Raven Original Document Scanner Review | We love it!

Raven Original Document Scanner Datasheet Explained

First of all let’s analyze the scanning size. This goes up to the A4 format, so more or less you can scan just about any paper up to this size.

Then it is the resolution. No surprises here, as you would expect the optical dpi should be 600.

The scanner comes with a CIS sensor, which means the device is more suited to documents rather than high quality images. But you won’t use it for artwork, will you.

The great thing about this scanner is that it’s dedicated to document sharing. It comes with a Wi-Fi (2.4ghz) and Ethernet connection, to allow you to transfer images very quickly.

The scanning speed of the device will go up to 17 Sheets per minute in simplex mode.

When scanning automatic duplex, the scanning speed will double up to 34 images per minute.

The Raven manufacturer estimates tht the device can go up to 1500 sheets every day, which is not the highest duty cycle, but it should be enough for most demands.

The Raven Original Document Scanner works with Direct Connection driver interface, but it can also work without a computer if needed, just like any other digital sender.

Roller replacement is done after around 300.000 sheets, which is quite a lot considering such a small device.

Specs for paper handling

We love that the scanner is designed with multifeed detection through an ultrasonic sensor. This will detect if two or more pages are overlapped when going through the scanner.

As you would expect with a small scanner, the ADF size is around 50 sheets of paper.

With a sheet thickness of 5 to 56 lb, this Raven model will process over 90% of the documents that are out there.

A Long Document Scanning Mode is available with the Raven Original Document Scanner, so that will prove handy when working with abnormally long documents.

Raven Original Document Scanner accesories unboxing

Let’s get to the dimension of the device. The Raven Original is in the average of what you’d expect with this kind of document scanner. To be more precise, it’s around 12.5 by 6.6 by 7.4 inches. This makes it really easy to move it around your office and just share it physically between users.

The weight, around 6 lbs makes it less heavy than most document scanners out there. I would assume the touchscreen adds a bit of weight, but it’s well worth it in my opinion.

In the box you will find all the cables you need and some users manuals. These are also available online, so if you don’t have enough space around, you can throw it away, and find the online version very easily.

Some will argue that the bundled software is on the low side. Well, I would agree with them, but you also have to take into account that this is a walk up scanner. Just use it as it is, a good digital sender, and you won’t regret it.

Features for Productivity

Either you are scanning an exact A4 or a smaller sized page, the scanner will automatically detect its size.

Auto rotation seems to be missing on this Raven scanner which is strange to say the least. That is something you’d expect would not be missing from any scanner these days.

Auto color detection is available and this feature will definitely help when scanning mixed batches.

Also, the other feature that improves productivity is the blank page detection feature. This will help you detect white pages automatically and also remove them without your manual intervention.

One of the features that is missing, and which I would prefer having is the multi stream feature. This usually let’s you scan multiple streams of documents, for example scanning both in color and in black and white, for the same set of documents .

Quality of images

The background smoothing options is great when you scan text or office documents. I would not use it for images or higher quality scans, as it will not work as well as it does for standard documents.

The page margin cleanup feature cleans the edge of your documents and releases a higher quality scan than without having such a feature.

Deskew is standard. If your document passes at a wrong alignment through the scanner, this setting will automatically correct it.

One thing that this scanner is missing is the hole punch removal. I guess it would have helped to have it, but considering you won’t be doing production scanning, you can live without it.

Should you have the Streaks Detection function always turned on? Especially for text documents I recommend you leave it on.

Extra Features

If you want to scan fragile documents with this scanner, I would recommend having the manual feed enabled. This decreases the speed of the scanner and let’s you feed the pages one by one.

There are some prodcution features with this scanner is missing.

First is the barcode discovery option. Usually the software of the scanner is able to read just about any barcode or patch code that it detects on a page.

After that, it uses the data for indexing documents or other times to separate documents automatically.

The Raven Original document scanner does not feature any of these options, which might leave you a bit dissapointed. It also does not feature a zone OCR indexing feature.

Standard OCR is available though, so for most of the scanning you do, you can have a page scanned to PDF and have the text with OCR .

Raven Original Document Scanner driver, manual & brochure

The software driver for this scanner can be installed from here.

Do you own this scanner and don’t know how to use it? Here’s the official user guide at this link.

Looking for some more specifications? Download the brochure here.

Raven Original Document Scanner vs Raven Pro Document Scanner

Here are the key differences between these two scanners:

Both the Raven Original and the Raven Pro document scanners are A4 devices. So there is nothing to be gained here in my opinion. They both feature CIS scanning sensors and have an optical resolution of 600dpi.

I would say that for image quality alone and most features, they are pretty similar devices. The differences lie in the productivity features, more or less when having to scan larger volumes of documents.

For example the ADF capacity. The original comes with a 50 sheet ADF while the Raven Pro can achieve double that, at around 100 sheets.

Then it’s the speed of the thing. The Raven Pro is actually fairly fast, scanning around 60 images per minute in simplex and 120 images in duplex mode.

Practically you are buying the Raven Pro just when you have larger batches of documents that you want to scan and send. It is more suited to that, rather than for extra processing features you might think of.

Raven Original Document Scanner vs Fujitsu Scansnap IX1500

Here are the key differences between these two scanners:

These 2 devices are actually quite similar document scanners. I would think about them as competitor document scanners. Let’s start first of all with what is more or less the same and then what separates them.

Both are fitted with a CIS sensor, which means the equipment is lighter and on the cheaper side of the price. You won’t see any major differences in terms of image quality. Maybe if you run the Scansnap IX500 with one of the Fujitsu desktop drivers, in that case it should be better.

In the case of operation, both feature a touchscreen to help users navigate the scanning menus. I would say the Raven Original wins this round, as the large touchscreen makes it easier to operate it.

The scanning speed is one of the differences between the two. On the Fujtsu scanner you will be able to achieve double the scanning speed, reaching nearly 30 pages per minute when scanning simplex, and double that when scanning duplex.

There are more differences between the two, but I guess they are both in the price range that whichever you buy, you will get a very good machine.