HP Scanner Has Much to be Modest About

Hewlett-Packard's 600-dpi, 30-bit color HP ScanJet 6100C strongly resembles

the HP ScanJet 4c it replaces. As with its predecessor, the ScanJet 6100C's

street price ($799) places it squarely between the current crop of low-end,

sub-$400 flatbed scanners and their professional-quality cousins in the

$1,400-to-$1,800 range. Also like the ScanJet 4c, HP's new scanner includes

Adobe Photoshop LE rather than the full edition of Photoshop. It's the

inheritance of its forerunner's limitations in scan quality and the aging

DeskScan II plug-in, though, that keep the ScanJet 6100C from being a suitable

budget substitute for the professional units.

The ScanJet 6100C captures color that's more eye-grabbing than it is accurate.

The tones...