Konica Minolta DiMAGE Scan Dual IV Film Scanner

The results achieved using this device are outstanding. I bought it in '04 and was running Windows 98. However, I've since purchased a new computer running XP and now I summer from persistent software crashes. I like this scanner enough that I've actually considered buying an inexpensive computer and a copy of Windows 98. However, I'll probably just purchase a new film scanner instead. It's sad to give up such an excellent device because of software issues.

Takes a while to learn to use, but it is worth the time. Resulting digital images are as good as it gets, especially if you select the highest resolution. ONLY drawback - processed about 1200 slides, and then the slide tray broke. KONICA Minolta charges your $40 plus shipping for a piece of plastic worth about 50 cents! The salesperson, however, send me two trays for the $40 plus, one redeeming fact.

Seeking to convert 850+ wedding photo negatives (and 2000+ others) to a digital format, I was happy to find this unit at $200. I have scanned all the wedding photos (at full resolution)... a slow (~10 minutes per tray) but methodical process. The resulting images, about 3000 x 4000 pixels and 4Mbyte (color), 2Mbyte (b/w) JPEGs, look great.

I experimented with manual image correction, but in the end found the automated settings to work well. It was more important to me to be able to load the tray, pop it in, click "go", and walk away. I like the batch function, that is smart enough to assign filenames based on what already exists in a directory. Thus, I could designate my files by DATE-OCCASION-FILM_ROLL_#-NEGATIVE_#. This is really nice, because then I can go back and trace a specific scanned image to a specific negative frame.

This last bit is important because of dust and such, which inevitably make their way into some scans.

The only downside I must mention is that when the unit arrived, the power supply was defective. Because I have a background in electronics, I was able to quickly deduce the power supply was at fault and not the unit. Because I was very busy, I set the unit aside and didn't file a complaint with the manufacturer - and it sounds like were I to do so, I would have had trouble anyhow, considering their buyout by Sony. When I got around to desiring to use the unit, I found another 24VDC power supply in the garage and rewired it to work with the unit. It has worked fine ever since.

I have read enough reviews here to see there is a big problem with failed power supplies. So, if your unit does not at all power up, I'd suggest you mention this issue to tech support.

Oh yes, one more caveat: infrequently, the tray gets stuck and the motor makes a struggling sound. It is obvious. I have found if I nudge the tray inward slightly, it will help the motor pull past whatever slight obstruction it is encountering. It is a finesse move and not often encountered. My recommendation would be to err on being gentle with the unit, as it's a precision instrument.

Excellent scanner for the money. Ideal and reasonable cost for anyone who has large quantites of slides or negeative to archive. Only drawback is if you want to purchase an extra slide or film holder (so you can load one while the other is in the scanner.) I priced online from Sony (who now owns Konica Minolta) and they want $42 plus shipping.

to disk for the computer. Auto feed and scan is simple to use. Software for color correction is excellent as well.