a review by Tom Piper
Document scanning has been my passion for over 30 years, going as far back as the ThunderScan ribbon cartridge replacement on the early Apple ImageWriter, and ThunderWare handheld scanner. I’ve had sheetfed, flatscreen, pencil-type, bar-type, overhead, portable and tabletop versions (as well as the iPhone apps). My newest scanner discovery is truly awesome!
Dacuda describes its PocketScan as “The World‘s Smallest Wireless Scanner” which is obvious accurate, but a real understatement. I certainly believe that it can be the perfect companion for home, education, work and travel because it can scan almost anything of any size at virtually any time while connected wirelessly to most iOS and Android phones and tablets, as well as Mac and Windows computers.
Setup is remarkably easy and quick. The box includes the scanner unit, a micro-USB charge cable, a soft cloth pouch, a cleaning cloth, a plastic ScanPad sheet, and Quick Guide instruction sheet (in 8 languages). Since it has a rechargeable battery, it should be plugged in for a few hours first (until the red light turns off). Once fully charged, it needs to be paired to the host device or computer (I started with my iPhone 6s Plus, then used my iPad Pro 12.9”, then my MacBook Pro 15” retina, then my iMac 27” retina . . . each of which had to be paired separately), which connects quickly in each case. There are only two buttons, a small square grey on the bottom (a short press for power, or a long press for pairing), and the large white “S” button on the top (press once to start scan, and again to stop scan).
Once setup is complete, scanning is very intuitive and forgiving. The PocketScan scans using overlapping side-to-side swipes which stitches these images into files of all popular formats such as letter, A4, photos and much more at high-quality output (400 dpi) while recognizing text and tables. It then translates and reads these out to text which can be edited locally. Thanks to the clever built-in illumination, it works under any lighting condition to create a consistently clear scan with bright colors.
It is amazing simple to use while I watch my scanned image appear on my devise or computer screen during my scanning progress. It is important to do the overlapping scans in a slow steady S-shaped sweeping motion; some practice is needed to get the technique done correctly. An inquiry to Dacuda tech support provided comprehensive and adequate responses to my questions.
Much to my amazement, the integrated text recognition software allows me to directly edit scanned text and tables in Word and Excel. It even works great with applications like Apple iWorks (Pages and Numbers), Evernote or Microsoft Office suite. Tables are transformed into spreadsheets and accurate OCR allows instant text-editing. When the unit’s firmware is updated by Dacuda, it happens automatically via the host that it is connected to (takes about 3 minutes).
PocketScan instantly recognizes text in over 60 different languages, and translates back to English using Google Translate, which in itself is incredible. Since text recognition runs locally on the device, it works great even with poor Internet connectivity. The interactive scan technique allows me to scan things that don't fit in a regular scanner which means unlimited scanning from as small as a business card or receipt (it even comes with a transparent ScanPad to overlay and stabilize small objects), up to a A3 document, picture or drawing (11.7” x 16.5”).
This scanner is really small (3.7” x 1.9” x 1.0”, 3 oz) and fits perfectly in my pocket so that I can take it wherever I go. It can handle up to 400 scans on a single charge. It communicates with Bluetooth 2.1 or higher, and works with all of my Apple products (compatible with iPhone 5 and above, iPad mini 2nd gen and iPad air and above, Mac OS X 10.10 and above). More compatibility specifications are available on their website.
The Dacuda PocketScan is available for $149 from shop.dacuda.com (also found it for as little as $107.61 at amazon.com/Pocket-Scan). The unit is designed and engineered in Switzerland. Dacuda is a Swiss software company offering a unique content capturing technology based on real-time image processing. Dacuda's patented, proprietary SLAM Scan technology enables fast data entry of text and images, instant editing, as well as easy sharing of contents. It also offers 3D scanning (by iPhone) and 3D printable selfies (for more information, visit dacuda.com).
