wfiveash wrote:BTW, what Mac software do you use with this Epson scanner?

Photoshop with twain driver is choice.

Can this scan business cards? If this could also do business cards an d receiptsI'd probably Woot it up!

This is a great tool, I paid $400 for this (well, I still owe them some money) and I use this to get rid of all of my shoe boxes full of receipts. I'm glad they're selling the mac version on here too. I wish I found this before I paid full price for mine.

FWIW - I used to use a Fujitsu ScanSnap to take thousands of pages of meeting minutes and via eCopy convert it to text searchable files. Conceptually is is amazing to take piles and piles of paper and digitize them. NeatDesk is a bit cheaper than a ScanSnap and it really doesn't matter if the software is proprietary. Just scan to PDF and burn them to CD or DVD. For the price it's a great system.

I prefer the Vupoint Magic Wand. It can do everything the NeatDesk can plus books, magazines, etc. And it's portable.

Flipfou wrote:Can this scan business cards? If this could also do business cards an d receiptsI'd probably Woot it up!

Yes, you can scan business cards, receipts and documents

www.amazon.com/NeatDesk-Desktop-Scanner-Digital-Filing/dp/B001CQ8ER2/ref=pd_vtp_e_3

reviews are 50% Potty Emergency...50% worth it

271 reviews...that is quite telling

no greyscale support at all...that is a major flaw in my opinion

tummytree53 wrote:What I was always told by Employers the original reciept was required by the IRS.

IRS has actually accepted scanned receipts as far back as 1997.

$254.99 later, and I have one...how do I scan my woot receipts into this thing?

Can anyone comment as to whether or not the drivers are TWAIN-compliant?

Get the Fujitsu ScanSnap instead. Only $256 on Amazon, brand new. Mine was super (until I dropped it!). Great reviews too.

To me the days of $250 scanners are long gone, let alone the $380 this costs on Amazon. Buy a $50 scanner and a copy of PaperPort and you're much better off. Mind you, PaperPort has been playing the crappifying game too. It used to be a magnificent and fast piece of software until they ran out of ideas of what to add to it and started including lots of unrelated feature bloat. PaperPort 7 from way back is still perfectly fine.

jr0dy wrote:Can anyone comment as to whether or not the drivers are TWAIN-compliant?

According to the Neatco employee posting in the user forums here yes they are.

Took one on a thirty day trial. It worked fine and I was impressed with the trial scans I made of some receipts. Loved how it read the amounts, and tax paid etc. Scans were clean and allows you the ability to add notes to items.

However...when I decided to do some serious scanning to assemble about a year's worth of receipts the program would not open. "Neat stopped working" was the message I got.

I re-installed but that did not help. I have sent about three emails to Neat in order to get it resolved, their response was that they got my email and a representative will handle it. I had no luck getting the help line on the phone so I called the sales line. They answered quickly but when I told them I wanted to return...they quickly transferred me to the returns department where I listened to their music for about five minutes before disgustedly hanging up.

I have emailed another request for a returns process and I am waiting on that. A new one actually costs $499 so the fact that Woot can sell a refurbished one for $249 seems like a clear indication that a lot of people are returning this scanner...It started out being an impressive product but once again, customer service kills it...


One last thing...their thirty day return policy is only for items bought on their website and via the 800 number on the infomercial. Not sure what it would be if you bought it from Woot...

"...deserves..."? There are a lot of little old ladies out there, man.

sausage041 wrote:Anyone know the 'legal ramifications' of digitizing all your receipts? I.E. not having originals to give to your accountant, utilities company in a bill dispute, a store return, etc? This seems absolutely fantastic until you have to produce an original receipt (that you theoretically threw out because it is now digitized).

Yes, it is perfectly legal.

Started to just leave it at that, but jk. Not sure about stores or utility companies. They may or may not honor a digital copy. Up to each individual company. If you wind up in a suit, who knows.

But, I CAN say that the IRS does accept digital replicas of receipts as proof if ever audited.

Is woot out of the windows version?

It says for windows or mac until you try to buy one, then only mac is avail? *sad*

sausage041 wrote:Anyone know the 'legal ramifications' of digitizing all your receipts? I.E. not having originals to give to your accountant, utilities company in a bill dispute, a store return, etc? This seems absolutely fantastic until you have to produce an original receipt (that you theoretically threw out because it is now digitized).

I think that there are some digital blahbetty blah blah laws that were passed a few years ago that demand that an electronic copy be treated as an original in the wake of a more and more paperless economy. I have no sources... but now you can say that some guy on the internet read it on the internet some time ago that it is cool to just make copies... by the way don't buy this.... Buy a fujistsu scansnap of some sort and you will be a very happy human.

Companies are scanning everything for use in legal transactions with few exceptions. The use of scanned images are accepted by the fed "in leu" of originals and by and large all state entities.

The exception of what document to retain? If there is any doubt about the mental competencies of a signatory they scan the document for internal use but retain the original. They wanted to have the original in case one of the signatories claimed that the signature was a forgery due to a loss of memory. This rarely happened.

So if you think you still have most of your marbles scanning the originals and destroying the originals is fine. Make sure however that all of the documents were scanned and none got skipped. The scanners the company used were expensive and had all sorts of safeguards to prevent them from skipping a page. We checked them anyway.

brooohaha wrote:In terms of converting receipts to electronic files, does anyone know if they are as good as the original? Do companies honor 'copies' of receipts when it comes to warranty service?

I guess I'm really trying to figure out if you still have to keep all of your 'product' receipts.

In my experience most companies want the actual sales receipt, invoice, packing slip, or email confirmation. A lot of brick and mortar stores actually use special paper that blackens when exposed to heat and they use this as a precaution against receipt fraud. Also, I know a lot of store policies state the need the actual bill of sale or receipt to honor warranty or rebate stuff.

For big purchases or ones that may require warranty service in the future I always keep the original receipt. They take up all of one folder about 1/8 inch thick. Plus, if you plan to sell the item in the future (like a laptop) being able to give the new owner the actual purchase receipt is always a plus.

Bottom line - Feel free to digitize receipts (which is great for importing easily into spreadsheets and to have a record of) but keep that box or file of paper receipts just in case. I also make PDFs of the receipt with a scanner just to have the receipt in the original non-digitized format.

We bought the last deal they had on this company's products. Realize that they do not allow you to update software on these without paying them. When I went to Win7, I could no longer use their product without paying again.

Sold out in windows

johnsonjf wrote:In my experience most companies want the actual sales receipt, invoice, packing slip, or email confirmation. A lot of brick and mortar stores actually use special paper that blackens when exposed to heat and they use this as a precaution against receipt fraud. Also, I know a lot of store policies state the need the actual bill of sale or receipt to honor warranty or rebate stuff.

For big purchases or ones that may require warranty service in the future I always keep the original receipt. They take up all of one folder about 1/8 inch thick. Plus, if you plan to sell the item in the future (like a laptop) being able to give the new owner the actual purchase receipt is always a plus.

Bottom line - Feel free to digitize receipts (which is great for importing easily into spreadsheets and to have a record of) but keep that box or file of paper receipts just in case. I also make PDFs of the receipt with a scanner just to have the receipt in the original non-digitized format.

Very good advice about keeping the hard copies.

But the opinion that companies use "special paper that blackens" for security I feel is incorrect. Thermal paper I believe was and remains a cost-saving feature...no ink...what security benefit can you say this provides? Just curious, not being argumentative.

Have been wanting something like this for a while, but I just can't justify spending $250 on a receipt scanner.

sidecarsybil wrote:It says for windows or mac until you try to buy one, then only mac is avail? *sad*

Yes, I just joined just to buy this and was very disappointed. Looks like it's the Vupoint for me.

realmugglemom wrote:Yes, I just joined just to buy this and was very disappointed. Looks like it's the Vupoint for me.

Welcome to woot! I suspect that a purchaser of the Mac version could still get the Windows version of the NeatDesk software from http://www.neat.com/

I just tried to call tech support to check on this and after being on hold for 20 minutes, abandoned the call.

I will say, I'm no expert, but hardware is usually hardware (the scanner part) and software is usually software (the NeatDesk program.) They are usually separate entities and I imagine that this scanner is no different.

Perhaps somebody from Woot or Neatco will toddle along to finish up the sale and clarify this issue, but if I didn't already just buy one, I might be willing to risk buying the Mac version in hopes of getting the Windows software later...but I can't spend your money for you.

This is a deal? C'mon Woot. And it's refurbished. Ugh. Get back to me when it drops to $9.99.

Just 2 quick points:

1. Once banks started scanning checks....digital docs are fine.

2. The ScanSnap is the GREATEST THING EVER!

Seriously, I love mine. I scan anything I care about as an OCR readable PDF;then snycToy them into an inSync local folder that replicates to a Google Apps account's documents...BAM

My scanned and searchable docs (including all receipts) are available to me anywhere/anytime.

(Years ago, my wife gave me one of these NeatDesk scanners at full price because I moaned about it forever...I returned it in about 48 hours. Several years later, I bought myself a ScanSnap.)

I love my ScanSnap (and my next one will be the network one...yes, for my house!)

morken1979 wrote:This is a deal? C'mon Woot. And it's refurbished. Ugh. Get back to me when it drops to $9.99.

The world weeps for the CueCat

I bought this last time it was on woot. It works great, (on mac) it did not change my personality and make me into a compulsive filer. I'm still a stacker, I'm still surrounded by dozens of stacks of mail and receipts, I spent one whole day scanning stuff which is now junking up my drive. That is a day I'll never get back. The scanner should come with a fairy that will actually scan your stuff for you.

simlesa wrote:How does this one compare to Fujitsu ScanSnap machines?

I have both. The Fujitsu is nice because it can scan a large stack of paper and doesn't need to be babysat. But I like the Neat software better. The Neat Software is compatible with the Fujitsu.

I bought the portable version of this at Costco several years ago. It works well. Every 6 months to a year you need to clean the scanner and recalibrate with the supplied paper sheets.

Regarding receipts, I try to stay on top of them (but there is a large stack sitting by the scanner right now ;-( so I am not as diligent as I would like to say I am). I used to sort through receipts and select out the 'major' purchases - that decision about what was major varied with time - and file the paper copies away. Then I tried to simply place all of the receipts inside the credit card bill and file it away, and hope that I could remember when I bought something and which card I charged it to.

Now I scan everything and also place the scanned receipts in envelopes a month at a time. I file the envelopes in a nice IKEA CD/DVD box which holds between a year and 2 years worth of receipts. I can then search NeatReceipts on the PC and recover the digitized receipt and maybe print it, or if need be go to the appropriate envelope and recover the original.

While the software says it can find the date, amount, recognize the credit card (even if only the last 4 digits are printed), and other items, I recently noted that you can search for nearly anything on the receipt and it will pull up the receipt. Like when did I buy Kleenex? If the word Kleenex is on the receipt, NeatReceipts will find every receipt that has that word on it!

Also, regarding those pesky thermal receipts. If you wait too long to scan them (or for gas receipts, if you leave them in a hot car too long) they may fade to blank or black. (Ask me how I know this!) So don't wait too long to scan them.

Regarding accuracy, the unit is remarkably good. I generally scan the receipts in and use the program to verify my credit card statement. I correct any errors (the white on black date on a Costco receipt is particularly troublesome), and them file the original in an envelope as noted above.

So bottom line, it seems like a pretty good device. Been very helpful to me. BTW, I have the silver portable model).

The price on these just hasn't come down like most products. As long as these have been around, I'm surprised we're not seeing them for $39. I'm waiting until then.

simlesa wrote:How does this one compare to Fujitsu ScanSnap machines?

Neat's claim to fame is the software really more than anything else. I have two of the NeatReceipt scanners which are the smaller, portable ones. This one is always so pricey. I am considering this one based on the adf. I use a different scanner for bulk scanning now but it more work and adds an extra step. It is great for digitizing. I just like akg8800 also digitized everything in my wallet & my husband's as well. I have been able to use digitized receipts with no problem for proof of purchase on a warranty claim. I was able to search and pull up the exact receipt I needed while I was still on the phone with the customer service rep send an email to her with what she needed and two days later I had a replacement for my warranty claim.

I love having all the docs digitized and easily searchable. I have dealt with Neat's support quite a lot and yes they were quite a bit quicker in the past. I just recently had two tickets open with them and it was much slower to get a response than in the past. But the support rep told me their sales are off the charts now and once I was in touch with someone he was very effective and quick to resolve the problem I had. This is much different than it was even 1 year ago.

Flipfou wrote:Can this scan business cards? If this could also do business cards an d receiptsI'd probably Woot it up!

Business cards, receipts & any doc you can feed into the scanner. Anything that is pdf you can import in as well.

jr0dy wrote:Can anyone comment as to whether or not the drivers are TWAIN-compliant?

I had heard people complain that it wasn't compliant for the past few years but it seems this is incorrect information.

Per http://community.neat.com/forum/topics/scanners?commentId=6352361%3AComment%3A34937
Reply by Jenn Choi on November 18, 2011 at 1:47pm

Yes, our scanners are TWAIN and WIA compatible.

fabfare wrote:We bought the last deal they had on this company's products. Realize that they do not allow you to update software on these without paying them. When I went to Win7, I could no longer use their product without paying again.

This is not true at all. I have owned my Neat scanner for a few years now. It has been installed on three different machines and and additional hard drive installed in my current machine. I have had two different os's during that time as well. Oh wait I also have this installed in a Windows install as well as the Virtual Box on my linux machine. I have gone through many updates of version 4 during this time and I also just migrated to version 5 of the software all without any problems. I do wish I could purchase just the hardware w/o the software since I already own it but they won't let you do this on Windows.

therealjrn wrote:Welcome to woot! I suspect that a purchaser of the Mac version could still get the Windows version of the NeatDesk software from http://www.neat.com/

I just tried to call tech support to check on this and after being on hold for 20 minutes, abandoned the call.

I will say, I'm no expert, but hardware is usually hardware (the scanner part) and software is usually software (the NeatDesk program.) They are usually separate entities and I imagine that this scanner is no different.

Perhaps somebody from Woot or Neatco will toddle along to finish up the sale and clarify this issue, but if I didn't already just buy one, I might be willing to risk buying the Mac version in hopes of getting the Windows software later...but I can't spend your money for you.

I would not do this they are different versions of the software and you won't be able to exchange it or buy the Windows software.

windyrec wrote:The NY Times Tech column just last week recommended the Snapscan but I didn't want to spend the $400+ for it. So I was delighted when I was this woot offer. I was about to purchase the scanner for Mac, then read all the comments... I didn't realize that with all these "fast" scanners you have to use their software (my Canon printer/scanner goet directly into PDF or jpg format, but it's slow). I called Neat Receipts sales dept. and the salesperson confirmed to me that you cannot scan directly to PDF format; that you must use their proprietary software. How are people saving to PDF format using this?

Too bad, because I really could use something like this at this price point.

Any other suggestions? I'll check out the Epson s-50.

You are wrong you very much can scan directly to pdf if that is what you want. Maybe one of you misunderstood. You can't see it on the pic from the direction it is take but there is a button labeled SCAN and a button labeled PDF. There is the same button in the software if you prefer to use it instead. I scan directly to PDF for my expense reports all the time since I need to package them up with the expense report file that gets created in my company's website.