I've had the Epson V600 Scanner since 2010. I compared it side-by-side with the Epson Perfection V370 Color Photo, Image, Film, Negative & Document Scanner with scan-to-cloud & 4800 x 9600 dpi (B11B207221) using the Epson software and also Vuescan by Hamrick Software.
Here is the concise comparison, based on the most common scanning tasks:
QUICK DOCUMENT SCAN: Both scanners handle this with one button. Both use LEDs instead of fluorescent bulbs, so there is no warm-up delay. There's virtually no difference between them. Use the included Epson software.
OCCASIONAL PHOTO SCANS: Both scanners excel at this, again with one button. No difference between them. Use the Epson Software
OCR: Both scanners include OCR software. Depending on your application, both do an acceptable job. Take your time, line up the pages carefully, rescan when a page has lots of errors. Neither scanner has an automatic document feeder, so you won't be hand-feeding 100 pages without some fatigue. No difference between the scanners.
BOOK/OBJECT SCANS: This is something I didn't know I would need before getting the V600. But if the scanner does not have a hinged lid designed for objects thicker than a piece of paper, it will be a major inconvenience to scan a book or a 3D object (I've scanned remote controls, artwork, school projects, etc.). Both scanners have a well-designed hinged lid, and work very well with thick books.
FILM SCANNING: This is where you start to see a difference between these two scanners. The V600 delivers a significantly better result than the V370 with transparencies. It's resolution is 6400 dpi vs 4800 dpi for the V600. This makes a real and noticeable difference with film, because the original is small and you want all the resolution you can get. In addition, the V600 has a secondary infrared lamp for film scanning, which can make a significant difference for color slides and negatives because it makes dust "disappear." The V370 does not have an IR lamp.
HIGH RESOLUTION SCANNING: Many people put a bit much emphasis on scanner resolution. The fact is, if you are not scanning film or doing some type of technical work where you zoom way in to an image, you will seldom scan a full-size original at the full resolution of the scanner, because each scan will be hundreds of megabytes! The resolution of the V600 is much higher than that of the V370, which will only make a difference if you scan film or do highly-detailed work. If you don't already know you have an application like this for the 6400 dpi of the V600, it is unlikely you will need more resolution than the 4800 dpi of the V370.
EPSON SOFTWARE (included): The Epson software has gotten better with every release. The newest version for the V370 does photo stitching and direct scanning to cloud accounts, in addition to one-button scanning and photo repair. Epson gives you four modes to choose from, each with a few more controls to tweak. My daughter will not touch Vuescan (see below) because the one-click Epson software does a great job for many jobs, and the Professional mode gives access to most settings to improve your scans. Mac and Windows are both well supported.
VUESCAN SUPPORT: Vuescan from Hamrick Software is an amazing third-party product that gives you significantly better control of every aspect of your scans. I've used it since buying the V600. I downloaded the latest release, which directly supports the V370, to do this review. However, I realized something: The included Epson software has gotten so good, casual or intermediate scanner users are unlikely to ever need Vuescan. And if you do need the extra control and features of Vuescan, you probably want the V600 scanner.
This is the key finding of this comparison: If you are the kind of person who will spend many hours scanning hundreds of photos, and learning how to tweak every possible setting to get the best scan before importing it into PhotoShop for further manipulation, then you want the V600. If you are an a less technical user who doesn't adjust digital photos in Photoshop or tweak scans in Vuescan or scan film, then you will be thrilled with the V370 with its included software. Both of these products are light years ahead of what scanners could do 10 years ago.
SUMMARY: Buy the V370 unless you are a PhotoShop guru who loves to tweak, or you have a lot of highly-detailed scanning work that requires 6400 dpi resolution. The V600 will do a significantly better job on negatives or slides, but if you have lots of film to scan, look into a film scanner.
Original V600 review from 2010:
I got rid of my last scanner about 12 years ago. Back then, they were slow, worked poorly with slides and negatives, and the drivers caused unmitigated grief for your computer. So it was with some trepidation that I installed the V600 onto our MacBook running Snow Leopard and HP laptop running Vista.
I need not have worried. The included software performed flawlessly, and the scanner creates amazing scans even when using the fully automatic settings. I have uploaded three scans, all using the automatic settings:
* White horse, scanned from a print made from a digital camera
* Candy scanned from objects on the scanner bed
* A dog's tail, also scanned from the the live object
All three scans (especially the candy and dog's tail) are courtesy of my 12-year old daughter, who is getting very creative with the V600. Epson has delivered software that makes the whole scanning experience easy while still delivering high quality results.
The film scanner uses special trays (included) and a separate light source, and delivers 6400 dpi. The automatic results are decent, actually a lot better than my neighbor's scanner that cost three times as much as this one. But for great film or negative results, grab a copy of VueScan on the web. Scanners are actually very complex animals, with color profiles a myriad of available settings (which are mostly kept under the hood of the included Epson software). If you want to tweak your results, VueScan is the best solution. It directly supports the V600, and includes profiles for dozens of different negative and transparency film stocks. The results are substantially better than what you can get with the included software.
I haven't found a flaw with this product yet. 5 stars for sheer delight.
Epson Perfection V600 Color Photo, Image, Film, Negative & Document Scanner (Renewed Premium)
4.2
| 6,935 ratingsPrice: 249.99
Last update: 12-03-2024
About this item
Epson Certified-Refurbished Product - Epson’s quality-assurance team reviews each refurbished product. They have been inspected and tested to ensure they perform properly.
Create extraordinary enlargements from film: 6400 x 9600 dpi for enlargements up to 17 Inches x 22 Inches. Maximum Scan Area 8.5 x 11.7 inches. TPU 2.7 x 9.5 inches
Remove the appearance of dust and scratches from film: Digital ICE for Film
Remove the appearance of tears and creases from photos: Digital ICE for prints
Restore faded color photos with one touch: Epson easy photo fix included
Create extraordinary enlargements from film: 6400 x 9600 dpi for enlargements up to 17 Inches x 22 Inches. Maximum Scan Area 8.5 x 11.7 inches. TPU 2.7 x 9.5 inches
Remove the appearance of dust and scratches from film: Digital ICE for Film
Remove the appearance of tears and creases from photos: Digital ICE for prints
Restore faded color photos with one touch: Epson easy photo fix included
Product information
Product Dimensions | 11 x 19 x 4.61 inches |
---|---|
Item Weight | 9 pounds |
ASIN | B00IN92AKI |
Item model number | B11B198011-N |
Customer Reviews |
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars
6,935 ratings
4.2 out of 5 stars |
Best Sellers Rank | #4,872 in Office Products (See Top 100 in Office Products) #4 in Flatbed Scanners #418 in Renewed Office Products |
Date First Available | February 26, 2014 |
Manufacturer | Epson |