Customer Reviews

WizCom E04087 QuickLink-Pen Elite Scanner

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I received QuickLink Elite pen today and have been testing it for the past 6 hours. Now I am finished, I would like to share my thought about this device with you. The box came with the content as described by Amazon. My surprise was that the 135 page color manual, I thought those were extinct! That is in addition to the PDF one in the CD.

Installation on Windows XP Pro. SP2 (Tablet edition) went smoothly, the instructions on the self run CD were easy to follow. You basically install the driver for the cable [serial at the device connector to USB (II in my case) at the PC end], then you install the desktop application which is a very basic utility that lists the files on your pen, and allows you to communicate, change settings, transfer data, and add software to your pen. Once you install the software, you will be asked to connect the device to the computer to start the communication. Initially I had a problem connecting to the device because it conflicted with Bluetooth serial ports. So I disabled the Bluetooth serial ports and removed some extra unused serial COM ports from the computer device manager. I reinstalled the pen drive from the CD, restarted the computer but before I connect again I did one more IMPORTANT step that is not mentioned anywhere. You Baud rate on the pen (go to settings, communications, baud rate) must be the same as your computer COM port (go to device manager, right click on the new COM port), choose a rate, in my case 57600 worked best. After that I managed to exchange files, install software to the pen. In addition, It tried the IrDA with my laptop, the text file was transferred instantly. PDA (iPAQ) recognize the device but transfer of files needed third-party software (Peacmaker $15). In their website, they say there will be an upgrade where third party will not be needed.

After that scanning the text went smoothly, I also scanned small image ( max 8 mm wide), installed the tables software on the pen, scanned directly on the PC ... all went very well. I scanned a type font 10 textbook, out of the total 543, 24 were mis-recognized (some missing one letter, some had capital letter in the middle, while others were just a mess). That is about 95.5% accuracy, not bad, considering that I get about 85% with a flatbed scanner. It takes me about 5 to 6 seconds per line (about 5 minutes per page), so this is truly for text snippets rather than a whole page scanning. Image scanning is useful for signatures, Greek letters, etc. Quality is just OK, you can also scan tables, business cards (to outlook), URLs (get sent to favorites) with the included add-ins on the CD, and bar codes (additional downloads from the wizcom website). All in all I will recommend this device for students, researchers, & people who type slow or rather collect different set of texts from books, journals, etc. It fits 1000 pages internal memory, besides scanning directly to your word processor. It has built in English dictionary, good for language students. It also read aloud any text that is scanned (I do not see the use of this one) but the pen comes with earphone with volume controls.
All in all, this pen turn out as it was described and I think it is a keeper. Thanks for reading this long review and I hope it helped someone.

I'm measuring, first and foremost, ease and precision of scanning. Speed of scanning and ease of installation on the computer are, in my mind, about the same for both this, the Wizcom QuickLink Elite, and the C-Pen 800C. They differ sufficiently, however, in the primary question of ease and quality of scanning. For the record, I bought both at the same time, with the intent of keeping the better of the two. You can just go ahead and buy the C-Pen 800C.
I have had one horrible experience with a pen scanner by Siemens, the "Pocket Reader." It was truly useless. It scanned so poorly that I just put it aside. By the time I though to return it, Siemens was no longer making it, and I couldn't get customer service here in the U.S.
The Wizcom QuickLink Elite is not so bad. It's serviceable. I don't think it lives up to its 95% accuracy guarantee, but perhaps meets a 90% threshold, measured impressionistically. It's interface is also reasonable and satisfactory.
However, the C-Pen 800C is even more precise, truly approaching 95%. Moreover, if you discount errors in spacing from this accuracy percentage, its precision is even higher. Whereas the Wizcom is just as likely to make a content error, misread letters, etc., the 800C's errors are more likely to be the absence of a space when there should be one. A rare missed space doesn't make you puzzle over the text when you come back to it two months later.
C-Pen is also lighter, and it's rechargeable, so while it's more expensive, in the long run, you'll save on batteries.
Both have comparable single-language dictionaries, though Wizcom has more built in or for free (C-Pen allows you one free dictionary, including bilingual ones). Wizcom is a only a bit slower on the uptake, but significantly more likely to warn you "Scan too fast." I've never had that from C-Pen, and again, the precision at any speed is appreciably better with C-Pen.
Both have comparable PC and PDA compatibility capacity.

I got this as a Gift for my education. Im getting a degree in aeronautical engineering and a minor in psychology, so something that can scan text easily and fast is a big plus and a big time saver. After I got the pen, I went online to read what other people thought of the product. Honestly, I think that the pen is super easy to use. If you dont read the 5 pages in the manual(which are really easy to read!), then I can see how people will have problems. Plus, the pen comes with a trainer;Meaning that the pen has to be at a angle for it to scan properly, and the trainer will help you get used to that set up(took me 30mins then I was off the trainer). If you dont use the trainer.. YOU WILL GET A ERROR(wrong angle). You might also get a error if you go too fast. Honestly, If you run this pen across the page like a corvette.... I think that you really need to lay off the coffee. Calm down, this pen is really easy to use. It took me like 1 hour to get used to using the pen. The dictionary is super easy and NICE!!!! It scans up to about 8mm on a page(plenty for you English major types). Here are some things that I want to mention, and might help you:
1) Put the CD into your computer before you DO ANYTHING. Follow those directions...very helpful.
2)The USB cord for the pen is like a device in it-self; as such the software will lead you though installing the drivers for it... not a big deal.
3) when you plug the USB cord into the pen, remember to push hard until you hear a rather substantial snap. It was quite unexpected and was probably a source of a lot problems related to this product(people didn't know to push so hard...NOTHING BREAKS, its a very well made product).
4)make sure that you have the USB cord plugged in(after you have installed the software, eg. after doing 1 above)before you start-up the main program. Then connect the pen to the USB cord and browse to "send stored files to PC" and push enter. WA la, everything will go well.

Its a good product and I think that people shouldn't take the other negative reviews seriously. After getting this, many of my friends are seriously thinking about getting one. Its very well made and Im quite sure that it would be a great help for students or researchers. I hoped this helped.

I bought the pen scanner because I have an application that requires scanning a lot of plain text to my PC. I am a two-finger typist so my hope is to use the product to avoid the typing. So far, the product meets my simple expectations: Scan-and-store and scan-to-PC. I have not yet encountered errors in scanned text. Customer service has also been excellent. I placed two calls to Wizcom's tech support and someone got back to me in less than 20 minutes. In both cases, the errors were on my side: First, I thought the installation CD-ROM was defective but it turned out that I had to reboot my PC in order to read the enclosed CD-ROM. I have had this type of problem with other CD-ROM applications. Second, I was unable to scan text to my PC in a notepad file as instructed in the manual. I repeatedly got the message "Error sending data to PC" and panicked, thinking that the product was a scam. It turned out the plug to my Pen (not the USB plug to PC) was not fully inserted. Once corrected, it works just as expected. I feel a great relief that I don't have the hassle to return the pen. I am satisfied with the product.

It makes lots of spelling mistakes even if you use it by instructions. After you spend all that time scanning and correcting the spelling errors you might as well have just written it down with a pen. It also had trouble connecting to my computer, also when I beam a doc to my pocket pc it could only beam a small amount of text at a time (otherwise it will give you a 'memory full' message on your scanpen, as the pen can only hold so much in mem while beaming). Even though it scans in French as well as English it only reads out loud in English also the computerized voice is sort of hard to understand. I think that this pen is too slow as it has to process each line you scan before you can go on to the next, then to correct its many spelling errors the buttons are a bit ambiguous. I'm a tech junky and have tried all sorts of gagets and I would have to say that the QuickLink Elite Pen Scanner is a cute gimmik but is not worth the money. So save your money and buy some real pens and paper, or type your stuff on your laptop or hand held. Not worth it.

Was excited to have gotten it but have spent a great deal of time fussing with it. Several issues with this pen: 1) Way to many errors, spend a great deal of time correcting errors, 2)Sometimes doesn't want to communicate with my computer(s), spend way too much time getting it to be recognized, 3)On numerous occasions have lost files I've scanned while communicating with my computer, transferring, and have never been able to retrieve them afterwards. This is especially frustrating after reading, and scanning portions of chapters, instead of using highlight pen or jotting notes, 4) Seems software is still living in the old 16-bit world of dos so naming files is limited to 8 characters. When I read chapters for research, I like to be able to name files something other chap1int,and 5) Tech support seems to be a joke, when I've emailed them on several occasions about problems there response has been: never heard of that problem before, reinstall software. If I had to do over again I think I would have either looked for alternative pen scanner or stuck with the old fashion way.

I chose this device over the competitor products based on (1) ergonomics, (2) local device controls, and (3) independent operation from the PC. Unfortunately, the device software has fallen prey to the age-old issues of any device that tries to perform "smart" syncing operations. It gets confused...

My goal was to use the pen as a remote scanning device and then be able to upload the scanned text to either my home PC or my laptop. I installed the desktop application on both machines with no apparent problems. However, after successfully syncing with one machine, a subsequent attempt to sync with the second machine failed miserably. One such failure caused me to permanently lose 2 hours worth of scanned input. I was horrified.

I need a scanning pen that is exactly just that. A scanner. I don't need a smart device that wants to 'remember' what I've done or what I want to do. I don't get this type of behavior with my digital camera or my flatbed scanner, so I don't expect it from a pen. When you perform an alleged upload operation, the software tries to write information back into the pen. If I'm "uploading" then I don't want anything to be "downloaded" into the pen... period. This is the bane of my tests and the failures.

There are certainly other factors that affected decision to return the equipment to the manufacturer for refund, such as sluggish processing times between scans, and extremely poor ability to read Times New Roman (note: all their samples are in Arial, but find a textbook that isn't TNR!). I could still have lived with these ideosyncracies if it weren't for the high risk of data loss. This was intended to be a time saver, but it simply wasn't.

My rating here is based on the hardware. This device could be vastly improved with a change in software philosophy. Just upload the data and don't second-guess the operator.

This thing is not easy to use. To scan accurately you have to go so slowly it would be much quicker to type. If you are lucky to get an error free scan then it is nearly impossible to use it with any other software

I returned this item..write ups were good on it, I tried it over a period of 3 days & it Never copied entire text, left out entire lines & paragraphs. A lot of the words could not be understood by the pen (some of them easy words) so it just pops out jumbled letters. You can go back & repair the screwed up text but takes way too much time. It was easy to use as stated in their write ups.

The pen rarely is accurate. The pen does not link to the computer well when working in word. I have to go over the line four or five times to get it to read in word. The desktop application is not very user friendly. When attempting to replace the batteries, the pen did not take the AAA batteries I used. Both the batteries that came with it and the ones I replaced them with were duracell, and the replcement batteries did not fit. They were too small. I had to squeeze the back of the unit to get power and then it did not stay on. Overall, I thought the pen was not worth the money and is virtually useless.