Home Office-Mustek ScanExpress A3 1200S Flatbed Scanner

Pro: super scanner, fast and great images. Con: Mustek-specific software. Trivial control and zero integration with other software: cannot use it with VueScan.

Well, despite reading the bad reviews for Mustek products on here, I thought I'd risk it, as I am profecient with computers and had no need for their poor software as I already have Photoshop. I was prepared to spend some time setting this up, aware of the potential issues. However, I have no idea if the scanner even works, as I could not install any drivers. I used the ones provided, downloaded the latest from Mustek's site and elsewhere, tried hacks I searched for on the net etc etc. I spent 48 hours in total trying to get a driver to work, but without success. Mustek's support e mails were returned undeliverable, their support web site has gone down (after they reported slow bandwidth due to high usage from customers - there's a clue!) You could be lucky, the supplied driver could work fine on your machine. And you could have a usable but basic A3 scanner at a very low price. But even then, I'd recommend you get some better software, as this software provided is appalling! Good luck. I am going to pay more for a better machine...that works.

Absolutely fantastic A3. David P.

I have previously had a Mustek A3 600 scanner which although a bit clunky physically, didn't give me any problems until I got liquid spilt onto the glass which discoloured the white calibration bar under the top cover, which bar is inaccessible to clean, being glued under the scan glass. This spillage resulted in bars of varying brightness on scans I couldn't easily fix. So lesson learnt, do not leave coffee mugs on top of your scanner!. I bought the ScanExpress A3 1200S as a replacement. The casing appears identical to my previous scanner. Warning: this scanner is VERY noisy, making a loud burring buzzing noise during a scan, against this it is very hard to find an A3 scanner at a reasonable price, so I'm reasonably happy with the compromise. I haven't noticed any improvement in image quality over my previous scanner, but I am still mainly scanning CD Booklets and A4 letters at 600dpi. I don't bother with exact colour matching, but to my eye the results look pretty good after aligning and cropping in Photoshop Elements. I have noticed that the preview and scanning functions, and import into PE seem a lot faster than with the A3 600 that I had previously (Possibly upgrade from USB 1.1 to USB 2 in the interface?). I would like to use the scanner to scan LP covers. This A3 scanner means the process can be reduced to two scans which can then be stitched together. With an A4 scanner you need to do 4 scans and the stitching is much more complicated. There is a FREE Microsoft image stitcher available for download which more or less automates the stitching (Image Composite Editor). A number of hobbyists just cut out the edges of their LP covers when producing a scan, but this sometimes looks obvious. The biggest drawback to this A3 scanner seems to be in common with all domestic A4 or A3 scanners. There is a raised bevel around the scan glass which means any oversized object, such as an LP cover, cannot be laid completely level on the scan glass. This means that the raised edge is slightly out of focus when scanning, and that complicates stitching of scans together. I modified the case of my previous A3 scanner to remove about 12inches of the bevel on one side, so I could lay the LP sleeve flat. I won't do anything like that on this scanner, at least until the warranty runs out! Obviously removing the bevel doesn't mean you can scan more of the LP cover at once, but it does fix the focus problem. I have the idea of laying another scan glass into the scanning area to raise the LP cover above the bevel level, but I suspect this might mean a deterioration in the focus of the output scan. I really do wish scanner manufacturers could address the bevel problem without charging an arm and a leg to do it. Maybe just extend the glass to the edge of the scanner and glue it to the lower case surround. It isn't as if Mustek doesn't already glue the scan glass to the bevels - yes, I have had a good look inside my old scanner to see if I could reuse the scan glass! Overall this scanner does what I need it to do for a reasonable price, and it doesn't have much competition. I had knocked off a couple of stars because whenever I start a scan the Mustek scan interface software switches off my Kaspersky Total Internet Security anti-virus and firewall, so I can only safely use the scanner if I am not connected to the Internet. My old Mustek A3 600 software did not do this! I haven't found any fixes on the Internet unfortunately. And in case you wondered, I have virus and malware scanned the Mustek software and whole PC regularly, and neither Kspersky or Malwarebytes Anti-Maware reports any problem with the Mustek software. I am using Windows 10 Home, 64 bit. I haven't tried using different software such as Vuescan to replace the Mustek software, but that might be a solution. Lastly, this is a TWAIN scanner. Photoshop Elements does not support TWAIN scanners out of the box any more, but does come with a driver on the CD you have to move into place. Look up the details on the Adobe website. To conclude, basically you get what you pay for. There are later and more expensive Mustek A3 scanners available.

I bought this as a cheaper alternative to the Mustek 1200HS which I have used before and found to be a good solid machine. The 1200S worked fine on my Mac running OS 10.95 inspite of some of the other reviews. Admittedly it took a few goes to get it to work, turning off the Mac and then restarting the software, but it works ok. Nothing fancy, and the image acquire software, which is common to both machines, is basic but functional. The 1200S is noticeably slower and clunkier than the 1200HS. For the occasional A3 scanning the 1200S is fine, if you are going to be doing regular daily scans the £80 upgrade to the 1200HS is certainly worth it.

My last Mustek A3 scanner lasted me for a good 10 years. Unfortunately it gave up the ghost so i've purchased another and very happy with it.

it broke after 1 month. it started scanning only half of the scan area and then stopped being recognisable to my computer… i do not reccommend

No doubt this scanner can do the job. It is an A3 scanner for an exceptionally low price.It came bundled with usb and power cable. However you only get what you pay for. The general construction appears a little flimsy, so I am not certain how long this product would last if it was in heavy use.The bundled software includes Abbey fine reader which provides OCR facilities, one of the best on the market. However I only awarded 3 stars because the installation instructions were very sparse, it did not detail how to set up and use the software at all. In the end I returned the item for a refund and for a few pounds more purchased an Epsom. A much better quality product with decent instructions. No doubt the Mustec is a good buy but I really wanted something more substantial for the type of work I intend doing.