Rating: 
Summary: Nearly Perfection
Review: I just received this scanner a few days ago and I'm very impressed. The image quality is astounding. It's also very fast, taking a mere 7 seconds to do a full area preview and 10 seconds (not including seek time) to scan a 4x6 color photo at 300 dpi. Setup was simple and straightforward, and the supplied documentation was ample, covering both setup and use of the scanner as well as installation of the various software packages. After hearing about the problems with the copier software and HP printers, I downloaded and installed the patch from the Epson support site before even using the scanner for the first time. I have an HP DeskJet 722c and so far there have been no problems, and the one-button copier feature has worked flawlessly. Are there problems with this Epson scanner? Yes, but they're more annoyances than anything else. First off, there's no on/off button. The manual says to unplug the scanner after use. C'mon Epson, you can do better than that... It's not critical that the scanner be turned off however, as after a few minutes it goes into "sleep" mode and all that's left is the telltale green LED saying the unit is on. Also, the manual says to position your document about a quarter inch from the edge of the scanner bed as there is a small area that the scanner doesn't read (in other words, don't push your document or photo to the plastic "stop" at the edge of the glass). This fault is offset, however, by the scanner's very cool ability to locate and align a document automatically. Yes, it's true: put a photograph anywhere on the bed, and even if it's crooked the scanner will find it, scan it, and automatically rotate it to square it up! All in all, this scanner is worth every penny and I highly recommend it if you're looking for an upper-end home scanner.
Rating: 
Summary: Printer Compatibility and Cleanliness Problems
Review: Epson's software is not compatible with my Hewlett Packard 970 CSE desket printer. The consequence is that the copy function and photo print function don't work. The maunual and advertising don't address this problem. It would also appear that the scanner has contamination inside (under the glass) - as no matter how much I clean the outer glass surface my images have dust features.
Rating: 
Summary: incompatible with HP Printer
Review: While the Epson 1240U gets such good reviews from ZDNet, PCWorld, etc., I found it doesn't work well with my HP Deskjet 932C. In fact, it's becoming a nightmare. Epson told me to download a patch that would help with this and now my HP printer is having problems. The printer started have problems right after I downloaded the Epson patch so it makes since the patch called it. Also, HP technical support believed this to be the cause as well. I'm within my 30 return period, so I'm returning this scanner while the returning is good!
Rating:
Summary: Blazingly fast and easy to use!
Review: I remember the old days when personal scanners were new. What an ordeal to scan the image, get it into a graphics editor, convert it, etc. Not anymore. Those days are over now that the Epson Perfection 1240U is here. It's fast like you would not believe, with three different one-touch buttons directly on the scanner. One button will scan and send it directly to the printer. Another button will scan it and open it in your own Graphics editor. And yet another button will pop up a chooser menu. These options include scanning it to an email message. But wait! There's more! I tested the OCR scanning cababilities of the Perfection, and I was very happy. Easy to use and very accurate, without the usual headaches that accompany scanning to OCR. All in all, Epson has a winner here with a terrific product that lives up to everything it says it will, and all at a reasonable price.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Scanner
Review: While playing with my new toy, I have scanned documents, photos and many objects (a clock, a clay animal, a candle, a box, my hand) to email, fax, print and play with in Adobe. I find it extremely fast (color, 1200x2400, and B&W) compared to other top-of-the-line scanners on the market. Also, I like the fact that I can later easily add a transparency unit and 42-bit color scans are really nice. I read many reviews on the net about various scanners (magazine recommendations and user opinions), Amazon had the lowest price for this model at the time and, subsequently, I purchased this one. I wouldn't say it was perfect because I wish it had a power switch. This scanner does live up to its reputation --- excellent.
Rating: 
Summary: Great scanner!
Review: The Epson 1240U is a superb scanner - the photos scanned remarkably quick and the quality was excellent. The only drawback is the Epson Smart Panel software. The photo print function does not work unless you own an Epson printer. I own an HP DeskJet. The copy function included in the Smart Panel will now work with HP printers but only if you apply a free patch from Newsoft. It's available at their website... The other included software is great. I would highly recommend this scanner!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, but...
Review: The hardware on this scanner is excellent: very fast and accurate. But, the supplied software for photocopying won't work with my printer (HP 2500C). Epson product support has yet to get back to me about this, so in the meantime I've had to download third-party software in order to use the scanner as a photocopier. Otherwise, highly recommended!
Rating: 
Summary: Worked GREAT.. at FIRST!
Review: Okay.. had I posted a review for this scanner within the first few months of owning it, I would have given it rave reviews a-la most of the other reviews here. I'm glad procrastinated. I noticed dust starting to appear in my scans. At first they were negligable, easilly mistaken for a spec on the picture itself, but I can fully attest that over time the dust will accumulate under the glass and your scans will have a considerable amount of noise. Sure your software can clean it up, but a quality scanner shouldn't make you do that manual work. So in short, I only recommend this scanner if you love dust! I wouldn't take it for free if someone gave it to me! The only reason I rated 2 stars instead of 1 is becaus it did work well for the first few months. After sitting, it's become useless to me.
Rating:
Summary: I have no complaints about this scanner!
Review: This scanner replaces an old UMAX scsi scanner. From setup to first scan this scanner is a breeze. My wife uses it everyday and it hasn't given her one problem. It's fast, reliable and worth every penny.
Rating:
Summary: Best scanner period!
Review: Great quality positive and negative scans. Very speedy. Very well built. Only draw back is you have to exchange the top everytime you want to scan slides.
| 
