Agfa SnapScan 1212u review

Thanks to the popularity of Apple's ultra-cool iMac, it seems that any new USB (universal serial bus) peripheral worth its salt has to look the same.

Apple's Design Studio LCD monitor, Iomega's USB Zip drive and numerous USB hubs all now sport the same, translucent blue plastic uniform. It seems buying a computer peripheral can now be a style statement.

Now it's Agfa's turn to get in on the act. This colour flatbed scanner, the SnapScan 1212u, is built from sturdy, see-through blue-green plastic - 'Bondai Blue', according to Agfa. It all looks very flash, especially when the fluorescent tube inside begins to sweep the 216x297mm glass plate, and sets the thing all aglow.

The electronics and optics visible through the casing are almost exactly the same as those in our Top 50 Best Buy scanner, the Agfa 1212P (reviewed issue 94, p85). Optical resolution is still 600x1,200dpi and colour sensitivity remains at 36-bit. Incidentally, even the case moulding is the same shape as the 1212P, despite the dramatic change in colour. The only real difference is that a USB socket has replaced the parallel port. This shouldn't, and indeed doesn't impact on the scanner's performance, but it does make it extremely easy to set up and install.

Once you've unlocked the scanner's motor and plugged it into the mains, all that needs to be done is to hook up the skinny USB cable. Windows 98 instantly recognises the device, and prompts for the driver CD. In a little under two minutes, you'll be ready to make your first scan. It's commendably straightforward, but this process only installs the easy-to-use drivers. More advanced users will have to go through an extra installation procedure to load the highly competent FotoLook drivers - still, it isn't too much of a bind, really.

As you might expect, the 1212u is every bit as competent a scanner as its parallel port sibling, the 1212p. Focus and detail were second to none. When scanning text on plain paper, it picked up the paper texture comfortably, and colour images boasted excellent contrast and crisp detail. Colour reproduction was as faithful as you're going to get from a scanner at this price. Speed was also commendable, although the 1212u won't be as quick as SCSI-based equivalents. Previews took an average of 11 seconds to complete, a colour photo print can be scanned at 600x1,200dpi in just over a minute, while a page of text at 300dpi greyscale took 28 seconds. The latter scan would be suitable for OCR (optical character recognition) using the supplied Caere OmniPage Limited Edition software.

Normally, we wouldn't hesitate to rave about a scanner of this calibre at such a reasonable price. The trouble is that it's £20 more than the 1212p, which is essentially the same scanner in duller clothing, minus the USB connection. That's fine if you're willing to spend that sort of money on maintaining your image. If not, you may as well plump for the original 1212p.