The major huddle when choosing a scanner for your office is deciding whether to go for a flatbed or a sheetfed scanner. It is all about understanding your needs as the consumer and reconciling that with the scanner you want to invest in.
The other thing is understanding the differences and similarities between these two scanners to make a viable decision on what to put your money in. These two machines are designed differently and that is why you have to choose between the two.
Both machines have the best and downsides. We have put together a detailed comparison between the two to make it easier for you to make a sound choice. Match a machine’s details to your office needs and you will have flawless scanning.
Flatbed VS Sheetfed
Here is a quick overview of these two major scanners to help you understand what they are all about and how they operate. Let’s dive right in.
Flatbed ScannerS
Flatbed scanners feature a huge hinged lid. When this lid folds back, it reveals a glass top. This is where you place your documents ready to be scanned. The light in the scanner illuminates the document for the scanning process to begin. The data is captured with the CCD rays and converted into digital data through scanning.
Sheetfed Scanners
These are also known as automatic document feeders. They also use the CCD rays for conversion. However, they function differently from their counterparts. These machines feature a feeder for document placer. They also have an image sensor for a splendid output of the scans.
What to Note
There are scanning machines that combine features from both the sheetfed and flatbed scanners. As much as these machines are more powerful, they are also very expensive. These combo scanners perform with super speed for outstanding production. They are mostly used on documents that need higher DPI on flatbeds.
Similarities and Differences Between Flatbed and Sheetfed Scanner
In as much as these two scanners have some similarities, there are huge differences between them. Let’s dive right in without any further ado to find out about them.
1. Simplex VS Duplex
Flatbed scanners are designed to work on one side of a paper. This means that you need to manually flip, reset the machines to scan the other side of your document. This process is quite demanding because it has to be manually operated.
On the other hand, sheetfed scanners use both simplex and duplex features. This is a huge plus for the machine. They give you a choice on whether to print one side of a document or both at the same time.
2. Scans a Huge Batch
Since flatbed scanners are simplex in their features, they scan one side of a document at a time. This means too much time consumption if you are working on a huge batch of documents. This makes it not the best choice especially if you are operating in a large-scale office.
Sheetfed scanners on the other hand gives you a choice. With them, you can scan both sides of a document at the same time. This makes it an ideal choice for a large-scale office setting where you have to deal with a large batch of documents.
3. Size of the Scanner
Because of the input feeder and the output tray, sheetfed scanners are larger than the flatbeds. This means that sheetfed occupies more space and is not as portable. On the other hand, the flatbeds are sturdy and highly portable.
But this is not to rule out the fact that some sheetfed scanners are more compact and portable. However, the flatbeds take more edge when it comes to being a compact portable scanning machine.
4. Fast Scanning
Sheetfed scanners are designed to be heavy-duty machines. These scanners are fast because they work on both sides of a document. This makes them more efficient and powerful if you are dealing with a huge batch of documents.
Besides that, a standard sheetfed has a speed of up to 35 pages per minute. This means that it can produce up to 70 clean images per minute. Flatbed scanners on the other hand are at a great disadvantage. They have to scan on the side of a document, and it has to be manually operated. This slows down their performance and makes it not an impressive choice.
5. Manual Operation
Sheetfed scanners can produce a huge volume of scans in a short time without being manually operated. All you need is to place your documents in the feeder tray and set it to scan them automatically.
On the other hand, the flatbed scanners require manual operations to flip the sides and to feed the documents on the scanner. This means that you will have to be on standby throughout the printing to flip the pages.
6. Ideal for Books and Magazines
Flatbed scanners are an excellent choice for printing books and magazines because of their features. They have removable lids that allow you to put a variety of printing materials for scanning.
Sheetfeds, on the other hand, will only manage loose sheets of paper. They cannot handle the heavy-duty paper on books and magazine covers. However, you can still use the sheetfed to print the loose paper pages of a book.
7. 3D Objects and Art Pieces
Flatbed scanners can scan 3D objects because of their lid. This includes art canvas, sketchbooks, flowers among other art pieces. On the other hand, the sheetfed scanners can only scan loose paper pages.
8. Odd-shaped Documents
Flatbed scanners can efficiently scan odd-shaped documents. This is because the machines are designed to deal with thick pages and odd edges of a document. The perfect example is when scanning cards that are oddly shaped.
Final Thoughts
Both of these scanners are efficient in their own special ways. Where a sheetfed cannot perform, the flatbed does best and vice versa. The sheetfed scanners are suitable for formal office settings because they are ideal to deal with pages of professional documents. Flatbed scanners, on the other hand, are best suited for personal and informal purposes. This includes art pieces, photography, flowers among others.