I have UMAX Vista S6e SCSI flat bed scanner which I purchased in 1996. It
is only a 600 dip scanner, but it does have network support and it has
mostly done the job for me. However, it only has drivers for Win 9X and NT4
and it is time to upgrade. It looks like I can get a very good scanner for
half of what I paid for this Umax and I am thinking of getting a HP Scanjet
5500C.

After my Umax experience, the most important scanner feature, for me, is
good driver support. It took Umax almost two years to come out with NT4
drivers, and they never went beyond that.  I figure HP probably has the
best scanner driver support, and is well known for professional Flatbed
scanners. And they are probably least likely to abandon driver updates and
support for a Flatbed Scanner. I am curious as to what HP flatbed scanner
owners have experienced with driver support over a period of time.

Next to driver support, I am looking for being able to make quick copies
with on-board buttons, and to scan negatives, all of which the 5500C
does.   The 5500C is around $275 US and is a 48bit 2400 dpi scanner, and
could be considered a entry level professional scanner but I figure this
product will have better long term driver support then say a consumer
scanner. And of course it will do everything I will ever need it to do.

Is HP as good a company for flat bed scanners as I think it is? Am I over
buying here? Any comments or advise from our flat bed scanner experts?

Thanks

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