Fujitsu have been making ScanSnap scanners for many years now, and the Japanese IT giant has even figured out how to bypass a computer similar so that you can wirelessly send files straight to an iPhone or iPad, or to an Android smartphone or tablet. The Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500 color scanner is a much improved model over its previous offering, the S1500.

Usually there is nothing exciting to talk about when it comes to scanners, but the Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500 is the exception. Under the hood, it boasts a more advanced processor which is capable of scanning up to 25 pages per minute (compared to 20 pages per minute on the previous model), a 50 page automatic document feeder (ADF) helping out with bulk document scanning, and sporting a USB 3.0 port it can send documents to your PC or Mac up to 25% faster than its predecessor.

Is it actually any good at scanning?

In a word, yes. One of the great things about this scanner is its ability to scan different sizes of document – from business cards and receipts, newspaper clippings and other irregularly shaped documents to A3 and A4 paper, it does it all effortlessly.

The colors on documents scanned by the ScanSnap iX500 are pretty realistic and even intricate details such as very fine lines on tables are rendered perfectly. The superior loading mechanism also ensures that anything you feed into it does not become jammed.

PDF friendly scans

Let's face it; nearly everyone these days views PDF documents on all sorts of computers and devices. But there are some occasions where you need to password or copy protect your scanned files, luckily Fujitsu have covered and bundled a copy of Adobe Acrobat X for Windows with the ScanSnap to help you do that.

Once you've set up your computers (it works with Windows & Mac OS X) and iOS / Android devices to work with the ScanSnap iX500, it facilitates simple PDF generation with one-touch activation. Gone are the days of pressing about 10 different option buttons or having to navigate confusing menu options – just feed your documents into the scanner and press Scan, it's as simple as that

Scanning to the cloud

Not only can you scan to computers and devices in your home or office, but it also offers seamless linking to the cloud – making this the perfect Evernote scanner. If, like me, you use the service to help you file and organize all sorts of things (both for work and personally) then having an Evernote scanner is a welcome addition to your life – it certainly is for me!

For me personally, the main plus point of having an Evernote scanner like the ScanSnap iX500 means that I can view my scanned documents on my iPhone when I'm traveling, and from my computers at home & work too; everything syncs automatically between my devices and computers. The Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500 seamlessly integrates with Evernote and other cloud services such as DropBox and SugarSync too.

Source by Pat Greer