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They may not be in vogue anymore, but if you’re looking for the best scanner to buy in 2019, you’ve come to the right place. Sure, all-in-one printers that offer scanning features offer a worthwhile alternative to standard scanners for home users, but if you work in a business that relies on fast, high quality scanning, then you’re still going to want to buy the best standalone scanner.

To help you with this important purchase, we’ve collected together five of the best scanners you can buy in 2019, and each device on this list is ideal for both personal and business use.

These devices cover a wide range of use cases and will transform how users handle their document management processes. At the same time, our price comparison tool will compare prices from a number of online retailers to make sure you get the very best deals when buying a new scanner. That means you can take full advantage of all the deals online.

If you’re in the market for one of the best scanners for your office or home, any of the scanners we’ve gathered up in this list will make sure you have a dependable and great-performing device.

1. Panasonic KV-S1027C document scanner

Optical scan resolution: Up to 600 x 600dpi | Scanning speed: Up to 45ppm | Interface: USB | Feeder capacity: 100

It’s fast

Long warranty

No Wi-Fi

No card reader

Document scanners are all about being able to process large amounts of documents in a trustworthy, seamless and intuitive fashion, and being able to integrate the information collected in existing document management systems. You’re almost certainly looking at a sheet-fed scanner rather than a flatbed one, and there are plenty of models on the market to fit most needs including, at the very high-end, devices that can scan A3 sheets and perform 30,000 scans per day.

The Panasonic KV-S1027C represents an ideal middle ground in that it’s fairly affordable but delivers the sort of performance you’d expect from a more expensive model. It scans up to 45 pages per minute, has a USB 3.0 port and can scan anything from embossed ID cards to passports. Add in a 100-sheet ADF, integrated ISIS/WIA/TWAIN drivers and a three-year warranty as standard and you have a pretty compelling offering.

2. Canon Canoscan 9000F Mark II flatbed scanner

Optical scan resolution: Up to 9600 x 9600dpi | Scanning speed: Up to 8ppm | Interface: USB | Feeder capacity: N/A

Can scan a wide range of media

Super high resolution

Relatively big

Bundled software could be better

Flatbed scanners are the only way to go should you want a versatile unit to scan photos at high resolution, and the Canoscan 9000F Mark II ticks all the right boxes. It might be three-years-old but like the scanner market in general, there hasn’t been a lot of meaningful innovation in this particular arena.

The 9000F offers a scanning resolution of up to 9600×9600 dpi for film/slides and a quarter of that for photo and documents, all at 48-bit. It can handle negatives and filmstrips thanks to a built-in adaptor. It doesn’t require warm-up time and can also scan straight to a number of cloud-based services. It might be a tad bigger than its cousins (many of which would be using CMOS rather than CCD technology) but features like FARE (Film Automatic Retouching and Enhancement) will more than make up for that.

3. Epson Workforce DS-860N sheetfed scanner

Optical scan resolution: Up to 600 x 600dpi | Scanning speed: Up to 65ppm | Interface: Ethernet, USB | Feeder capacity: 85

Five-year warranty

Pseudo A3

Bundled software could be better

No support for Mac or Linux

The most important feature in a network scanner is the presence of an Ethernet port. Many high-end document scanners will have one by default since they’re expected to service more than one person. The better models will offer a fast scanning speed coupled with integrated drivers, high daily duty cycles, the ability to scan to multiple destinations and a decent size document sheet feeder.

The Epson Workforce DS-860N offers all this and more – there’s a five-year warranty as default, and the ability to scan oversized folded documents (e.g. A3). It can scan at up to 65 pages per minute at a resolution of up to 600 dpi, with a daily duty cycle of 6,000 sheets. Two other smart features include colour enhance or colour dropout which either highlights or removes a particular colour from the scanned document.

4. HP Officejet 7612 A3 printer scanner

Optical scan resolution: Up to 1200 x 1200dpi | Scanning speed: Up to 10ppm | Interface: USB, Ethernet, Wi-Fi | Feeder capacity: 35

Cheap A3 scanner

Bundled printing and fax

No card reader

Heavy and takes up a lot of space

SMBs must be flexible, and the same is true for the office equipment they use, which is why the ideal scanner for a small business may well be one that combines scanning, printing and, more often than not, faxing. Purists might not agree, but a single unit that can handle all these essential business functions is often a better option than having dedicated devices, especially if you are a one-man-band or a small team.

The HP Officejet 7612 is near that sweet spot: it copies, scans and faxes, has an Ethernet port and offers Wi-Fi, scans up to A3 size (and to several destinations) and doesn’t cost the Earth. Users will love the fact that it supports both Mac and Linux, and that it sports a large touchscreen control panel.

5. Brother ADW-1600W sheet fed scanner

Optical scan resolution: Up to 600 x 600dpi | Scanning speed: Up to 18ppm | Interface: USB, Wi-Fi | Feeder capacity: 20

Can scan to pretty much anything

Touchscreen display is a godsend

No battery option

No card reader

A portable scanner is all about compromises – you swap the convenience of having a large flatbed area for mobility. The best models will do duplex scanning (the ability to scan both sides of a sheet), scan more than one page at a time, offer macOS and Windows compatibility and a decent software package. Optionally, they can be battery-powered, offer Wi-Fi and the ability to scan to the cloud.

The ADW-1600W from Brother fits the bill in terms of cramming features in – despite its diminutive size, this device sports an LCD touchscreen, a 20-sheet automatic document feeder (ADF), and can scan up to 18 pages per minute. It also comes with built-in TWAIN and ISIS drivers, a USB port and Wi-Fi connectivity. Surprisingly, it even supports Linux and has a clever slot allowing you to scan plastic IDs.

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In an effort to help users protect their most important and sensitive files, Microsoft is adding a new secure storage area to OneDrive called Personal Vault.

Personal Vault is a new protected area in OneDrive that users can only access with a strong authentication method or by using a second step of identity verification such as their fingerprint, face, PIN or a code sent via email or SMS.

Files locked in your Personal Vault have an extra layer of security which can hep protect them if your device falls into the wrong hands or someone gains access to your account. However, this added security doesn’t mean added inconvenience as all of your files stored in Personal Valut can be easily accessed via the web, on your PC or on updated iOS and Android devices (iOS 11.3 and above, Android 6.0 and above).

Personal Vault adds to OneDrive’s existing security features which include file encryption at rest and in transit, suspicious activity monitoring, ransomware detection and recovery, mass file deletion notification and recovery, virus scanning on download for known threats and version history for all file types.

Personal Vault

Microsoft designed Personal Vault to be easy to use and users will just have to enter a PIN or use their fingerprint, face or an email or SMS code to unlock and access their files. The new secure storage area can also be unlocked with the Microsoft Authenticator app.

Users will also be able to use the OneDrive mobile app to scan documents, take pictures or shoot video directly into their Personal Vault. This can be particularly useful when you want to capture something too sensitive to remain accessible in your device’s camera roll.

Personal Vault even automatically relocks on your PC, smartphone or online after a short period of inactivity. Once it has locked, any files you were using will also be locked and will require reauthentication to access.

The new feature will begin rolling out soon to users in Australia, New Zealand and Canada, though Microsoft expects Personal Vault to be available to all OneDrive users by the end of the year.

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These days, there are plenty of ways to score video games for cheap. Seems like there’s a new sale every week or two, not to mention the various subscription services and Epic’s penchant for giving away freebies. But the Steam Summer Sale is an institution, damn it, and I still get a bit excited when it rolls around again.

If that applies to you as well, then good news: The Steam Summer Sale has rolled around again. The 2019 edition arrives replete with the Steam Grand Prix, a racing-themed minigame that tasks you with joining a team—Pig, Hare, Cockatiel, Tortoise, or Corgi—that will award points based on how much you buy and for completing certain quests. The “Best Drivers” will apparently be given free games from their Wishlist, so be sure that’s in order if you plan to partake.

Meta-activity aside though, the sale is also simply a good time to pick up games. The deals haven’t been quite as steep in recent years, but I’m seeing some pretty good discounts featured on the main page today. Devil May Cry 5 is marked down to $40, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is 50% off, Borderlands: The Handsome Collection is 94% off and nets you two full games for $6, XCOM 2 is $15, Moss is at its lowest-ever price at $20, and so is Two Point Hospital which is down to $17.50.

It’s one of the better Steam sales I’ve seen in recent memory, perhaps a sign Steam’s feeling the heat from the Epic Games Store—or maybe it’s just a lucky coincidence. Either way, you and your wallet are the winners here. The sale runs from now through July 9, and since Valve still hasn’t brought back Flash Sales or Daily Deals you’re safe to buy everything today or wait until the last minute. No need to keep checking back, though we might dig deeper to try and find some more hidden deals later this week. Have fun filling out your backlog.

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If you’re looking for the best mobile workstations of 2019, then you’ve come to the right place. In this article, we’ve picked the best, most powerful, business laptops in the world.

Before we begin, though, what is a mobile workstation? Basically, the best mobile workstations combine the portability of a laptop with the raw power of a desktop PC. These aren’t just the best business laptops, however, as they are capable of handling intensive tasks, such as video editing and rendering, while away from the office.

Modern technology has allowed laptops to become ever more powerful, while keeping the same thin and portable designs. In fact, many of the best mobile workstations of 2019 are thinner and lighter than many standard laptops.

This level of performance in a mobile workstation does come at a cost, however, as the parts they use, build quality and the level of after-sales services mean that these are an investment that can be expensive.

That’s why it’s so important to choose the best mobile workstation for your needs. You need to have something that’s not only a solid and dependable workhorse today, but something that’s futureproof and can help you with your work for years to come.

Thanks to our price comparison tool, we can help take the sting out of the price tag by helping you find the very best prices for these excellent mobile workstations. So, read on for our list of the best mobile workstations money can buy in 2019.

If you’d prefer a Best Desktop Workstation roundup or, if you’re interested in a business laptop that isn’t necessarily a workstation, we’ve got you covered.

Because mobile workstations are so specialist – and come with such a high price tag – finding one that suits your business needs is important, and we’re here to help with this list of the best mobile workstations in 2018.

1. MacBook Pro 15-inch with Touch Bar

CPU: Intel Core i7 | Graphics: Radeon Pro 555 with 2GB memory – 560 with 4GB memory | RAM: 16GB | Screen: 15.4-inch Retina display (2880×1800) | Storage: 128GB – 256GB SSD

Innovative Touch Bar

Massive trackpad

Light, slim and portable

Battery life could be better

Apple’s most powerful laptop ever is also the best workstation laptop in 2018. It comes with the innovative Touch Bar that makes certain tasks much easier, but it’s the powerful innards that really impress us with this mobile workstation. It features up to 32GB of RAM and a super-fast solid state hard drive, and comes with Intel’s latest and most powerful processors. You can configure the MacBook Pro 2018 to match your needs and budget, and it all comes in Apple’s trademark gorgeous design. If you’re looking for the best mobile workstation that combines design and power, then this is a brilliant choice. As long as you have the budget.

 Read the full review: MacBook Pro (15-inch, mid-2018) review

2. Razer Blade

CPU: 2.8GHz Intel Core i7-7700HQ | Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 | RAM: 16GB | Screen: 14-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixels | Storage: 256GB PCIe SSD

Longer battery life

4K display option

Still pricey

Trackpad buttons need to go

Not only is the Razer Blade one of the best gaming laptops money can buy, it is also an excellent desktop replacement and mobile workstation for non-gamers, thanks to its excellent array of features and powerful components. It’s thin, powerful and includes some of the latest hardware money can buy.

Read the full review: Razer Blade review

3. HP ZBook 17 G3

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1575M v5 7700HQ | Graphics: Intel Iris Pro Graphics P580 | RAM: 64GB | Screen: 17.3-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixels | Storage: 500GB HDD

Great build quality

Plenty of configurability

Can be expensive

Battery isn’t great

HP’s mobile workstation Ultrabook has already reached its third generation but the last one is still very much a best-in-class especially when it comes to sheer value for money. It is one of the cheapest workstations on the market to offer a professional dedicated graphics card, and the most affordable business laptop to come with a whopping half-decade warranty. HP opted for a 14-inch diagonal which may well hit a sweet spot for some.

Read the full review: HP ZBook 14 G2

4. HP ZBook Studio G3

CPU: 2.8GHz (3.7GHz) Intel Xeon E3-1505M v5 | Graphics: Nvidia Quadro M1000M | RAM: 32GB | Screen: 15.6-inch, 3840 x 2160 pixels | Storage: 512GB SSD

Intel Xeon processor

4K display

Battery life isn’t the best

No option for spinning disks

HP calls it the perfect combination of brains and beauty and it is kind of hard to disagree. The G3 is essentially a mobile workstation that has been squeezed in an Ultrabook form factor. A 4K monitor adorns it and there’s plenty of oomph under the hood. It is actually the only device known to us that comes with a Xeon CPU. Add in extensive ISV certification, a super-long warranty and MLD-STD 810G certification and you have a very attractive candidate.

Read the full review: HP ZBook Studio G3

5. HP Spectre Pro 13 G1

CPU: Intel Core i7-6500U | Graphics: Intel HD 520 Graphics | RAM: 8GB | Screen: 13.3-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixels | Storage: 512GB SSD

Sublime design

3 Year Next Business Day onsite warranty

Colour scheme might not be to everyone’s taste

Very expensive

Despite being just over 10mm thick and weighing just over 1.16Kg, the HP Spectre Pro 13 G1 manages to pack a proper Core i7 CPU with a full HD 13.3-inch display, a massive 4-cell 38Whr battery and three USB Type C connectors. 

This makes it a formidable mobile workstation that offers plenty of power for even the most demanding of tasks. If you want a laptop that offers similar performance to your work desktop PC, then this brilliant machine is definitely worth considering. Its  3 Year Next Business Day onsite warranty also means if something goes wrong with the device, you can quickly get it fixed without missing out on work.

5. Lenovo ThinkPad P40 Yoga

CPU: 2.5GHz Intel Core i7-6500U | Graphics: Nvidia Quadro M500M | RAM: 8GB | Screen: 14.1-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixels | Storage: 256GB SSD

Unique convertible design

Superbly portable

So-so battery longevity

Only a one-year warranty

Lenovo hails this model as the world’s first multi-mode workstation, one that manages to combine power and creativity thanks to a 360-degree hinge that has, to some extent, set the standard when it comes to convertible or 2-in-1 designs. What’s more, it is one of the very rare laptops to come with built-in Wacom Active ES pen technology, capable of delivering 2048 levels of pen pressure sensitivity and tilt recognition.

6. Dell Precision 7720

CPU: Intel Core i7 processor | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 512GB SSD | Screen: 17-inch IPS display (3,840 x 2,160 pixels)

Very big screen

Can easily configure the specs

Not easy to carry

Base spec is underpowered

As with most of Dell’s laptops you can configure the Precision 7720 to meet your needs, which makes it one of the best workstation laptops in the world. By boosting the processor, screen and GPU of this laptop (compared to its base model) you’ll get an excellent laptop for heavy-duty work. The 17-inch screen (which can be upgraded to 4K), is brilliant for photo and video editing, but it does mean that it’s a bit larger and heavier than other machines in this list. It’s also pricey, especially if you configure it with the latest components, but it remains a brilliant 

7. Lenovo ThinkPad T460s

CPU: Dual-core 2.4GHz Intel Core i5 processor | RAM: 8GB | Storage: 256GB SSD | Screen: 14-in IPS display (1,920 x 1,080 pixels)

Excellent build and ergonomics

Thin and light

Slow processor

Relatively screen quality

The ThinkPad T-series is a no-nonsense design with a focus on robustness over style. Even so, the T460s‘ 18.8mm thickness is within 1mm of the MacBook, and it’s actually lighter at 1.4kg. It’s not as powerful as some of the workstation laptops in this list, but it’s not as expensive either, which makes it a great choice if you’re looking for an accomplished workstation laptop for less hardcore workloads, while also keeping to a budget.

Read the full review: Lenovo ThinkPad T460s

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The co-founder of Alienware has left the the gaming PC company, and rumors suggest he’s taking charge of gaming at one of the biggest chip makers, AMD.

After nearly 22 years with Alienware, Frank Azor said his goodbyes in an AlienwareArena post, reminiscing on the memories of helping to create the tentpole gaming PC manufacturer. Later, on Twitter, Azor said he’d be “taking a new opportunity to grow the gaming industry”.

I’ll be taking a new opportunity to help continue to grow the gaming industry. @Alienware and @Dell will always be family, and I know they will continue to deliver the best experiences and products in the industry. (2/2) https://t.co/CQvi9NrS0gJune 24, 2019

But, where is Frank Azor going? Well, he might end up at AMD as Chief Gaming Officer, according to a rumor from Wccftech. Now, we don’t know what that title means – or even if it’s real – but because Frank Azor helped create one the brand behind some of the most iconic gaming PCs in the world, it doesn’t seem unfeasible. 

We’re not sure what to believe, but it would be yet another step in AMD’s continued focus on gaming – as its chips are being used in both Xbox Project Scarlett and the PS5, not to mention streaming services like Google Stadia. 

Either way, if Frank Azor does indeed join AMD, we’re interested to see what he does from within Team Red. Who knows, maybe he’ll work on the next generation of AMD Navi?

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Microsoft said Tuesday that OneDrive subscribers will receive a new OneDrive Personal Vault option that adds increased security to their online files, as well as additional storage tiers for existing subscribers.

Personal Vault is designed for files you really hold dear: tax information, scanned passports, that sort of thing. OneDrive Personal Vault will debut overseas, specifically Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, and will be available worldwide by the end of the year. OneDrive Personal Vault will offer the same features for free-tier and Office 365 subscribers, save one: O365 users can allocate as much space as they want to the Personal Vault, while those who use the free or the 100GB paid tier of OneDrive will be able to add a “limited number of files” to the Personal Vault.

Microsoft also announced some more basic upgrades to the OneDrive service. For those who are already on OneDrive’s 50GB/month standalone storage plan, Microsoft will upgrade that plan to 100GB of cloud storage for free. Microsoft also finally bumped up the maximum OneDrive storage allotment from 1TB to a maximum of 2TB—though you’ll pay up to an additional $9.99 monthly for the extra capacity.

What is the OneDrive Personal Vault?

At first glance, the new OneDrive Personal Vault doesn’t appear to add much more than two-factor authentication to your OneDrive account—an security option that can already be applied to your Microsoft account. But Microsoft says that Personal Vault applies an extra layer of protection, essentially by reducing the timeout period.

The difference appears to be that conventional two-factor authentication can, in effect, be deactivated if you’re using what’s called a trusted device: a device that you basically exempt from 2FA, as it’s always in your possession. A trusted device may still ask you to reauthenticate every so often, especially if it’s governed by an administrator.

With Personal Vault, the period during which the device is trusted decreases significantly. That means that you’ll frequently need to reauthenticate, using a fingerprint, your face, or a code delivered by email or SMS. (Oddly, Microsoft didn’t announce support for a hardware token.) Microsoft says that the period of time to reauthenticate will vary by device, and can be configured somewhat by the user. The message here is that if your device is stolen or you need to step away unexpectedly, Personal Vault will still protect your files. 

Personal Vault will sync your files to a BitLocker-encrypted area of your hard drive, if you use Windows 10 Pro (Windows 10 Home does not support it.) OneDrive Personal Vault also includes the other protections Microsoft has previously built into OneDrive: ransomware protection, at-rest encryption, mass file deletion and recovery, virus scanning on download, and version history. 

Microsoft’s OneDrive capacity increases are much more conventional. Nothing’s changed for those who don’t pay for any additional OneDrive storage. If you do pay $1.99 per month for 50GB of OneDrive, your storage allotment will increase to 100GB. And if you want more than just a terabyte, you can have it—well, up to 2TB, anyway. It’s all summarized below.