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Add to SafariWhen comparing Epson WorkForce ES-300W vs TaoTronics Handheld Portable scanner, the Slant community recommends Epson WorkForce ES-300W for most people. In the question“What are the best portable document scanners under $300?” Epson WorkForce ES-300W is ranked 1st while TaoTronics Handheld Portable scanner is ranked 3rd. The most important reason people chose Epson WorkForce ES-300W is:
You will manage to scan and save around 700 double-sided pages before the battery runs empty.
Specs
Question Ranking
Pros
Pro Amazing battery life
You will manage to scan and save around 700 double-sided pages before the battery runs empty.
Pro Great for accurate text analysis
The ES-300W comes with ABBYY software, meant for turning your paper documents into editable text. Scanners don't always read the text correctly, some of them only get 3/4 of the words right. This model was tested and didn't make a single mistake - it read 100% of the words correctly (according to Wirecutter's tests). It's capable of reading fonts down to 4p in size, with a few mistakes when reading smaller fonts. If you scan documents with font sizes 6p and up, you will not have to make any manual corrections.
Pro Very portable
The ES-300W fits in a small bag and is easy to carry around. It measures only 11.3" x 3.5" x 2.6". However, it weighs 2.9 lbs, which is a bit heavier than some other models that don't come with a battery. You can choose to power it by AC, built-in battery or USB, so you can use it practically anywhere, without having to worry about the availability of a power supply.
Pro Scan files to several computers over Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi support means that you don't have to save the files to a memory card or connect the scanner to a computer. You can scan the files to one or several computers over Wi-Fi.
Pro Very fast scanning
At 200 PPI(pixels per inch) scan quality, the ES-300W can scan 23 pages per minute according to Wirecutter's tests. This is 3 times faster than the average portable scanner.
Pro Great for scanning difficult surfaces, such as books
Unlike most scanners, this TaoTronics can scan almost any surface, since it's handheld. For example it's easy to scan books, which would not fit into a sheet-fed or flatbed scanner, where the paper has to go through or into the scanner.
Pro High quality scanning
It's capable of scanning at a 1050 DPI(dots per inch) resolution, which results in a sharp scanned image quality. This maximum resolution is similar to the one found in more expensive alternatives.
Pro Extremely portable
This is one of the smallest and lightest scanners available on the market. It weighs just 5.9 ounces and measures 10.5 x 1 x 1.2 inches.
Pro Lets you save scanned documents on an SD card
You can add an SD card up to 32 GB in size and the scanner automatically saves the documents on it.
Pro Color display for convenient settings adjustment
The scanner has a small color display, which makes it easier to do operations such as changing the scan settings or choosing the output format.
Pro Inexpensive
It's a great budget option if you know you'll just need to scan documents during one specific project and don't want to spend a fortune on a scanner. Portable scanners, especially the ones that are not handheld, often cost 5-10 times more than this one.
Cons
Con Handles receipts poorly
Epson's scanning preset called "receipt" gives you a scan error when the receipt is longer than 11 inches. Also, the scanner does not come with receipt management software, unlike some other scanners, so if you need one, you will have to look for a third-party solution, like Expensify.
Con Bends documents/photos when scanning them
You can't place the document flat, but have to roll it through the scanner. The Epson ES-300W can bend the paper and this not desirable when for example scanning originals of some valuable documents.
Con Expensive
This scanner is more expensive than it's brother, the Epson ES-200, because it comes with a battery and Wi-Fi support. If you know you will always connect the scanner via USB to your computer, then it might not be worth getting the more expensive ES-300W.
Con Complaints about setup and flaky software
Many comments on the wirecutter article for this product mention that setup requires two separate software to accomplish setup. That the software is flaky on Mac OS.
Con Each scan creates a new PDF
There is no option to scan several pages into one PDF file. This can be a headache when scanning documents longer than one page, since you will end up with a lot of PDF files. Luckily, there is free software available online that lets you merge several PDF files into one. Of course, this takes some extra effort.
Con Poor character recognition software
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software transforms a scanned picture into editable text. The OCR that this scanner comes with is not capable of consistently reading characters accurately. Also, this software is not Mac or Windows 10 compatible — it was made for older Windows operating systems. Of course, you can always get other OCR software that is compatible with your system.
Con Requires some practice
Scanning with a handheld scanner requires some skill and practice. The first scans might not be perfect, due to improper speed or unstable movement of the scanner.
