I am looking for a vendor that sells hand scanners. These are
NOT bar code scanners, rather, they are image scanners. Just like a
normal desktop flat bed scanner, they capture the image, the
difference is that you can run them over a surface to capture the
image. We need to find a product that can be run over the labels on
packages to capture the whole "picture" of the address label.

The vendor needs to be able to sell to Canadian Businesses.

Dear john4406-ga;

Thank you for allowing me an opportunity to answer your interesting
question.

I once owned a hand-held scanner much like the one the commenter spoke
of and I hated it. It was a total product failure. Bubt when I found
these products I felt certain I had found exactly what you are looking
for. I have no personal investment in this product of course (even
though my research does sound a bit like a sales pitch) but I must
admit I am amazed at its capabilities and excited about its potential.

C-Pen has created a handheld scanner that transfers text to computer
by simply swiping the pen across the printed surface. In addition
there are multiple applications such as labeling, printing, copying
and even mouse-like motions that can be used in a fully functional
manner. Pre-scanned text can even be transferred into search fields in
a browser, search terms into a search field for rapid searching, and
personal data, usernames and passwords can be literally be “dropped”
into online forms to make for rapid form interaction. The feature you
are most interested in for your application of course is the ability
to hold the “pen” in your hand and stroke it across a surface such as
a label thus recording not only the image of the label but the
transferable text as well. The pen can read most conservative fonts
and basically acts like a scanner – except that it will also actually
“write” what it has seen as text into a document. The pen also has a
self-contained memory and some models can work alone or with a
computer USB. Models also contain dictionaries in various languages
(and you can download others) that allow you to translate text from
many other languages into your native language.

Frankly, I was VERY impressed, to say the least, with everything I
learned here and I think you will be too!

Here is a list of C-Pen products that do exactly what you are looking
for. http://www.cpen.com/Products/index_html?selectedpen=0

=========================================================

The company is very international sales friendly and Canadians can buy
the product directly or online from:

University of Windsor Bookstore  
Sunset Ave. & Wyandotte St. W.
Windsor, ON N9B 3P4
Canada 

Phone (519) 253-3000 x3225
Info Fax: (519) 973-7066

Email bookstore@uwindsor.ca
Web http://www.bookstore.uwindsor.ca
(Price range, depending on product, is 180.00 – 379.00)
http://www.bookstore.uwindsor.ca/?page=comp.html

=========================================================

Alternatively, you can purchase the product directly or online from:

DATAMIND  
Email cpen@datamind.co.uk
Web http://www.datamind.co.uk/Merchant/c_pen_usa.htm

** DataMind is in the UK but it is an authorized USA and Canadian
vendor. There are many vendors in variouos location so there may in
fact me others on the C-Pen site.

4-5 day FedEX Shipping and requirements can be seen here:
http://www.datamind.co.uk/Merchant/c_pen_usa.htm

=========================================================

Not sure which pen suits your needs best? Compare their features here:
http://www.datamind.co.uk/Merchant/C_Pen_which_model.htm

Or, you can visit each of the pens's technical sheets by following
these links:

C-Pen 10 & active mouse pad £89.99
http://www.datamind.co.uk/templates/frmTemplateP.asp?CatalogID=276&Zoom=Yes&SubFolderId=0057

C-Pen 600C £159.99
http://www.datamind.co.uk/Templates/frmTemplateM1.asp?SubFolderID=0021&SearchYN=N

C-Pen 600MX £169.99  
http://hh264.hiphip.com/Templates/frmTemplateI.asp?CatalogID=191&SubFolderID=0021

C-Pen 800C £219.99
http://www.datamind.co.uk/Templates/frmTemplateM1.asp?SubFolderID=0022&SearchYN=N



I’m actually grateful to you for having asked the question. You learn
something new every day. Frankly I didn’t know these products existed
until now, but because of what I also learned here I’ll be talking
about these a bit more at my own office. Below you will find that I
have carefully defined my search strategy for you in the event that
you need to search for more information. By following the same type of
searches that I did you may be able to enhance the research I have
provided even further. I hope you find that that my research exceeds
your expectations. If you have any questions about my research please
post a clarification request prior to rating the answer. Otherwise, I
welcome your rating and your final comments and I look forward to
working with you again in the near future. Thank you for bringing your
question to us.

Best regards;
Tutuzdad-ga


INFORMATION SOURCES

Defined above

SEARCH STRATEGY


SEARCH ENGINE USED:

Google ://www.google.com


SEARCH TERMS USED:

HANDHELD SCANNER

HAND HELD SCANNER

PORTABLE SCANNER

LABEL SCANNER

Extremely good research. Found an extremely difficult to locate item
for a very specific problem. I was very impressed!

Thanks very much tutuzdad-ga!

I once owned a handheld scanner before the arrival of flatbed scanners
and I can say that these are cumbersome. Its use is limited only to
smooth/even surfaces and there's a big chance of image distortion if
the surface you are scanning is not smooth enough or the hand is not
steady enough to hold the scanner. If it's just for simple image
capture, why not get a digital camera with a flash memory or usb
interface. That way, image capture is simply a click away and the
device is compatible to current systems.