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CardScan turns cards into contacts

CardScan Personal is a compact business card scanner paired with powerful (though Windows-only) contact management software that makes short work of transforming a stack of business cards into useful information.

The 7.6-ounce scanner measures 4.8 inches wide, 3.3 inches deep, and 1.5 inch high, so it won't take up much room in your bag. (The device even comes with a carrying pouch that keeps the scanner and USB cable together.) According to the company, the CardScan can scan a monochrome card in 5 seconds and a polychrome card in a few more seconds. That's … Read more

Underexposed blog: Links of the day

VueScan Scanning Software - Software for getting more out of your scanner, including high bit depth DNG images. A useful thing if you want to use your scanner as a camera. Naked Light 1.0 beta due this week - The programmer behind this Mac-only image-editing application seems a little taxed, but he says the 1.0 beta will ship this week. He's on a leave of absense to write it now, though. YouTube - Pentax K20D - A useful video intro to the Pentax K20D from Pentax. I wish my camera had a built-in intervalometer. YouTube - Pentax K200D intro … Read more

Scan photos and business cards on the run

If you frequent trade shows or spend a lot of time making new business contacts, you invariably wind up with stacks of business cards and the tedious task of adding the info to your contact manager. A card scanner can speed up the process considerably; now's your chance to scoop one up for $16.99, shipped, after a $60 mail-in rebate.

The Plustek OptiCard 820 is a portable color scanner designed for business cards and photos up to 4x6 inches. It weighs just under 7 ounces and draws power from your PC's USB port, so there's no … Read more

Get a multifunction printer for $17 after rebate

Here's the scoop: Buy.com has the Epson Stylus CX7450 printer/scanner/copier for $70. They also have a deal going where you can get a $70 mail-in rebate if you purchase a digital camera at the same time. Any digital camera. Like the $9.99 Argus Keychain Digital Camera. Add $6.79 for shipping and your out-the-door price is $86.78. Final price after rebate: $16.78. Woo!

The CX7450 employs four separate ink cartridges (one each for black, cyan, magenta, and yellow) and promises print speeds of up to 28 pages per minute. It includes a memory-card … Read more

Print, scan, and copy with $34 all-in-one

Ooh! Here's what you can do with the $34 you save on the iPod touch. (See previous post.) Wal-Mart has the HP DeskJet F2110 all-in-one printer for exactly that price, though you will have to pay shipping and/or sales tax.

The F2110 prints, scans, and copies in color. It features a 100-sheet input tray and works with Windows and Mac systems. You can find the complete specs on the product page--and almost nowhere else. Curiously, this model doesn't appear on HP's own site. Too new? Maybe a Wal-Mart exclusive? I'm not sure, but I can … Read more

Print, fax, copy, and scan for $59.99 shipped

All-in-one printers are insanely handy to have around. Consider: you can make copies--color copies--without having to run out to Kinko's. You can send faxes on those rare occasions when e-mail won't do. You can scan documents for electronic storage. Oh, and you can print.

Most of these multifunction wonders start at around $100, but Buy.com is offering the Lexmark X8350 for $59.99, shipped, after a $50 mail-in rebate.

The specs look pretty typical for an all-in-one, but with a few highlights. First, you can connect your digital camera or pop in its memory card, preview photos … Read more

A strip of paper that speaks

Now, your pictures can speak for themselves.

Labels That Talk, from Kailua Hawaii, has come up with software that lets consumers print high-density bar codes on strips of paper that store recorded voice messages. Scan the paper with a cheap handheld scanner--or a cell phone with a built-in scanner--and it plays back a message. The strip of paper you see in the picture can hold about eight kilobits, enough for a ten-second voice message, said Ken Berkun, president and founder.

"We're trying to get it to twenty seconds," he said.

The idea is to let consumer enhance … Read more

Hard drive gets more secure on the go

Portable hard drives are becoming cheaper with larger storage sizes, but one of the most overlooked areas is the issue of data security.

A new model from Seoul-based Sarotech, the curiously named "Cutie Bio," has integrated a fingerprint scanner into an external USB 2.0 drive. With a swipe of your finger, the data is instantly accessible; once it's removed from the PC, the information becomes encrypted gibberish.

At about $58.55, we would say it would seem a good deal for everyone--except for one small detail. The fingerprint software works with only Windows machines, which takes … Read more

LinkScanner Lite exposes malware "surprises" in real time

Those of you who haven't yet installed a link scanning or Web site rating program for your Firefox or IE-based browser should hop to it--and consider using LinkScanner Lite when you do.

I've been using LinkScanner Lite and McAfee Site Adviser on both Firefox and IE browsers. Overkill? No way. Each program serves the greater goal of alerting you to dangerous links but differ in their approaches.… Read more