Customer Reviews
I Really Wanted This To Work - Flimsy Film Holders 
2008-07-02
Right out of the box, this was clearly a nice unit. Set-up was hassle free. I had about 300 old slides to scan, as well as 30 rolls of old black and white 35mm film negatives. The software that came with the scanner had some really nice features as well.
I wasn't sure what resolution to set the scans at, so I went on line to get some advice. The prevailing wisdom was 2400 dpi, if you wanted 8 x 10 prints. This resulted in a 20MB file!!! There was a compression setting as well, and I had no idea at all what to set it to, so I experimented, and finally figured out settings that worked. There wasn't really anything in the Epson manual that was very helpful.
The actual scans were good - crisp pictures, worthy of printing. However, after about two rolls of film, I unplugged the scanner, boxed it up, and sent it back. My unresolvable gripe? The film holder would not consistently keep the negatives in place. I had to cut the film into 6 negative sections. This film was from the 40's and 50's, and wanted to stay rolled up. I would put it in the film holders, and quite frequently, they would pop open - quite unexpectedly, and I would have to start all over again. The problem is with the design of the film holder. The top sections that hold the film in place have thin sides, and they flex quite a bit, and won't stay locked into place. For me, this was frustrating, wasn't going to get better, and was a deal breaker.
I ended up getting a Canon CanoScan 8800F, and it is flawless! The film holders are more robust, and I had no popping open issues at all. The quality was every bit as good as the Epson, and interestingly enough, at a high dpi scan rate (2400), I ended up with about a 2MB file - I am really much happier with this unit.
Epson Perfection V500 Photo Scanner 
2008-06-13
This has got to be the best scanner on the market right now that is jus below professional. The clarity, ease, and quality of scans are so good, I can't imagine what it is that the professional grade scanners can do that this scanner can't. You will not be disappointed with this product.
Great scanner - Poor software 
2008-06-08
The V500 is an excellent choice for advanced amateurs looking to digitize prints or medium format negatives.
My own experience with 35mm or smaller negatives is not so good and the scans of the these formats may be good only if you wish to create proof files of your negatives. I do not have any experience with slide film medium format scanning.
Epson software is fast but good only if you wish to produce 4" x 6" proof prints or computer screen images.
The best (and they are very good) results I have achieved are using Hamrick's Vuescan software. It has allowed me to produce excellent prints up to 30" wide from 645 Fuji Reala and Pro 160C negatives, but be prepared to wait for a long long time until the scanner finishes his job, can take up to 12 minutes to scan a negative at 4,000 DPI - 48 Bits RBG - DNG raw file that is then easily converted to a TIF or JPG file in VUESCAN.
If you wish to make large prints form 35mmm or smaller film you will not find the V500 suitable for such job, for this purpose, look for a dedicated 35mm scanner,
Um, Vista? Photoshop Elements? 
2008-06-05
First, the product illustration is misleading. You can only scan film in the narrow windlw straight down the middle. Slides won't scan in the position shown in the picture.
Second: If you are a Windows Vista user, well, the version that came with the scanner I just got from Amazon includes a version of Photoshop Elements that won't even start. You get a compatability window warning. The Microsoft stuff vectors you to a page that has updates but no Vista patches. Searching shows that Adobe might eventually bring out a Photoshop Elements 5 for Vista but that it is not available yet, and there is no comment about providing a version 4 patch.
Epson Perfection V500 Photo Scanner 2008-06-04
I've just started to use the Epson. Set-up was easy. Scanning slides at a high resolution (1200 dpi) can take hours for four slides. The operating instructions are all on line, no manual or instructions were included beyond the quick start guide. The on-line instructions don't provide any information on suggested settings for scanning various materials. Having said that, through trial and error I have produced some high quality scans of some of my favorite slides. But converting the many boxes of slides I have to digital format will take years.
Very nice. Lots to learn 2008-07-19
I ordered this on 7-15 and it arrived on 7-19 with free shipping. Very fast. I loaded the software in about 30 minutes and then started to play around with the equipment. I used Epson scan and the included Adobe Photoshop 4.0. Photoshop is up to 6.0 now but what can you say for a free add on program? I needed to go on line to the epson site and the Adobe site to get detailed instructions for operations. The only written instructions that came with the equipment were limited to where to plug which cord into which socket. I scanned 3 35mm color negatives at 6400 dpi with 48 dpi color with 768x1024 screen size and backlight corrections and ICE and it took 15 minutes or 5 minutes per negative That is about as detailed as one can go and so this is the maximum scanning time for those settings. I haven't tried the auto function but I am sure it will be faster but I like the detail that comes with the 6400 dpi imiges. The individual files for these scans were 4.7 to 6.7 MB after working with them in Photoshop. I am very pleased. I have about 1-2000 slides to digitize so I will be working at it for quite some time but I am very pleased with the equipment and software. It will take some time to get used to but I have time. I am retired.
V5000 Scanner 2008-07-11
Quality Scanner with lots of features.Fully automatic mode for a beginner or pick and choose your settings in the manual mode for the more exsperienced. This scanner is very easy to operate and priced right.
Great for Film Scanning - Holga Negative Tip 2008-07-03
This is a great scanner. I bought it for scanning black and white film negatives, primarily medium format. Here's a tip. For medium format use the Professional Mode, which gives you the most options. Using the negative carrier is great for traditional cameras, but if you are scanning negatives taken with a Holga, place the film directly on the glass and uncheck the thumbnail button. This way you'll be able to select the portion of the negative that is scanned. Scanning Holga negatives using the negative carrier will cut off the cool edges of the frame unique to the Holga.
I am very pleased with this scanner 2008-07-02
I am totally happy with this scanner. I got it yesterday and was scanning my first negative within 30 minutes.
The online manual is not very good and the one piece of paper that came with it for setup is really lacking.
How ever by trial and error and experimenting I figured it out. I got this primarily to scan my old medium format negs. I was hoping it would scan 4x5 negs but it won't. They don't tell you how to connect the little pigtail at the back of the scanner to do neg scans. I had to search out a few things in the online manual and figure out the rest, but the job it does is very good.
This is worth every dollar.
Photo Scanner 2008-07-02
I have only used it as a photo scanner so far, and it has worked flawlessly. No problems, scans fast and actuately.
