Although we are nearly two decades in the digital era, where digital photography and filming completely replaced the old analogue technology, there are still more than half a century’s worth of old photos just waiting to be converted into malleable digital format.
As you are probably aware of, film negatives decay over time, requiring special storage requirements and temperature in order to be archived for the long haul. These requirements are not something that an average person has the means or even knowledge to satisfy.
In short, the sooner you convert your old photos into digital format the better. And thanks to effectively infinite redundancy due to cheap storage solutions, and free cloud-computing services like Dropbox or Microsoft’s OneDrive, you don’t have to worry about ever losing your precious mementos. Not something you could say for physical photos, which can always be lost, damaged, and are subject to natural decay over time. Not to mention that you cannot edit and enhance old photos like you can with digital ones, with even the most basic free software.
The Kodak Scanza Film Scanner
Up until recently, these conversion services were only available at professional studios, for a hefty price tag. But just like with digital photography itself, the conversion technology has become so affordable and efficient, that it is far more cost-effective to buy an actual device than to seek a “professional” to do it for you.
This is where the Kodak Scanza comes in to take care of business, cheaply and without compromising the quality of the final result. It will take in any major color and black-and-white films into its 6 easy-to-load inserts.
Built for Ease of Use
Kodak Scanza can convert every major consumer film you were likely to encounter and use in the last century: 35mm, 126, 110, Super 8 and 8mm film, both negatives and slides. The insertion procedure could not be easier:
- just insert the slide or film in the appropriate slot
- close the insert slot
- slide the negative from right to left as each frame comes into screen view
Even if you only have a small collection of film to convert, for the price of under $200, you will find that it is much cheaper to buy the Kodak Scanza, than to seek out and pay for such a specialized service. Plus the bonus of ensuring your privacy remains intact.
The main engine of the Scanza is a powerful 14/22 megapixel scanner, that within seconds converts all the old film negatives or slides. If you’ve envisioned a large machinery that would be capable of doing this kind of work, you would be wrong. This compact film to digital converter is all that is needed.
With only 5 inches in height and 4.7 inches in diameter, Kodak Scanza is highly portable and space-efficient. Although it has its own 3.5” TFT LCD screen, ensuring its operation is as easy and user-friendly as it can be, you can also plug it into your TV or a computer monitor, thanks to USB and HDMI outputs. It is compatible with both PC and Mac, without any additional software necessary to install; just plug it into your computer via the USB cable and you are ready to go.
The default output file for the conversions is the omniprevalent .JPEG format, making your photos instantly compatible with online upload services and software. With Kodak Scanza you won’t have to buy any additional accessories, as it comes with all the necessary adapters: AC adapter, multiple film insert trays and adapters, HDMI cable, video cable, USB cable, and even a cleaning brush to help you prepare your photos for clean scanning.
If you would like to use it as a self-enclosed system, the Scanza comes with 3 large buttons as the basis for an intuitive operating experience. With these buttons you can easily cycle and select all the program’s integrated applications. Additionally, if you have a microSD card you can press the main camera button once you have scanned a film, and instantly save to the card. You will even see a notification if the card is full.
Conclusion
Keep in mind that, although the whole conversion procedure is extremely easy to complete (even for people who are not tech-savy), if you have a very high volume of film negatives and slides, it will require a lot of manual work. But given its compact size, that is a necessary compromise. Anything that further automates the film-feeding procedure would require a much larger device.
As for the quality of the final conversion, Kodak is a renowned and innovative company founded all the way back in 1888. Much of the visual digital technology you see today is thanks to Kodak, so you can be secure in the knowledge that anything they put their name to it is an insurance of performance.
For this price range you get a result that is comparable to professional studio services offered just a couple of years ago. However, if you require the absolute highest resolution possible it goes without saying that you will also have to go to a higher price range.
For an average user who wants his/her family mementos updated and preserved, Kodak Scanza offers more than you could ask for.
