Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 Mobile Scanner

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For a number of years I have used HP LaserJet All-in-Ones as my preferred office printer and for a similar number of years I have been saying to myself that I must scan all of my personal and business paperwork into an electronic form. One of the reasons the piles of paper got higher and less organised was that the HP scanner feature was single sided and slow. That’s ok if you have only written on one side of a 10 page document but, call me a Yorkshireman, there’s another side to write on.

One of my customers asked if I could get them a ScanSnap as it had been recommended to them. After unpacking and installing the ScanSnap and its software I was a fan and had to have one for my office too.  As the title says, the Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300 is a mobile scanner. It’s small but not too small to compromise the task it is asked to do. The combination of the scanner and software allow you to scan both sides of the page with a single scan then save the pages as PDF, searchable PDF, JPG, load into Microsoft Word and numerous other formats.

I am now happily scanning as fast as I can to convert the mountain of paper and shelves of files into an electronic format which I can more easily access whenever and wherever I need along with ensuring it is backed up along with all of my other data.

The Fujitsu ScanSnap is fast, accurate and compact. If you are out and about on the road with your laptop then it can be powered from the USB port if you can’t find a mains point. The only hesitation to getting one of these for some people may be the price which is £200-250 which could make it more viable for business users who would quickly recoup the cost with the time saved scanning and accessing documentation.

Time to upgrade I.T.

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TIME TO UPGRADE I.T.

Now is the time to be looking to replace your existing old computer(s). If you were considering buying a new PC or laptop then the planned increase to VAT rates should encourage you to get sorted before the New Year.

Your old machine is likely to be getting noisier, slower and hotter. Over time dust is sucked into the machine and covers the components and starts to block the fans and vents, increasing the temperature of everything and demanding the fans to run faster and for longer. Overheating components are likely to result in a more rapid system failure.

Lenovo EdgeOlder computer processor chips were not designed to run economically. Speed was king and they would run as fast as possible. Unfortunately they ran at 100% speed and power for 100% of the time. The modern computer processors in both PCs and laptops, like the Intel Core2Duo and new Core i Series, are designed to be energy efficient so that they can run longer on battery in laptops and generally use less electricity for day to day tasks but can increase or decrease their speeds according to the task requirements.

Everyone is encouraged to replace their 100w light bulbs with energy-efficient ones but an old PC can be consuming 200w, which is like leaving 2 lights on – and that doesn’t include your monitor which could be another 100w or more. A modern laptop in contrast could consume just 60w whilst in-use and charging the battery.

Many people were put off buying a new machine when they heard bad things about MS Windows Vista, how slow it was, how often it appeared to freeze or crash and that they had to upgrade all their other programs. MS Windows 7, its replacement, is much better. It starts faster, rarely freezes, and runs much more smoothly and efficiently. It is much more user-friendly to older programs that would run on Windows XP and has new features such as the easy to use backup software.

The choice between a desktop PC and a laptop has now been joined by netbooks, slates (and iPads), MediaCentres and All-in-one touch-sensitive devices. Choose wisely and buy something that meets your needs. Something around £400 will get you a good laptop for day-to-day  internet, email and word processing; For gaming, a PC with dedicated graphics is probably more cost-effective.