Epson Perfection 4180 Photo Scanner

by Epson

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 12 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0002P4UM2
• Item model number: B11B170011
• Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
  • #4 in Electronics > Camera & Photo > Printers & Scanners > Slide & Film Scanners
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 21, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

From the Manufacturer Offering superior image quality and performance, the Epson Perfection 4180 Photo delivers a remarkable value. True 4,800 x 9,600 dpi resolution with Micro Step Drive technology ensures precision clarity and color. And, with powerful one-touch color restoration and dust removal capabilities, anyone can easily restore faded color photos, slides and negatives. The convenient built-in transparency unit lets you scan multiple 35mm negatives, slides, or medium format transparencies.

Easy Photo Fix Technology

The Epson Perfection 4180 Photo offers fully automatic scanning for increased productivity, plus two advanced scanning modes for greater control. With all that, plus a full-featured photo software solution, including Adobe PhotoShop Elements 2.0, this powerful performer makes it easy to achieve high-quality scans from virtually any original, for stunning color reprints and enlargements. And, with Hi-Speed USB 2.0, the Epson Perfection 4180 Photo speeds through every scan, so as not to delay one's creativity.

Compatible with both Windows and Macintosh systems, this scanner provides an unbeatable solution for any task or project. When partnered with an Epson Stylus inkjet printer, the Epson Perfection 4180 Photo offers the perfect choice for creating brilliant images that last.

What's in the Box
Epson Perfection 4180 Photo scanner, 2.6-by-9-inch transparency adapter (built into scanner lid), three film holders (35mm slides, 35mm film strips, and medium format), Epson CD-ROM (EPSON Scan Software, Productivity Software, and Electronic Reference Guide), CD-ROM with Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0, Hi-Speed USB 2.0 cable, AC adapter and power cable, scanner setup poster

Product Description

A flatbed scanner with a built-in transparency unit / 2400 x 4800 max. dpi / One-Touch Color Restoration / PC & Mac / USB 2.0 / Inc. Photoshop Elements 2.0 Maximum Resolution - 12,800 x 12,800 dpi with software interpolation Color Depth - 48-bit internal/external Greyscale Depth - 16-bit internal/external Optical Density - 3.4 Dmax Scaling (zoom) - 50% to 200% (1% step) USB 2.0 Interface (backwards compatible with USB 1.1) Supports PC and Macintosh Computer Systems Unit Dimensions - 10.87 (w) x 18.03 (d) x 4.6 (h) Unit Weight - 8.4 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

72 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent value, January 24, 2005

By 

D. Bivins "ssm2044" (Brooklyn, NY, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Epson Perfection 4180 Photo Scanner (Office Product)

This scanner performs well for the user who expects very good scans from flatbed and negatives/transparencies at this price point.
PROS:
Costs under $200.
Scans negatives and transparencies--35mm, mounted slides, and 120.
Includes very easy-to-use-and-integrate software.
Installs easily (on WinXP SP2).
Makes scans that are very usable in Photoshop CS.
Is able to make scans that I don't need to mess with (for web, email) without using Photoshop.

CONS:
35mm holder allows filmstrip to buckle.
Minor software tweaks would be desirable.
No good way to store film holders when one of them is in use.

I'm an amateur photographer who develops his own film. I had been getting my film developed by an excellent, and inexpensive, local chain that also provided a CD-ROM of scanned images for each roll processed. Once I started developing my own b/w film, I wanted a scanner that could do decent scans so that I could continue to keep medium-resolution "contact sheets" on my PC. I thought that the 4180 might do the trick at a pretty inexpensive price point. I was right.

It scans well, within timeframes that are reasonable. I've read other reviews here, and I'm not sure what everyone expects of their scanners--but given your connection (USB 2.0, etc.) and whatever else you have going on, I think you'll find this scanner performs as expected. It takes a while to do medium-to-hi-res scans, but that's what I expect of a scanner. I expect it to transmit to my PC pretty darn quick, but the scanning part can take its time.

The scanner software does not always detect the framelines between 35mm frames correctly. I think this might be what another reviewer was referring to regarding black lines. Usually, re-previewing the set of frames corrects this. Worst case scenario, you just preview and scan the whole set of frames and then go back and scan that problematic one individually. It's really not a big deal.

If you're intending to scan a great deal of 35mm negatives, slides, or 120 transparencies/negatives quickly, then this is not the right scanner for you. The provided film holders don't hold a lot of frames. I do appreciate being able to scan 12 35mm negatives simultaneously, but when you're dealing with rolls of 24-36, it does take some time. Luckily you don't have to be present during most of the scanning process.

The 35mm frame is very good at holding the film, but because it isn't a sandwich of glass, it does not hold your film flat if it's not flat already. Artifacts in the resulting scan are common, especially at the ends of 35mm strips.

The software should have a way of overriding the "selection" of frames by the software. Usually it's accurate, but when it's not I'd rather not have to redo a single scan because the software selected a too-narrow area or one that overlaps two frames.
The enclosed software is very good. It includes a densitometer, editable histogram, and other tools for working with your scans. I have not worked much with the grain removal and dust/scratch removal tools, but I'm more comfortable working with those problems in Photoshop.

For excellent thumbnails and fast, very good printable scans, I've found this scanner to be excellent.

90 of 95 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Raises the bar for budget photo scanners, September 26, 2004

By 

Just a photog (Loess Hills) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Epson Perfection 4180 Photo Scanner (Office Product)

It's hard to believe that the first flatbed I bought back in 1997 only had 300dpi optical, no transparency function at all and cost $300. Times do change.
I have only had my 4180 for a few days but so far the perfromance is quite impressive. Flatbed scans of photographs and documents are nice and crisp. I haven't done any negative scans but I did load in some of my favorite Kodachromes and the results were quite good.
Scanning transparencies at 3200dpi gave excellent results in prints up into the 8X10 range. I suspect that you could crank this thing up to the point where you would run out of grain before you run out of pixels.
The supplied scanning software, which includes Photoshop Elements is pretty easy to navigate and did not present any problems for me.
My first batch of prints from slides were at least as pretty as the Cibachromes I used to do, that's saying a lot.
Naturally a flatbed does not have the same dynamic range on transparencies that a dedicated film scanner would. Even so I am pleasantly surprised at the quality of slide scans I am getting right out of the box.
I would like to have seen hard copies of the documentation but I can live without it if it knocks the price down some.
I have a basement full of equipment in storage and have been agonizing about building another darkroom.
I'm going to miss watching prints come up in the developer but this is so easy and the results are so good that I'm afraid my days under the safelight are over.
One last point. You may want to make sure you have lots of RAM if you buy this unit. Four 3200dpi slide scans are going to deal you four 25Meg files.
So far the 4180 looks like a good choice for a photographer on a budget.
Note 9-20-05
As one of our IT guys kindly pointed out, RAM is not the issue I had thought. I am told the temporary files generated by large scans end up on one of the hard drives and are not stored in RAM while being processed.
Otherwise I would have to still say that this represents a terrific value for a photographer watching their budget. I have done a lot of negative scans both in color and B&W since writing the original review. These have been quite satisfactory. The B&W roll film scans are especially pleasing.
Hope this helps.

85 of 91 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Doesn't live up to its promises, October 15, 2004

By 

Kelly H - See all my reviews

This review is from: Epson Perfection 4180 Photo Scanner (Office Product)

I bought this scanner to replace my Epson Perfection 1240U (which wasn't broken but dusty under the glass, why? why?). I thought it would be nice to be able to scan negatives or really zoom in some old photos (where it seems like you have lots of people waaay far away). NOT! I tried every which way but the quality of a scanned negative stunk. There was so much noise & grain, it didn't come close to the quality of the "real" photo, even at a small size. I used Adobe Photoshop 6, which can use files of 48-bit depth, and tried processing the files but didn't see much improvement.

I'm sure it's not a bad scanner, I just don't think you're getting an improvement over a 2400 x 4800 scanner. For now, I returned mine and will try something else.

**Update**
I purchased the Canon 4200F scanner and have had a much better result with scans of 35mm negatives. Particularly, on comparison, I noticed a lot of "color bleed" on the Epson scans, and none on the Canon. I am posting a review on the Canon.