Once the image is lined up, and you’ve allowed the white balance to settle. Remember, this is the generation that grew up on the box brownie. There's no mention of this in the manual, though, which can leave the uninitiated faffing around through a couple of dodgy blurred grabs. It actually clicks into place each time you move it on a slide. Lining it up seems to be an imprecise science until you realise that as long as the slide holder is the right-side up, with the trimmed corner going into the machine first. You can see what’s potentially being scanned on the viewing window in the software.

You choose the resolution, colour depth and file format in the software, 24- or 48-bit colour depth up to 3600 dpi and TIFF or JPEG. You first have to load the film or slides into the appropriate holders, and then slide the holder into the device itself. Keep the slide holder right side up with the trimmed corner going in first Once the software’s installed, simply plug in the USB plug, and you’re on the way. You may well come unstuck trying to match it to what’s happening on your screen while you’re installing the software. The manual is even more basic – but not in a good way. Exposure and colour balance are entirely automatic. The scanner carries nothing in the way of controls except a power lead and an inch-wide Copy button.

And there’s a four-element glass lens, forever stuck at F2.0. The light source is a trio of white LEDs. The guts of the machine include a five-megapixel sensor, which will give you 1800dpi scans, or 3600dpi with interpolation.

It feels kind of sexy, if you like that sort of thing. The scanner itself is about 20cm high, with a black matte coating. Neither is it an add-on to your already stretched absolutely-everything-in-one printer.įor your 50 quid, you get the scanner, holders for slides and black-and-white fill and negative film, and a disc with the drivers and Arcsoft’s Photoimpression 6 software. It’s clearly not one of the professional-level jobs pushed by the same companies who actually make pro-camera kit. You might consider VuPoint Solutions' basic slide/negative scanner. VuPoint Solutions' FS-C1-VP: 5Mp sensor for up to 1800dpi scans

Vupoint solutions fs c1 vp film scanner