Travel Scanners

Okay, you're on the plane reading that history text that you've put off for so long, and there's a paragraph in there that you simply must quote in your Ph.D. dissertation. Are you going to start rifling through your carry-on luggage for paper and pen, or are you going to whip out your trusty travel scanner and scan in that text in a couple of seconds flat?

Travel scanners are small, lightweight scanners -- small enough so that they can be held like a slightly oversized pen -- that can be swiped over a line of text and stored, for later upload to a computer (or PDA). Some of these will have small screens on them so you can check to make sure that the scan has come in properly.

There are two kinds of travel scanners. Some, like the QuickLink Pen, are held exactly like a pen or pencil, and scan a line at a time. Others, like the TravelScan Pro, are slowly drawn lengthwise across a page or photo.

These are, of course, very limited in their scope -- they can hold only a certain amount of information at one time, and using them for larger amounts for data can become tedious. But they can be useful when you're on the road, or simply away from your desk.

Travel Scanners

• Wizcom QuickLink-Pen Elite Handheld Scanners
  
• Ambir TravelScan Pro 600