Heather Morra

Epson Perfection 1250 Photo

Priced at $149, the Epson Perfection 1250 Photo is one of the least expensive scanners Epson has ever produced for SOHO and home users. Featuring 48-bit color and 1200-by-2400-dpi resolution, this versatile unit scans both reflective and transparent materials right out of the box. The bundled 35mm transparency unit comes with sturdy templates to hold slides or filmstrips securely in place when scanning. We rated its on-screen and print scan quality as Good, with accurate color and sharp, crisp details.
The 1250 Photo suffers from lethargic performance, especially when scanning at the 1200-dpi resolution typically used for enlarging small images, such as 35mm film. The 1250 Photo's throughput of 385 kilobytes per second was markedly less than that of any scanner that made the SOHO chart, well behind even the chart's slowest, the Canon CanoScan N1240U, which clocked in at 488 KBps throughput. Two other limitations: You can't get live technical support on weekends, and you can't add an automatic document feeder.
Four one-touch buttons provide shortcuts to common functions--scanning, printing, attaching images to e-mails, and scanning to the Internet (via Epson PhotoCenter, a free photo-sharing Web site). The Perfection 1250 Photo's software isn't as impressive as other (albeit pricier) Epson scanners we've reviewed. Bundled applications include an image editor (ArcSoft PhotoImpression 3.0), an optical character recognition program (NewSoft Presto OCR), and printer utility (Epson PhotoPrinter)--but no document management tools. However, all of the scanner software (including the scanner driver) is commendably easy to use, even for novices.
Handy push buttons and simple software make the Epson Perfection 1250 Photo a good choice for those who don't need fast performance but do need a well-priced hassle-free scanner that produces attractive images.

Buying Information

Epson Perfection 1250 Photo USB, 1200 by 2400 dpi, 10.9 by 17.2 by 2.6 inches (width by depth by height), 5.5 pounds, 8.5-by-11.7-inch scanning area; includes transparency adapter, no optional automatic document feeder. One-year warranty; toll-call technical support (12 hours) on weekdays only. $ 149 USB, 1200 by 2400 dpi, 10.9 by 17.2 by 2.6 inches (width by depth by height), 5.5 pounds, 8.5-by-11.7-inch scanning area; includes transparency adapter, no optional automatic document feeder. One-year warranty; toll-call technical support (12 hours) on weekdays only. http://www.epson.com 800/722-6538