silverfast adequate.

Not sure about Mac support though..

 

[Marsopa]

I've the 7200 and it won't work with Mac, no way. I'm happy with it's results .

 

[back alley]

some of their units will work with mac.

they are so cheap and the online reviews i have been reading are pretty good.

 

[astroman]

The 7300 and new 7500 will work with mac.Ive looked very closely at these scanners as I was considering buying one.The reviews are mix on these scanners.More negitive Ive found.

 

[back alley]

i have found way more positive reviews than negative.
i need to get another scanner eventually as it's seems silly to me to keep my pc running just for my old scanner.

 

[Florian1234]

I looked at one, but then decided for the Epson V500 instead.

 

[Gradskater]

plustek 7300

plustek 7300

I have a plustek 7300 and it works well with silverfast and a mac. Reviews can tell you how fast the scanner works and stuff like that, but just look at the images you can get. Most of my pictures are scanned with the 7300 and it works well.

www.flickr.com/photos/gradskater

 

[cjm]

I use a 7300 on my PC and I like it. However, I have nothing to compare it to. It's a bit slow when scanning at 3000dpi and above and I've never been able to get good color scans from slide film. I use it mostly for B&W and it works good for me.

Here are some pictures scanned with the 7300.

 

[Prosaic]

Not good. Consider a Coolscan instead.

 

[hjfischer]

I looked at one, but then decided for the Epson V500 instead.

So, how do you like the V500 for scanning color negatives??

 

[back alley]

Not good. Consider a Coolscan instead.

that was kinda brief...

 

[back alley]

they seem hard to beat for the price and for strictly b&w.

 

[Prosaic]

that was kinda brief...

See, I tried a Plustek to save money but loading film frame by frame manually and Silverfast turned out to be annyoing (odd colors all the time, buggy). I am much happier now with a Coolscan V and the included Nikonscan software. Quick and reliable. Better details, higher dynamic range.

 

[venchka]

Epson USA has a ton of refurbished units. Last time I looked, all the models were in the refurbished store. An Epson scanner & Betterscanning holders are quite good.

 

[jmkelly]

I have a Plustek 7200 attached to a WinXP machine. Upgraded the software to Silverfast Ai and was much happier than with the "castrated" version.

I wish the negative carrier were more robust and held the neg flatter - betterscanning to the rescue? Not. I asked Doug (?) but he says it is unlikely he will make one for the Plustek.

I have a V500 as well that I use for MF scans only (w/ betterscanning holder) - in my unscientific comparison the Plustek scans of 35mm look better to me.

The most negative criticism I have read online about the Plustek is the limited Dmax compared to other manufacturers' units. I take this with a grain of salt - I have not seen any 3rd party verification and comparison of Dmax claims.

The new Plustek units do work on the Mac. If/when mine breaks I will probably buy another - I think it is a good value.