Hi Reader,

We are Family Photo Keepers because we believe we’ve been entrusted with safeguarding our family’s photo memory collection. I’ve done some research on the top photo scanners on Amazon, and wanted to share my thoughts to help you find the best one for your needs. I only have one scanner on my Amazon Prime Days sale page, and I wanted to tell you about a few more here.

If you’ve got a lot of photos to digitize, the Epson FastFoto FF-680W is worth a look. It can zip through 30 photos per minute! The image quality is top-notch too. Just be prepared for the higher price tag, although when I bought mine during the last Amazon Prime Days sale, they offered me 6 monthly interest-free payments. (And you can resell it when you’re done).

This scanner was actually developed with folks like us in mind. The team behind it really understood the challenges we face, like dealing with delicate old photos, managing massive collections, and trying to find the time to get it all done. This is because they developed it with input from The Photo Managers, my professional organization. They put a ton of thought into designing a solution that makes the whole process quick, easy, and worry-free.

Some of my favorite features:

• Scans photos at up to 1 photo per 2 seconds at 600 ppi - so you can digitize hundreds in no time
• Handles photos up to 8x10 inches, including damaged or curled originals (they include a plastic sheath that those can go into, and they still scan beautifully!)
• Automatically enhances and organizes your photos as it scans. The color correction works really well except on really faded photos or really old ones. And I teach a different way to use their organization system than they do - and it really saves you time!
• Wireless connectivity so you can place it anywhere and control it from your phone or laptop

I bought the FastFoto to replace my professional Kodak feed scanner that cost 4-5 times as much. Although it’s not as solid feeling as the Kodak (which weighs a ton), it does just as good - if not better - of a job.

The Plustek ePhoto Z300 is a great budget-friendly option - it’s compact, easy to use, and can handle both photos and documents. The downside is the image quality isn’t as high as some of the pricier models.

For the tech-savvy Family Photo Keepers, the ScanSnap iX1400 and iX1600 are awesome. They’re super fast, produce excellent scans, and have handy features like automatic cropping and color correction. The learning curve is a bit steeper though.

And don’t count out the classic Epson Perfection V600 - although it’s a flatbed scanner, not a feed scanner, it’s a workhorse that delivers great results for photos, film negatives, and slides. The software is a bit dated, but it’s reliable and user-friendly (although you can use Vuescan instead if you have problems - I have not had problems with mine).

I also want to break down how this compares to having your photos digitized at Forever. You can take a look at how many photos you have and figure out the best way to spend your money (1 inch of stacked photos, pressed down or tight-loaded and standing up in a box, is around 100 photos).

• The regular price works out to $1.20 per photo. But I always say never pay the full retail price at Forever. They often have sales, and they also have the Forever Club (kind of like the old Christmas Clubs that banks used to offer where you make a payment into an account each month and withdraw it when you’re ready to spend it and they give you an additional 5% off - and you can start or stop anytime, but to get the discount you need to be enrolled in it at the time of purchase).
• Regular price plus Forever Club discount works out to $1.14 per photo.
• 25% off works out to $0.90 per photo.
• 25% off plus 5% Club discount works out to $0.84 per photo.
• 40% off works out to $0.72 per photo.
• 40% off plus 5% Club Discount works out to $0.66 per photo.

If you decide to go this route, I advise signing up for Forever Club before purchasing a digitization box. Depending on the number of photos (curate them first!), you likely only need a small or medium regular box. One item is 25 photos, so a small box has a credit built in for 50 photos. But, you can put as many into the box as you can fit (25 per bag and you can use Ziplocs if they don’t send you enough bags), and as long as you send the box back within 90 days (they’ll tell you the date), whatever discount you got on the box, they will also apply to the additional items.

Let me know if you have any questions! I’m happy to provide more details to help you find the perfect photo scanner for preserving your family memories.

Warmly,

Fancy

I help overwhelmed family photo keepers become memory preservation masters so they can enjoy their memories now and leave meaningful collections for future generations.

Did Someone Forward You This Email?

Sign up for your own copy - plus all the freebies - here: