There are many useful apps can do like this device in these days.
I've used Lemon, Expensify to organize my receipts.
What I want is just tracking my expenses, so I satisfied the function of these apps.

HughHemington wrote:Fujitsu ScanSnap is better, but you're not touching one for $249 even on a refurb!

ScanSnap also comes with a good level of Acrobat, unless you're on a Mac.

Not sure what you are talking about. I just bought the ScanSnap S1300 for $240 on sale a few weeks ago from Newegg... and it even does duplex scanning!

Now if it could only grow arms and scan the documents itself without me having to feed it, that would be awesome. Can't have it all, I suppose.

Amazing: I was considering purchasing this over the weekend for full price, so this timely woot is a sign from God that I should just purchase it and dive in. So I did!

Based on the comments I read, I will only use this for non-photo stuff and keep my flatbed scanner for the laborious task of scanning hundreds of photos.

But what I want to know is can this unit scan to plain PDF or does it have proprietary software?

Thanks for all your thoughts!

Personally, I prefer the Fujitsu ScanSnap. It only costs a few bucks more, has a smaller footprint on my desktop and can scan everything directly into Evernote for easy access from my desktop computer, my tablet and my phone. ScanSnap is an all around winner.

http://www.amazon.com/Fujitsu-ScanSnap-Instant-Sheet-Fed-PA03603-B005/dp/B003990GMQ/

From the point of view from someone who already owns an nice all in one with a flatbed scanner and an Auto Doc Feeder do I really need this device or could I simply use what I have? I'm already short of desk space so I wonder if I could justify this device along with a full sized scanner?

windyrec wrote:But what I want to know is can this unit scan to plain PDF or does it have proprietary software?

It can indeed scan straight to PDF. In fact, it has a dedicated PDF button right on the face of it. You should find this gadget to be quite handy, based on the needs you described. =D

subslug wrote:From the point of view from someone who already owns an nice all in one with a flatbed scanner and an Auto Doc Feeder do I really need this device or could I simply use what I have? I'm already short of desk space so I wonder if I could justify this device along with a full sized scanner?

It all comes down to needing "the right tool for the right job". It depends on your needs. If you have a stack of papers, receipts, etc that you are just dying to archive and get rid of, this will run circles around your all-in-one's auto doc feeder.

But if you seldom scan papers, or your all-in-one scans at a speed and quality that you find satisfactory, you can stick with it.

Where this device and the Fujitsu ScanSnap shines is speed and software. They both scan both sides at the same time, so each page only needs ONE pass, while most all-in-ones require it to pull the pages in for a second pass. Also, with the Neat Receipts scanner you get NeatWorks which helps you organize documents, while Fujitsu has a very robust PDF maker with tons of settings and "profiles" you can save, which let you recall specific settings for things you scan often.

Hope this helps.

Is the one available on Amazon right now new for the same price? From third party, but who cares. Am I missing something?

http://www.amazon.com/NeatDesk-Desktop-Scanner-Digital-Filing/dp/B001CQ8ER2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337610600&sr=8-1

tfrain wrote:Is the one available on Amazon right now new for the same price? From third party, but who cares. Am I missing something?

http://www.amazon.com/NeatDesk-Desktop-Scanner-Digital-Filing/dp/B001CQ8ER2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1337610600&sr=8-1

nevermind - price just went back up

Bandrik wrote:It all comes down to needing "the right tool for the right job". It depends on your needs. If you have a stack of papers, receipts, etc that you are just dying to archive and get rid of, this will run circles around your all-in-one's auto doc feeder.

But if you seldom scan papers, or your all-in-one scans at a speed and quality that you find satisfactory, you can stick with it.

Where this device and the Fujitsu ScanSnap shines is speed and software. They both scan both sides at the same time, so each page only needs ONE pass, while most all-in-ones require it to pull the pages in for a second pass. Also, with the Neat Receipts scanner you get NeatWorks which helps you organize documents, while Fujitsu has a very robust PDF maker with tons of settings and "profiles" you can save, which let you recall specific settings for things you scan often.

Hope this helps.

Thanks, That does help
I wasn't aware of the two sides at once scanning so that certainly beats my all in ones ability.

Eck. Can we institute limits on certain Woot items which seem to show up often but have interest to only about .0000014 percent of the Woot fan base? No more Neto scanners or Dyson vacuums. Booooorrrrrriiiinnnngggg.

Well, anyway, that's my worthless opinion.

anyone know how well this works for scanning handwritten notes and later searching them?

I have the ScanSnap S1500M for my Mac and it came with Adobe Acrobat Pro 9 (Mac). It has really served my purposes. A fried had the Neat scanner and has never gotten it to scan anything straight - always comes through with a slight angle.

Bandrik wrote:It can indeed scan straight to PDF. In fact, it has a dedicated PDF button right on the face of it. You should find this gadget to be quite handy, based on the needs you described. =D

i've tried to to press it and it does not work and i've tried to uninstall and install again and it still doesn't work.

Have this & the portable with version 5. It's AMAZING! Being able to attach scanned items to quickbooks is a huge plus.

rocque wrote:I thought this sounded good, too, but reading the reviews, I once again say..NO. Just say No to products with too many negatives. Thanks to all the those who are not afraid to share why not to buy.
I have purchased from Woot, and have been very happy with everything so far. I do use your suggestions and it has saved me a lot of grief.

I've read more reviews that just on Amazon it seems that people who buy this either LOVE it or HATE it. Very few reviews in the middle ground. Some say it's SO SLOW and others say it's SO FAST.

Not sure what to think now, but I'm leaning toward buying it for my Mac.

(From what I could see, it seems that those who got the PC version said it was slow, but the Mac version was fast. LOL. So maybe I'm good? Hehe.)

hate me if u want but since amazon bought woot, all they offer is refurbished poop that got returned to them adios amigios!

mha1123 wrote:i've tried to to press it and it does not work and i've tried to uninstall and install again and it still doesn't work.

Here's a workaround: get (free)the BullZip PDF printer driver. Then "print" your scanned image to BullZip (acts like a printer driver) and it will make a PDF in a variety of qualities. It's freeware. http://www.bullzip.com/products/pdf/info.php

Darvell wrote:I've read more reviews that just on Amazon it seems that people who buy this either LOVE it or HATE it. Very few reviews in the middle ground. Some say it's SO SLOW and others say it's SO FAST.

Not sure what to think now, but I'm leaning toward buying it for my Mac.

(From what I could see, it seems that those who got the PC version said it was slow, but the Mac version was fast. LOL. So maybe I'm good? Hehe.)

I like this 2-year update review:

UPDATE After 2 Years: After having owned this product for a good while I have to say it's worked fairly well for what it is. During this time I made the switch to a Mac and the Mac version of the NeatWorks software was a huge improvement. (From what I understand, the PC software seems to have caught up somewhat.) For the most part it has done what I want it to: scan a few receipts for expense reports but mostly documents of 10 pages or less. I tried to scan my mortgage documents of about 60 pages, but it kept grabbing multiple pages. I had to scan in batches and grab a beer (darn).

I have the SnapScan S1300 and I love it. It's kind of a mid point between the deskop scanner from Neat and the portable scanner. It's small enough to travel with if you have the space but provides some of the nice features of the desk scanner, like a paper feed and one-pass scanning.

I researched the differences and went with the ScanSnap based on many user reviews. I've heard the latest software from Neat is an improvement.

One last point: I bought the S1300 because it works on both Mac and PC (I have both).

I have used a portable NEATReciepts scanner since 2005 .. seriously the same one... every couple of years I upgrade the software… I use the NEATReceipts mainly for scanning receipts to my accounting program… GREAT for Business and TAX time… You can click on a line item and scan the receipt to the exact item of purchase…
Now it does come with their program and if you are scanning in bulk.. that’s great… but for me, I chose to click on an item and see exactly what the purchase is..
The other side to scanning your receipts… You can save them to an external drive… and when bad weather approaches.. (which in my area is every year)… you put your drive in a safe spot.. and don’t have to worry if things get bown away.
When it comes to photo’s I use a Kodak Photo Scanning System.. a little pricey but top speed.. and the best thing you can do ..if you are thinking of paperless.. invest in an Adobe Standard Program… all scanners will work with it… and you can print to adobe.. Which saves a ton of paper…

You can add comments to your receipts, but then the crappy software won't let you search on your own comments.

joltdude wrote:Scansnap vs NeatDesk...

"If your doing"
"However if your scanning"
"to run photos through there device
"If your scanning primarly photos, your better"

Hey Jolt - you are obviously a very talented, intelligent individual, and I found this posting to be most informative. Thank you.
However, would you PLEASE make an effort to learn the differences between there, their, and they're? Also between your & you're? It may sound trivial, but your consistent misuse of common grammatical terms detracts from the otherwise intelligent content of your posts.

fkhawk2011 wrote:anyone know how well this works for scanning handwritten notes and later searching them?

I have the portable version Neat scanner, and the OCR features of their NeatWorks software don't seem to pick up handwriting. So you wouldn't be able to search for a phrase in a handwritten note. YMMV. - Ken

Does the portable Neat Receipt scanner use the same software as the Desktop unit?

Canon P-215 is much better.

People keep comparing the NeatDesk to regular scanners. Isn't the point of NeatDesk the organizational software that comes with it?

It doesn't really matter what the price difference is between this and a regular scanner or all-in-one because the function is different.

Sure, you can collect information from any scanned document and put it into a database or spreadsheet and run reports on it, but this does those things for you automatically.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but NeatDesk scans, sorts, and allows you to search or run reports on the information collected from your documents.

That's something you COULD do with another scanner, but it would be more time consuming and would require you to pull all the data yourself and create a report.

I researched receipt scanners a couple months ago (NeatReceipts, Fujitsu ScanSnap, and Doxie) and I had a hard time finding one that actually sorted all the information for you.

I desperately need one of these, but the Amazon reviews are what have been holding me back. I have an issue with spending $150 more for a ScanSnap, though, especially if it doesn't have the reporting features that Neat has.

classycat3 wrote:Hey Jolt - you are obviously a very talented, intelligent individual, and I found this posting to be most informative. Thank you.
However, would you PLEASE make an effort to learn the differences between there, their, and they're? Also between your & you're? It may sound trivial, but your consistent misuse of common grammatical terms detracts from the otherwise intelligent content of your posts.

classycat3... Your post, in response to what I considered to be a fairly useful post by jolt, indicates a serious deficit in meaningful projects in your life, a passionate desire to be the Grammar Police to the world, and an unearned sense of superiority. I am not an attorney, but I suspect there might even be grounds for false advertising charges regarding your woot handle. Could it be that the first part of your handle is not as accurate as the second part? Judging by the graduates of a nearby high school, your passion is better utilized, and desperately needed in the school system.

This scanner cannot save my desk. It would still require me to open the envelopes and not lose receipts as soon as they're handed to me.

I have had the mobile scanner for a couple of years now, and I'd like to make a point about NeatWorks (the software that comes with the scanners) and Quicken: One of the great things about Quicken is that you can attach receipt images to transactions. These scanners work great to scan the image into Quicken via the TWAIN connection. Unfortunately, the awesome NeatWorks software, which does an incredible job of scanning every receipt and splitting the sales tax and categorizing each transaction, claims to be able to export transactions into Quicken but you have to use the OLD format, and it doesn't export to credit card accounts. What the Force? And even if you do use it to import your cash transactions it won't import the images. So, my point is that you can use the awesome software that comes with the scanner and all is hunky dory. But if you want to attach receipt images to Quicken transactions you'll have to scan them all over again.

I use the ScanSnap s1300 for all of my personal documents, business receipts, and clients that I do bookkeeping for. I assume that the s1300 and the Neat are pretty much on par. Neat Receipts really pushes the software, but I just use Evernote which is free (or I pay for the premium because I use it so much). I scan straight into Evernote and everything is immediately searchable since Evernote does a great job of making any image searchable.
Not saying Neat Receipts isn't worth it or worse or better, I just like using Evernote because I use it for everything else and allows me to use on program for everything I want to store digitally.

matthias215 wrote:Does anyone know how this compares to the Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300? The latter is recommended by Mac Power Users for going paperless, but I have no idea how the quality/ease-of-use/finickiness of this scanner compares. Do you have to do everything through its custom software, or does it interface with the normal OS services well?

I got a Fujitsu S500M for my Mac a few years ago, at the same time I purchased a license for DevonThink Office Pro, and these two things together really rock. The Fujitsu by itself has done a lot of scanning of receipts, business cards, pamphlets, magazine pages (the color glossy kind) as well as massive amounts of copying from books. For the books I had to take them to a full-service print ship where they chopped off the spine, leaving loose pages. Fed those in 50 at a time and got rid of old books yet still have their content. That aspect has been great for saving old short stories from pulp paperbacks.

The Scansnap software that come with it lets me scan to an email, a folder, direct to Devonthink, or just about anyplace one could imagine. Saves as PDF or JPG. There are settings for color depth, DPI, duplex, skip blank pages, and a whole host of others. It's my go-to device for anything except photos.

LarryCebula wrote:I want a scanner that will quickly scan my boxes and boxes of photographs at a decent resolution and automagically crop them without any effort on my part beyond loading the pictures into an autofeed. Is this what I need?

As others have replied, this is *not* the scanner for this purpose. I would ask if you have the original negatives for those photos. If you do, a negative scanner would better fit the bill. If you don't, then you'll need to consider a flatbed scanner so your photo will lay flat and not be pulled through an ADF scanner. You'll have to deal with the fact that it will take time to go through all those one at a time, but if you treasure the photos, then it's a lot better than an ADF scanner.

I had boxes and boxes of 35mm slides and negatives and I have been using an Epson 4990 Photo FireWire flatbed for five+ years. Your question prompted me to go check things out at Amazon. I was totally amazed at the variety of devices being offered at sub $150 prices. I wouldn't even know where to begin with this many choices! Best to start by narrowing down to half a dozen or so, then read the reviews. Then read the follow-on comments to each review. Users either love them or hate them, and they aren't afraid to give their reasons.

traveldiva wrote:classycat3... Your post, in response to what I considered to be a fairly useful post by jolt, indicates a serious deficit in meaningful projects in your life, a passionate desire to be the Grammar Police to the world, and an unearned sense of superiority. I am not an attorney, but I suspect there might even be grounds for false advertising charges regarding your woot handle. Could it be that the first part of your handle is not as accurate as the second part? Judging by the graduates of a nearby high school, your passion is better utilized, and desperately needed in the school system.

Actually how is one to learn about so-called trivial mistakes except through polite responses in threads such as this? If a person doesn't learn these differences, they'll be toast in the business world. No one's perfect but if someone takes the time to gently remind another about these things, how is it hurting you?

For the love of God don't get this hyped brand. You are way better off with a Fujitsu.

Have you ever seen a medical office using a Neat!!! scanner? Nope. They use Fujitsu. Think about that for a minute.

theguruguys wrote:

HOW DID YOU GET INTO MY HOUSE???!!!???

fkhawk2011 wrote:anyone know how well this works for scanning handwritten notes and later searching them?

I work in document management with almost all brands of OCR/MCR, and the one thing I can share in my experience is:

No.
Nothing can. At all. Ever.

Unless it is crazy big, and written by a seriously good consistent handwriter, OCR engines haven't even come close to being able to read handwriting. Please share the word. I'm in the support industry. I say this literally three to four times a week.

traveldiva wrote:Does the portable Neat Receipt scanner use the same software as the Desktop unit?

Yes, I am nearly certain it does. (And I sure hope so, 'cause I own the portable unit, and scan my receipts into it, and I just purchased this Woot so I can scan my receipts in faster).

Does NeatDesk support Windows 7 64 bits driver?

thank you

jazwoot wrote:Does NeatDesk support Windows 7 64 bits driver?

I just received mine today. It was like new and it came with Neat 5 SP4 on disk. During the installation it had me check for an update and Neat 5 SP4 was available so skip the disk and download the latest version.

I have Windows 7 x64 and the software installed just fine, and I do a test scan and it worked like it should.

The Neat software itself is 32 bit and will install under Program Files (x86). I didn't try scanning into a 64-bit program yet, though I do have a 64-bit copy of Office I can test with.