Visioneer OneTouch 8900 USB Scanner

I bought it from a reseller and was easy to install and worked great for about 6 months and one day for no apparent reason I started getting "The scanner optical module is locked" error. Since then I have tried reinstalling drivers as well as software with no results. People I have read recommeding reisntalling OS. But to me if you have to reinstall the OS to make a scanner work, the piece is not worth having. I will just look for another scanner.

I bought this refurbished and it's a good thing too because I missed the locking problem a lot of people have been mentioning. The scanner worked decently in the beginning when I was using it in Windows 98, sometimes I'd have to fight with it to get it to work right, but it usually did.

Then when I upgraded to XP Pro SP2, it installed fairly easy. But intermittantly, and with increasing frequency, their XP driver crashes (usually in mid-scan), and I constantly have to reinstall the driver to keep working on my scans.

The scans I have made with this were all beautiful, and when it's working, it's a pleasure to use. But Visioneer writes really crappy drivers. There's no way their XP driver got a real "Designed for XP" rating from Windows Hardware Quality Labs, no designed-for-xp software would work so poorly and place all the blame on SP2. I have been wondering whether to go to the hassle to dual-boot to Windows 98 whenever I want to use the scanner, or to buy a new scanner. I think I'm going to buy a different brand, and you probably should too.

I don't know what the heck everyone else is complaining about. I've had this scanner for more than two years and the only problem I've had is that I now have to jiggle the cord to get the power supply to stay on. That's probably because I've used the thing so darn much.

I've scanned hundreds of pictures that came out extremely crisp and sharp and have used the TextBridge (OCR) software to scan chapters of books into Word.

The software that comes with this Visioneer 8900 is definitely not intuitive but that's okay with me because I use Corel to do all my photo editing. All it takes is a little patience the first time to learn how to adjust the scanning quality and color. After that, it should be a breeze.

One the downside - this scanner first came out three years ago so it's a bit bulky and there are slimmer, sleeker models now available. But, if you can purchase one used for about $30-$40, it's definitely worth it.

Out of the box it had an intermittant problem. You get an error box that says the optical module is locked. Only it isn't. Go to the web site and they have a virtual troubleshooter that is absolutely of no use. Call the company customer service and they tell you to call tech support,(at $2.00 per minute on a 900 line. Because this is out of production, they don't care. Definitely don't buy this for a quarter. It would be a waste of a good quarter

This is a great scanner for the money. Unfortunately the design engineers made one little mistake which I corrected. It took care of the "scanner locked" problem. Now I love it. The software is great, the ergonomics are great, and it is FAST! To fix it is very simple, and requires no electronic skills.

Added 9-12-04 So many people have emailed me re the fix I decided to add it here. Unfortunately the fix did not work with most of those who emailed me. My Scanner works very well with Win98SE. I suspect many of those with problems are having trouble with some aspect of their software/OS. I frequently Format and reinstall my OS when my machines get sluggish. Re formatting is absolutely necessary in my humble opinion, especially when you are connected. Its like the garage, you have to clean it out once in a while. I pressure wash mine. :-)

My Repair, given freely, so dont sue me:

Remove two screws on left side under rubber plugs. #1 Phillips, thin screw driver needed.
2. Rotate cover with glass up and to the right and pull hooks out of loops. Lay to the side.
3. Remove lock button from base by squeezing hooked ends together, and push out of hole.
4. Grind or sand down protrusions that stick up from bottom of case. They are what the scanner carriage gets wedged on.
5. Check to make sure wire leads to front controls are not pinched to the point of being severed.
6. Clean glass, lube rails with molylube and Re-assemble without lock.

This is what I did. It worked great.

Jim A