A DIY document scanner for iPhones

(Credit: Kyleakoch.com)

All right, this isn't the flatbed scanner we are more familiar with, but more rightfully a stand for the iPhone. What it does is let you take 8.5 x 11-inch documents on a fixed pedestal, so your snaps look consistent. It seems like a DIY project cobbled together given the detailed pictures on the creator's Web site, but of course, there's always an easier way out of the manual hassle. Which is to buy it from his online shop for a hefty $45.

(Crave Asia via fosfor)

[tw1975]

The most expensive iPhone app to date?? <br /> <br />LOL

[codynews]

The guy needs to make a OCR software app to go along with this. Snap a pic of the document, and have the OCR tool convert it. Text too small? Then there should be a closer spot to put the iphone. Since it couldn't take a pic of the whole doc so close, the closer spot on the stand could have 4 different poitns so you could take four pictures, and have the OCR work on each and give you a single doc file.<br /><br />Just an idea.

[heulenwolf]

OCR apps seem to universally stink. Pair this rig with some kind of server-based OCR that's always adapting and improving with the resources of Google or the like behind it and you've got yourself something really nifty.

[zzzzbest]

Yeah, because if you put the "resources" on the server it magically makes it work better, right? Just like how you can buy a special kind of fruit juice and flush the "toxins" from your body.

[Someone-else]

Why "for iPhone"? ANY cellphone with a camera can do that, and many can do better than the iPhone's 2.0 or 3.2 Mpx camera.<br />CNET is almost losing (another) visitor because of all this Apple stuff, even in articles that actually have nothing to do with Apple.

[kyleakoch]

You can currently purchase my latest version, the ScanDock for iPhone for $14.99 plus shipping from my Ponoko Showoom: http://bit.ly/scandock<br /><br />This could certainly be adapted for any cellphone or camera, which is why I have made the plans available for free in my Ponoko Showroom: http://bit.ly/scanplans