HP Scanjet 4850

Getting this attractive scanner out of the box and attached to your computer is a smooth and simple process, but you’ll need a whopping 450MB of space on your hard disk to install the software.

However, HP supplies everything you’ll need to get the most out of the device, from image organisation to editing. If you’ve got your own software that you prefer to use, the printer comes with a TWAIN driver that is compatible with practically every image-editing program in existence and lets you scan directly into that program.

The 4850 claims an enormous potential scanning resolution of 4,800dpi (dots per inch), which is more than the average Joe will need, but if you ever find the requirement to create a large high-resolution image of the perforations on a postage stamp, this fellow could do the job. It works with 48-bit colour, which is difficult to discern with the human eye but basically means that if you have to do things like alter contrast on images after you’ve scanned them, there’s plenty of information available to help improve the photo.

The integrated slide and negative adapter can take four slides or six negatives at a time, and there are four buttons on the front for quick access to basic scanning, film scanning, copying to a printer or scanning into an email.