Our mobile phone, with its built-in camera, can be of great help to us when it comes to getting some extraordinary photos. However, that is not the only function that it offers us. We can also make it serve as a flatbed scanner quite effectively. In this article we will see how to scan with mobile and all the advantages that this represents.
It's camera scanner that we all have on our smartphones is perfect for digitize photos and documents of all kinds. You can then store those images in PDF or send them to someone via email or text message. A simple but very illustrative example is the Identity Document. Instead of carrying it in your bag or purse, it's much more convenient to have it digitized in your phone's memory.
In reality, scanning is very similar to taking a photo, although in this case the optical character recognition (OCR) technology. This is what makes the difference between getting a simple image or a document in which texts and symbols can be identified and recognized. Even edit them.
Scan with a smartphone step by step
Let's see below how to scan with the mobile in a simple way. Both on Android phones and using an iPhone:
On Android
Application Google Drive, integrated into Android phones, is the tool that will help us when it comes to scanning images and documents. Each Google account offers 15 gigabytes of free storage, divided between Google Drive, Gmail and Google Photos. These are the steps to follow:
- First of all, you have to open the application Google Drive.
- We press the symbol "+" (add), which is at the bottom right of the screen.
- Then click on the icon "Scan". *
- The next step is take a picture of the document that we want to scan and press "Ready".
- Now it's time to define the area of the image or document to be scanned with the option "Cut".
- To finish, click on the button "Save".
(*) If the document to be scanned consists of several pages and we want these to be included in the scanned document, we must again use the “+” add symbol.
On iPhone
In case of having an iPhone, the application that we must use to scan documents and photos with the mobile is "Notes". Is that how it works:
- First we go to the application "Notes".
- We create a new note by clicking on the icon shown in the lower right corner of the screen (you can also select an existing note).
- Then we click on the button "Camera", which is at the bottom of the screen, and select the option "Scan documents."
- With the camera we focus on the document that we want to scan. The most practical thing is to have the camera in automatic mode so that the scanning process is faster and easier.
- Then we adjust the size of the scanned area by dragging the corners of the photo taken (or with a cropping tool that we have downloaded) and press "Ready".
- Finally, we will press "Save".
So far the scanning process itself. If we also want sign the document, you have to follow some additional steps:
- We open the application again "Notes" and go to the document in question.
- Then we press the option "Share", the square and arrow icon at the top right of the screen.
- Then press the option «Brands».
- The next pass is the company itself, which we can do on the iPhone screen with the fingertip or with a stylus. The smartphone offers us different options and sizes of markers for signing.
- Once the document is signed, click on the button "Ready".
Applications to scan documents with the mobile
Although they are not strictly necessary to scan photos and documents with the mobile, there are a few applications specifically designed to fulfill this function. They can make our work even easier. These are some of the best:
Adobe Scan
Adobe also has an application to scan documents that works with a very precise scanning process. Adobe Scan uses OCR technology to recognize printed (and handwritten) texts and then convert them into documents in PDF or JPEG format. Also noteworthy are its practical retouching tools to further refine the scan results.
Link: Adobe Scan
CamScanner
If you are looking for a good application to scan documents, CamScanner is an excellent option. With it, our smartphone will turn into a powerful portable automatic recognition (OCR) scanner that will help us save a lot of time. A good way to carry an entire office in your pocket and improve our productivity at work.
Link: CamScanner
Genius Scan
A handy scanning tool capable of automatically detecting and adjusting perspective. Genius Scan It allows you to apply basic filters to images, but its options are much more limited than those of other apps on this list. Even so, it may be enough for the vast majority of users.
Link: Genius Scan
Microsoft Lens
Microsoft released its own Android scan tool in 2014: Lens. Today there are many users who use it daily to scan photos and images. Among its advantages, we must highlight the fact that it can detect the edges of the document in real time before taking the photo and use it to extract the text and save it in a Word or Powerpoint document. It also offers Microsoft cloud storage option.
Link: Microsoft Lens
SwiftScan
And we leave for last what is probably one of the best applications to scan with the mobile. SwiftScan, formerly known as Scanbot, offers a number of interesting features: edge detection and automatic capture of quality images. One of its great virtues is that it scans very quickly and agilely, something ideal if we have to work with large amounts of documents. Please note: despite being a free app, some of its features are only available in the Pro version.
Link: SwiftScan