Droid Scan vs. CamScanner vs. Document Scanner

[dchall8]

I joined this forum just to comment on this thread. (I'm not a troll)

My job entails making thousands of copies of legal documents found in county courthouses. The documents go back to the 1830s. Some of the documents were written in brown ink, which has faded, on old paper, which has yellowed. Traditionally we use Xerox equipment to copy these documents. As the demand for scanning has increased, the backlog has gotten out of hand. After much complaining to the county clerk, she has allowed us to photograph the documents using a camera without flash. Generally we use Nikon, Sony, and Canon equipment; however, we had one document which refused all attempts to photograph. The paper came out yellow and would not clean up in the normal photo processors. I decided to get in line to have it Xeroxed but also try CamScanner on that doc. Here is the cleaned up image...

As you can see the image is legible. Here is the best image we got from a camera...

I was very impressed with CamScanner. The auto adjust feature cleaned up the colors and contrast in a second and I had a useable image. I tried another page that was blue ink on blueish paper. It cleaned up perfectly. Just for grins I tried imaging a page from a yellow Chief tablet in a dim hotel room. CamScanner cleaned it up and removed the yellow. Very impressive.

We get the best results from Xerox (no other brand) copy equipment but nowadays we can't wait. Usually we can save a lot of time by using a real camera. But for those few documents that won't photograph, I am very happy with CamScanner. I know I sound like a troll, so just to be fair, I am going to try the other Android scanners and see how they do.

 

[andyal]

Ok, so i got this to scan receipts when traveling. i need to group them together into one pdf that is not gigantic, and email.

First, they aren't in my gallery. why?

Second, can i delete things, or organize them in any way?

help! thanks.

 

[UncleMike]

Ok, so i got this to scan receipts when traveling. i need to group them together into one pdf that is not gigantic, and email.

First, they aren't in my gallery. why?

Second, can i delete things, or organize them in any way?

help! thanks.

What is "this"? Are you referring to Droid Scan, CamScanner, Document Scanner, or something else?

 

[sean77]

Hi, I've just installed Cam Scanner on my optimus and would like to scan a paragraph from a text book and then have an optical character reader format it for MS Word. Is this even possible? So far I've managed to take the picture, auto crop it, and upload it as a PDF to my Google Docs but the PDF is a photo and not all that easy to read. Any thoughts on getting Cam Scanner to work as an optical character reader? Thanks.

 

[Harry2]

Hi, I've just installed Cam Scanner on my optimus and would like to scan a paragraph from a text book and then have an optical character reader format it for MS Word. Is this even possible? So far I've managed to take the picture, auto crop it, and upload it as a PDF to my Google Docs but the PDF is a photo and not all that easy to read. Any thoughts on getting Cam Scanner to work as an optical character reader? Thanks.

Depends how large your doc is, you could use that app as OCR reader after you have made the picture with Cam Scanner.
https://market.android.com/details?id=com.edwardkim.android.copyscreentextfull&feature=search_result

EDIT: As I know, there are no decent on-board OCR readers as Android apps.
I only found some business card readers which works as OCR reader.

Harry

 

[sean77]

Update:

Just took a pic of the text with Droid Scan, hit the back button, cropped it, saved it as a jpeg and opened it with Google Goggles. It analyzed the text and I copied it and pasted it in Gmail. Whole process took about a minute. This is way cool!

 

[heshanj]

i tried a couple of scanner apps. and im sticking with camscanner. i cant think of anything else that i need the app to do which it already doesnt. good quality scans, save a page as jpeg or the entire file as pdf. upload to dropbox or email it. perfect

 

[DavidG]

Tried CamScanner first and loved it, but for some reason, it started having issues related to autofocus. Then I tried Document Scanner as an alternative, and it seems to be working much better in terms of keeping in focus.

I find them to be very similar (when working), but give Document Scanner the nod since it seems a little bit more reliable and less buggy.

I have a Droid 2 Global.

 

[TheHoodedClaw]

I must admit that I haven't tried the other apps mentioned here, but I've made light use of Camscanner for about a year, and always been happy with it. I bought the paid version a few months ago, and it has always met my needs. I first tried it on a recommendation, and never felt the need to try anything else.

 

[chrlswltrs]

I must admit that I haven't tried the other apps mentioned here, but I've made light use of Camscanner for about a year, and always been happy with it. I bought the paid version a few months ago, and it has always met my needs. I first tried it on a recommendation, and never felt the need to try anything else.

I bought the paid version also, I can download the unlock key, but it is no good without the free version which is not available in the market

It worked fine while I had it, but I have changed phones a couple times since then

 

[UncleMike]

I bought the paid version also, I can download the unlock key, but it is no good without the free version which is not available in the market

It worked fine while I had it, but I have changed phones a couple times since then

I just downloaded both the free version and the (previously paid for) license just last week, on my Bionic. However, I had a problem with downloading the license after installing a custom ROM on my OG Droid about 6 months ago - the app just did not appear in the Market. I contacted the developer and they quickly sent me a license key (not tied to the Market). I realize you have the opposite problem, but based on my experience, I think if you contact them they will be very helpful.

 

[TheHoodedClaw]

I bought the paid version also, I can download the unlock key, but it is no good without the free version which is not available in the market

It worked fine while I had it, but I have changed phones a couple times since then

I ended up getting my paid version through the Amazon market. It was only $1.99 at the time (as opposed to $4.99 in the Google Market), but now it looks like it is $4.99 in both places. Key thing was that I was able to get both the free and paid app. Only one apps hows in my apps list, but I assume the license is plugged in somehow, as when I use it, it doesn't try to get me to upgrade or talk about limits. I'd check the Amazon Appstore.

 

[TheHoodedClaw]

I bought the paid version also, I can download the unlock key, but it is no good without the free version which is not available in the market

It worked fine while I had it, but I have changed phones a couple times since then

It's strange, I'm just looking at the market on my desktop computer, but I can see both the free and paid versions of Camscanner in the Android Market.

 

[jj14x]

ok - I'm guessing this must be a really really dumb question, but I'm going to ask it anyway... I tried camscanner - works good - allows me to take a picture of anything and convert that image to pdf (without OCR) - with some 'enhancement' done in between.

How is this better than taking a jpg picture using my regular camera (or using google goggles that includes OCR too) and uploading that jpg to where ever?
I get the part that camscanner will create a pdf vs jpg, but the pdf is an image in this case (no OCR). Is the image enhancement that awesome to justify $5 cost for the paid version? (or even to keep the free version installed?)

(I'm using an EVO 3D)

 

[Sak01]

ok - I'm guessing this must be a really really dumb question, but I'm going to ask it anyway... I tried camscanner - works good - allows me to take a picture of anything and convert that image to pdf (without OCR) - with some 'enhancement' done in between.

How is this better than taking a jpg picture using my regular camera (or using google goggles that includes OCR too) and uploading that jpg to where ever?
I get the part that camscanner will create a pdf vs jpg, but the pdf is an image in this case (no OCR). Is the image enhancement that awesome to justify $5 cost for the paid version? (or even to keep the free version installed?)

(I'm using an EVO 3D)

The image enhancement isn't actually all that great. I only find the Grey mode to be useful(or sometimes light enhance).

I still like it though. It simplifies the process of snapping documents, having them automatically cropped, grouping them into one file and then quickly sharing via email, whatsapp, dropbox, MMS etc..

You're right, I could use my camera for all of that, but I like how camscanner makes the whole process streamlined. I just find it more convenient.

 

[itsallgood]

ok - I'm guessing this must be a really really dumb question, but I'm going to ask it anyway... I tried camscanner - works good - allows me to take a picture of anything and convert that image to pdf (without OCR) - with some 'enhancement' done in between.

How is this better than taking a jpg picture using my regular camera (or using google goggles that includes OCR too) and uploading that jpg to where ever?
I get the part that camscanner will create a pdf vs jpg, but the pdf is an image in this case (no OCR). Is the image enhancement that awesome to justify $5 cost for the paid version? (or even to keep the free version installed?)

(I'm using an EVO 3D)

I like the fact that you can scan multiple pages and place into one PDF. You can name each PDF right from the app. (Can't do that with the camera app.) Also, it is easier to attach a PDF to an email since it is smaller in size. I have tried using the camera and Camscanner and preferr Camscanner better. Also, the scanned enhanced image is much better then just snaping a picture of the document. As a side note, I have a scanner/printer on my home computer that I use to use to scan documents into PDF formate. It was not the easiest thing to do when comparied to Camscanner. I prefer using my cellphone instead.

 

[UncleMike]

If nothing else, the cropping and subsequent de-skewing of the paper you're "scanning" is worth it - for me at least.

 

[kennyrac]

I use "simple scan to mail" app for scanning the documents.It provides the facility to capture any piece of paper, object or photograph and mail it instantly to any e-mail address or transfer it instantly via FTP. May be worth to try.

 

[aname]

I don

 

[gomfrddy]

I like CamScanner a lot. Works very well for me.

do you know how to fax with it??

 

[itsallgood]

I just tried it, but it requires you to pay. First, scan your documents. Long press on that document after your back at the home screen. Press scan and it should work.

 

[spman]

Anyone have any tips on how to make a better scan?

For example how to make a paper flatter (e.g. newspaper), or scan a book page flatter so the book will not curve in near the middle of the book

I am also wondering if there is some sort of physical tool to do a better scan.

Thanks

 

[UncleMike]

Assuming the paper you're scanning is white, having it on a dark background helps a lot with edge detection. I've considered combining that with a piece of plexiglass on top of the paper to keep out flat while scanning; this should help minimize any distortion from deskewing.

As for books, I would try a thin piece of cardboard behind the page, with the edge set loosely in the binding. This would keep the page more vertical and reduce bending at the binding. You'll probably end up with the free edge of the page being more skewed than without the cardboard, but overall the skewing should be more consistent across the page, resulting in a better scan after deskewing.