4. PLANon DocuPen RC800 Document Scanner Pen

At first glance, the DocuPen RC800 looks like just another handheld, pen-shaped scanner. But if the price tag (around $165 and up) doesn't hint that there's a bit more at work here than in many other such devices, a bit of experience with the device will quickly show you that it can do quite a lot. Among other things, the RC800 can capture both black and white scans and full-color scans at either 12-bit or 24-bit color depth. It can vary scan resolution between low (100 pixels per inch for black and white and 200 for color) or high (200 / 400 ppi) mode settings. A single button switches among all these various status settings, which key to illuminated status indicators that are easy to interpret and remember.

The RC800 looks like a typical pen scanner, but doesn't work like one.

What kicks the RC800 a significant notch above most pen scanners is that its scanning element traverses nearly the entire length of the unit's 8.9 inch body. Thus, instead of scanning text or content one line at a time as when using a highlighter pen, the RC800 can pick up an entire 8.5x11" page of text in one or two sweeps. Rollers placed on either side of the scanning element make it easy to sweep, and to keep the unit aligned with the edge of the page you're scanning. A little practice with the unit will improve scan quality, so users are advised to work on their scanning skills and survey the results before trying any real "production work".

The RC800 includes a built-in 8 MB TransFlash memory card, and can thus store some scans internally. Unfortunately, high-res (400 dpi) color scans are big enough that only two of them can be accommodated in the built-in flash RAM, though it can accommodate more than 100 black and white scans at low (100 dpi) resolution. That said, this unit does accommodate SD Flash cards (TransFlash) of up to 1 GB in size, so it's easy to overcome its storage limitations with some added expense (you can buy a 1 GB SD Flash card for under $30 nowadays).

The unit is powered by a built-in lithium ion battery, which the vendor claims will capture up to 40 24-bit high-resolution color scans per charge, and up to hundreds of low-resolution monochrome scans. We didn't find battery life to be an issue when using this device, nor have we come across reports from disgruntled users about this issue.

Transferring scans to a PC couldn't be easier: simply install the unit's Twain driver and the accompanying software, after which you can connect the device to a PC using its USB cable. While transfers are underway, the battery will also recharge itself automatically; note that this means an added drain on notebook battery use, which mobile users should figure into their power budgets.

This neat little device will work well for anybody who needs to capture color or monochrome documents on the go. Though the resulting files are not as crisp and sharp as those from a full-sized flatbed scanner, it's a heck of a lot easier to schlep around, with dimensions of 8.9" x 0.5" x 0.5" (226 x 13 x 13 mm) and a weight of just over 2 ounces (57 g). Those whose mobility needs include scanning might do very well to drop a DocuPen 800 into their notebook bags.