Today we test the best book scanner for personal use, which is definitely the Klip Snap book cradle. We have years of experience scanning books, so we invested all of this into developing this product.
I think that you will personally love this device, as it was intended to be the operators dream and developed with the user in mind. We have analyzed all the issues that the SV600 and its competitors have, and we built this cradle with solutions to those issues in mind.
Characteristics of a good book scanner for personal use
So how should a book scanner for personal use be, to satisfy the demands of buyers, but also deliver a good enough quality to be used in professional projects. We take a look at the aspects that we took into account when we developed this book cradle for scanning.
Pricing
Price wise, this device should be as cheap as humanly possible. Of course, this does not mean cutting down on quality, but rather understanding that users won’t have large budgets to spend on it.
In this sense, we took an approach that focused on delivering what is required, without focusing too much on price increasing aspects that would not bring added value. So we priced the Klip Snap in the low range of the price spectrum, with an MSRP below 1000 USD. For an A3 book scanner, this is unheard of, and considering what it offers, it is a rather good deal.
Construction and durability
These 2 aspects together make a lot of what is required from a book scanner. If you are hammering it with books on a day to day basis, trust us, it has to resist in time. You don’t want to scan 3 books on it and then falling apart.
We made sure when developing this product to use the most resistant materials possible. So the elevators are built out of aluminum. Both for a bit of lightweight and also resistance. The frame itself is built out of industrial grade aluminum, which although might have a scratch or two, it will pass the test of time with flying colors. Then we have the glass plate, which is a 4mm tempered glass. It might break, but it will take quite a lot to break it. The hinges are made out of steel, and they will go on and on before letting go, if they do let go.
Features Features Features
Yes, people love features, and even if a device does not cost much, it still have to deliver when it comes to features. So anything short of that in a book scanner, and you’re out the window.
Because we had to take into account also the reduced pricing, we focused on developing the cradle with the critical features a good book scanner should have. First of all it’s adjustable cradles, which our device does manually. They go up and down and side to side. Up and down to register the book to the flattening glass considering the different thickness a book might have. Second of all we have the sideways cradles, which allow for gutter adjustment.
We have then taken the flattening glass and installed a low iron special glass, which tends to be more transparent and less green tinted. This will deliver better colors in the scanning process and much sharper scanning results, when compared to a normal glass.
Last but not least, you have the versatility of the device. You can use the book cradle with just about any document camera on the market. It can be an SV600, a Czur or even other document cameras which i can’t remember of the top of my head now.
Conclusion
Why is the Klip Snap the best book scanner for personal use? Well the first thing would be the affordability of the thing. You don’t get much in terms of book scanning, under 1000 USD. This device falls below that, and we love that we manage to bring down the costs so much.
It’s also feature rich, when considering the pricing. Cradles go up and down and sideways, so you can easily scan books that are up to 8cm in thickness. We have also a special low iron glass, which by the way is tempered, so it minimizes the risk to the user.
Last but not least, we have built this support like a tank. Besides some plastics involved, most of the book support is made out of industrial grade aluminum, which means it will still perform well over the years.