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Microtek 3800 ScanMaker Flatbed Scanner

Microtek 3800 ScanMaker Flatbed Scanner

List Price: $79.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Microtek does not stand behind what they sell- buy beware
Review: After reading so many reviews now I am disappointed I bought a Mircrotek scanner. The software has a simple mode then a mode with more controlable features. The scanner never responded properly with the more complex mode so I just used the basic. It worked ok until the short warranty ran out. One day I turned it on, scanned one page and poof smoke started pouring out. After inspecting the inside for the cause, I found a transistor had 2 bad solder joints made by the factory that finally oxidized to point of failure and burned out several components. Contacted Microtek by email for parts. They would not sell me any parts but wanted me to spend much money to send them the scanner for repair. They were even too cheap to furnish me with a schematic. A quality company supplies them with the literature when purchased new. Steer clear of a company who cannot stand behind what they peddle.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Microtek does not stand behind what they sell- buy beware
Review: After reading so many reviews now I am disappointed I bought a Mircrotek scanner. The software has a simple mode then a mode with more controlable features. The scanner never responded properly with the more complex mode so I just used the basic. It worked ok until the short warranty ran out. One day I turned it on, scanned one page and poof smoke started pouring out. After inspecting the inside for the cause, I found a transistor had 2 bad solder joints made by the factory that finally oxidized to point of failure and burned out several components. Contacted Microtek by email for parts. They would not sell me any parts but wanted me to spend much money to send them the scanner for repair. They were even too cheap to furnish me with a schematic. A quality company supplies them with the literature when purchased new. Steer clear of a company who cannot stand behind what they peddle.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Watch out for buggy software
Review: Although we received this for free with a computer purchase, it has not yet been worth it. After struggling with crashes and extremely slow speed (e.g., 60+ seconds to launch Word) and spending hours on the phone with various tech support reps, all the while thinking it was a problem with the brand new Dell or Windows XP, we encountered an error message that would pop up upon shut down. It indicated a problem with the file SDII.exe. I did a quick Google search and discovered that SDII.exe is a file that the Microtek software installs and launches on startup. The file has a known bug that causes it to hog most of your processing power and RAM. I checked the Task Manager, and sure enough, SDII.exe was there, consuming 99% of the CPU. Since that file is only necessary if you use the scanner's one-touch keys, I disabled the file, and we had our computer back.

As for how the 3800 scans, it's a decent scanner for the money. The bundled software has adequate features, and scan times are relatively fast. We have not been able to use it much, however, given the amount of time it used to take to launch and run the software.

If you're thinking of buying this scanner, first check with Microtek to make sure they have addressed the SDII.exe bug. If they haven't, you'd be better off steering clear.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Wonderful Scanner
Review: I brought this scanner about a year ago and it has never let me down. It makes perfect copies, emails to Outlook, and the best feature is that it scans text directly into Microsoft Word easy with the touch of a botton.



Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Beware of Microtek
Review: I recently purchased a Microtek scanner from an individual seller. Through no fault of the seller- it arrived with one of its mirrors broken.
I called Microtek who said they would not sell me the mirror due to liability problems. They also do not have an authorized repair shop network. I asked if I brought it to a local repair facility if they would sell them the part for repair, and they said yes.

THEY LIED.
They said to the repair shop owner they won't sell their parts to anyone and the only way they would see it repaired is to send it to California. Period. My repair shop asked why and they said " We don't sell to anyone" and hung up on him!! They may be great scanners but I never got to try mine. Their attitude and service for the consumer is horrible. Let the buyer beware!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Microtek doesn't work with win2k
Review: It almost crshes my win2000, each time I use it, I have to unplug the scanner, uninstall the driver, it works for a while. when I try to find the scanner using the tool with the scan software, the computer is stuck. i have got it for free with a laptop purchase, it is still not worth it, i should have choosen a printer instead.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: I know why it's so cheap
Review: It took me four days to finally get it up and running, when I first installed the scanner everything seemed to be workong fine. But as I soon learned, the ribbon wire connecting the scanner head had a kink in it which would jam the machine. after repeated calls to Microtek, I was informed that I would have to send it to the company for repairs at my own expense. Customer service stinks. with the help of a screwdriver and some masking tape, (to hold the wire in it's correct position), I was able to get this thing working right. As for scanning film negatives with the optional adapter, save you money, it does a losey job. The software imaging software included disabled all of my pre-installed editing software and reset itself as the default viewer. If I'd known of the trouble that I would have with this product I'd have never bought it. This is the first and last time I will ever buy a Microtek product, customer service is a joke and non-existant.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Excellent Scanner
Review: It's cheap, and works perfect, it's fast, the software it's easy to handle, i have more than 2 months with it and i haven't had any problem, i allready scan all of my pictures, hundred's of them and still works perfect since the first day. Very easy to install no problems at all.
Excellent scanner, excellent price, and service at www.amazon.com

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Not XP Compatable
Review: Microtek insists that this product is XP compatable. IT IS NOT COMPATABLE. Beware of any manufacturer that does not have the XP compatable certification but insists that its products are compatable. I have had the same issue with Visioneer. The products do not work easily and destabalize XP. I had to rebuild my 3-month old system as a result and lost a lot of time trying to do so.

I strongly recommend that you purchase a product that is certified. Microtek does not have the customer support to deal with the users issues that arise as a result of the XP and so if you purchase the product for the XP platform, you will be stuck.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Good scanner, a little slow.
Review: The scanner is actaully good. It is very user friendly, at least what was my expereince. However, it is kind of slow with anything from pictures to files. However, for it's price it is a great scanner and you can do many cool tricks once you find out how to do them. Overall it is worth the money!


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