Canon CanoScan LiDE 30 Scanner

by Canon

Product Details

Product Manual [1.70mb PDF]

• Item Weight: 3.3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 5 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00006AMSI
• Item model number: LiDE30
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (105 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #18 in Electronics > Camera & Photo > Printers & Scanners > Flatbed Scanners
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: August 6, 2002

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Note: The Canon LiDE 30 is no longer being manufactured. You may want to consider purchasing the newer Canon LiDE 35 instead.

Looking for an easy-to-use scanner that offers high-resolution scanning and all the latest features? The CanoScan LiDE 30 USB flatbed scanner has it covered. Just over an inch high, it has all the features you need to scan images, copy documents, and e-mail your favorite photos. The LiDE 30's scan quality is outstanding, with up to 1,200 x 2,400 dpi resolution and up to 48-bit depth that delivers stunning color reproduction with 281 trillion possible colors.

To scan, place the photo on the platen and push the Scan button--that's it. Copy and e-mail functions are just as simple. The LiDE 30 uses one cable for both power and USB data, making setup and operation easy; it needs no extra AC adapter.

The scanner can digitally remove much of the minute dust and scratches on photos automatically with built-in QARE 2.0 (Quality Automatic Retouching and Enhancement) technology, and it can adjust slightly misaligned photos. Scanning multi-pages into a PDF file is just as easy: innovative software even lets you save your images directly to CDs as easily as scan, click, and burn (in Windows only).

The LiDE 30 scanner may be small, but it can tackle big jobs. The exclusive Z-Lid expansion top lifts high and stays flat for scanning books and magazines. Most other scanner covers lift at an angle, often resulting in poor scans.

What's in the Box
Scanner; USB cable; stand; CD-ROM with Quick Start Guide, CanoScan Setup Utility, ScanGear CS scanner driver, CanoScan Toolbox scanning utility program, ArcSoft PhotoStudio image editing program, ArcSoft PhotoBase photo album program, ScanSoft OmniPage SE OCR, Adobe Acrobat Reader, and electronic manuals for these programs

Product Description

Canon Lide30 Flat Bed Scanner

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

172 of 174 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars O.K. Scanner & Software; better than I expected, October 6, 2003

By 

Stephen Weiss "Senile Senior" (Lewisville, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Canon CanoScan LiDE 30 Scanner (Office Product)

I purchased this scanner specifically for the task of digitizing a box of old, disintergrating/fading old family photos, almost all being Black&White. I tried a few photos at a local copy place, but the $18 per hour (plus $10 CD burning fee) quickly convinced me that I could purchase a scanner for a lot less than what it would cost to scan the photos on an hourly fee basis.
With a few dozen exceptions, this scanner was able to satisfactorily scan my old photos. Even though this scanner has a number of limitations, I gave the scanner the top rating because it did perform as described/intended and is a good value for the dollar. I would buy this unit again. The ease of hardware and software installation was a pleasant surprise, and are easy to use. Even the included OCR software suprised me with the quality and accuracy of the resulting Word or PDF documents; it even could, with a little tweaking, scan and convert tabular information. (This is an added, unexpected benefit, as I have a 200+ page document, mostly tables, that I have always intended to convert to PDF format but postponed the task due to the emense retyping involved.)
I have always disliked the "Stars" and "Best Buy" rating systems as I have been 'bitten' several times when I bought some highly rated products. No product is perfect; all have things that it can do well, and some things it can't do well (or at all). If you are unfortunate enough to buy a top rated product that can't do the one thing that you need it to do, top rated or not, you have wasted your money. [It is interesting to note that many 'impartial reviews' tend to rave about a product's good points and 'gloss over' deficiencies.]
So, you should be aware of what this scanner could NOT do for me:
.It does not scan transparencies (I had one 4 X 6)
.It has a VERY limited depth of focus: things not in intimate contact with the scan plate WILL be out of focus (a dozen or so photos mounted on stiff, warped backings could not be satisfactorily scanned, even with a phone book on the scanner cover)
.The scan plate is recessed making scans of oversized items impossible: the item is not in contact with the glass and thus out of focus (I had a couple of oversized photos and a few 8 X 10 photos permanently mounted on an oversized backing/frame that could not be scanned satisfactorily)
Also, the unit is a bit 'flimsy' (dropped my mechanical pencil on the cover and it left a 'door dingy') and the cover not heavy enough to flatten the folds even in standard paper to maintain full scan plate contact without assistance (phonebook).

170 of 173 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Bang-For-You-Buck Scanner, August 23, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Canon CanoScan LiDE 30 Scanner (Office Product)

Canon's new LiDE 30 is certainly a step up in overall image quality when compared to other slimline scanners, especially for under ... I was surprised at how good this scanner was for the price. Canon's adjustable Z-lid feature, a much-needed scanner improvement, is a must if you scan from bulky sources like books or magazines. All photo and text scans made were very crisp and accurate. (Poorer photos will need futher software manipulation to improve their quality beyond the originals.) No power cord--power drawn through the USB cable from the computer--and the lightweight portability of this scanner make it ideal for use with laptops. It can even be set up vertically if space is a problem. The only real drawback to the Canon LiDE 30 is that's it's a bit slow--20 seconds (approx.) for a 4" x 5" photo. Still, in this price range and for a 1200 x 2400 scanner, that's faster than most of the other models at this price. Like most included software packages, the software that comes with the LiDE 30 is adequate for most home uses--though no doubt some can benefit from other scanner software packages available in the aftermarket. If your scanning needs are modest-to-moderate, and your budget demands tight, this is definitely the scanner for you. The best, bar none, in terms of over all quality in this price range that's been offered to consumers up to now.

76 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Bargain for Home!, November 7, 2003

By 

B Lee (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Canon CanoScan LiDE 30 Scanner (Office Product)

Last year, after extensive research, I purchased an Epson Perfection 2400 (Photo scanner) for my brother and was dead set on buying one for myself. At that time, there was no other scanner that had its quality and features at a bargain price.

Well, I finally decided to buy a scanner and surprise, surprise...it's the Canon FIDE 30.

Here's four reasons why:

Quality of scan: I think the quality of scan should always be the primary factor in evaluating a scanner. This scanner produces scans equal to those of first-rate "professional" grade scanners like the Minolta Powerlook III (which I have at work). The scanner goes up to 1200 X 2400 dpi resolution and the results are stunning.

Price: $70 (about $120 less than the Epson Perfection)

Design: The small form-factor metallic body casing is durable and eye-catching. The small footprint is ideal for notebook users who like portability. Power is supplied through the USB connection so you have one less cord to worry about. The three buttons on the scanner for scan, copy, and email functions are a nice bonus (but not really needed).

Software: The Canon scan control software is simple and intuitive. The OCR text recognition is excellent.

Now for a scanner at this price, I shouldn't be nit-picking but I will anyways for those who need to find faults in a product:

1. The scan speed as other reviewers mentioned is relatively slow. So if you plan on scanning a large number of photos or documents in one sitting, it could get a little frustrating. But if you want quality WITH speed you really should be looking to a "professional" grade scanner (and get ready to spend some bucks). Even then, the speed difference would be seconds and not minutes.

2. The small footprint is great for portibility but for some people it may make the scanner seem flimsy because it is so thin and light.

3. XP users: DO NOT install the software on the cd that comes with the scanner. Go to the website and download the updated versions.

Well that about sums it up. To get a scanner like this for $70 is an outright steal.