WizCom WSP1000P SuperPen Professional Reviews

• Wizcom SuperPen Professional Not So Easy to Operate

  
  By A7J6ZLPVHA9OC on 2004-09-06
  The Wizcom SuperPen Professional because it could scan many pages of text and had an on-board dictionary that can pronounce words. The SuperPen Professional concept is fantastic, but it did not work as easily as I would have liked. (...), I would expect the SuperPen not to be so cumbersome to operate.
  
  My first problem was getting the SuperPen Professional to link to my computer using the included Serial connector cable so I could upload scanned text to my computer. Although I loaded the software from the included CD-ROM on to my new Windows XP computer which had very few other applications or devices loaded on it, the computer could not connect to the pen. I followed the instructions to set both the pen and computer's baud rate to 115200, but this didn't resolve the problem. The Wizcom website suggested downloading the latest software version, but I couldn't find a link to download the applicable software. An email to Tech Support explained that the lastest software version is available at:
  
  http://www.wizcomtech.com/Wizcom/support/updates.asp?fid=139&pfid=177&mid=10
  and scroll down to Install or upgrade your Desktop by downloading and running the QuickLink Desktop installation program (4.9 Mb). Click on the link and save the file to your hard drive.
  
  Once the file is saved to your hard drive, double-click it's icon and follow the instructions.
  
  A call to Tech Support resolved my connection problem. It turned out that I needed to have the flow control on my computer's serial port set to hardware flow control. This was easy enough to do. I just wish that this advice had been published in the manual or on the web site. Ultimately, I did get the computer connection to work with the included serial port.
  
  When connecting, I got an error in the Quicklink Desktop software until I disabled an option for Microsoft Outlook on the QuickLink Desktop application.
  
  I'm having difficulty getting accurate scans with this pen when scanning articles in trade magazines. The articles have fairly small text that is divided into three narrow columns. Since I have to scan each short line separately, it is quite time-consuming to scan selections from an article. I often have to scan three lines to capture a complete sentence. When I couple the slowness of the scanning process with the effort needed to correct mis-spelled or incorrectly read scans, it becomes faster to use a computer to re-type my notes than it is to scan them. The user interface on the pen for making corrections on this device is awkward.
  
  The dictionary feature is nice, but it was more of a hassle to properly scan the word in question than what I wanted to go to to get a definition. Perhaps a separate electronic dictionary where you could type in the word would be easier.
  
  I got the best results when holding the SuperPen at a 90 degree angle to the text.
  
  I used the scanner to scan content from a book, and found that the scanner was more efficient when scanning pages with longer lines of text than it did when I scanned magazine articles.
  
  The SuperPen Professional is a great concept, but I prefer that it was easier to operate.
  
  

• the nays have it

  
  By A2FCO7V09SW00D on 2006-11-30
  Been working with mine for about a week, and am disappointed to report that the negative reviews are spot on.
  
  I too had trouble linking it to the PC. Ran into the hardware flow thing. Easy enough to solve after an email to customer support, but they were vague enough that someone less experienced with the windows device manager might have trouble.
  
  But the main reason I don't like it is that scanning is slow and not accurate enough. Really, you're better off with dragon speaking naturally, or just typing.
  
  The whole thing feels like it's 15 years behind the times. The interface is horrible. The PC connection is deadly slow. The software is junk. (Can we at least import notes into a text file? WTF is a .qnt file? Now I've got to screw around getting that into a program I actually can use!) One really has the sense that these guys aren't putting any effort into keeping up with technology. These guys should look at an iPod. Given how much they skimped on everything else (program, connectivity, interface, screen, memory, chip, etc) I have no reason to think that this is a particularly good scanner.
  
  A friend of mine has a C-Pen 20. That scans much faster, but has to be plugged in. C-pen used to sell portable versions, but I emailed their American distributer and found that they only have the wired one.
  
  Total disappointment. As a graduate student, this device could have changed my life. Instead, it'll sit in a drawer, reminding me of the money I blew on it.
  
  Bottom line: useless
  
  

• Works like a charm

  
  By A3EOVXI1VZIHUQ on 2006-10-01
  My wife purchased this because she is studying for the GRE and GMAT and spending a lot of time looking up words in a dictionary while reading. The amount of time she saves using this pen is amazing. We haven't used any of the software that comes with it and don't really plan to, but for scanning words in books, even relatively small print, it works pretty quickly and has about a 95% correct scan and definition rate. The pronunciation tool works very well too. We were nervous of the price tag, but after using it for a week, I'd say the price is pretty reasonable. It also comes with a convenient carrying case (similar to a cd faceplate case for a car cd player). The only time it doesn't work on a scan is if you don't scan evenly, or if a word is split between two lines with a hyphen. If you use the proper method of scanning, which is pretty self-explanatory, you shouldn't have any trouble. If you're looking for a product to speed up your studying, this is it.
  
  
  

• Works great

  
  By A2SPIXHMZKW4ZI on 2006-05-16
  I read mixed reviews about Superpen Professional, but decided to take the chance and buy one at last christmas. I am so glad that I bought it and that too with a [...] rebate (although it took 5 months before I got the rebate $$$).
  The product works great, I have tried scanning at various speeds, and in reverse direction too ! It almost never fails to scan (works 98% of the time with great accuracy). I guess they could use a bit faster processor, but not a big deal. I am happy with the product and use it frequently. I have tried using it on books, magazines, newspaper articles. I have tried various standard fonts. It fails to work when the background is dark colored (white/off-white background works like a charm). It also fails when trying to read italic text. The scanning accuracy increased as I used it more often, AND much more after I read the manual to understand the correct style of holding and using it. I recommend to read the manual before using it, and be patient for 1st few hours. Once you get the hang of it, using it will be very easy and useful.
  
  

• SuperPen Works Well

  
  By A28Z2KY1174NHK on 2006-09-13
  Hi,
  
  I'm a university student with a learning disability. I am a very slow reader and even slower at taking notes. I bought the pen in an effort to increase my note-taking speed and library work, for research papers. I feel that it suits my needs. It doesn't work as fast as I would have hoped, but I find that its accuracy and various other abilities make up for its shortcomings. Its "Quicktionary" feature, for instance, is very useful, and I find that its word database is quite large.
  
  I am a bit disappointed with more than just its speed: it has difficulty reading texts printed in small type (Approx.8.0 or smaller). When scanning these documents its accuracy rate goes right down the tubes, and I don't even try using it for those texts anymore.
  
  Other than those two things, I find that it is really nice. I use it often, especially the "Scan to PC" feature, where the text goes straight into any document with a blinking cursor (including AIM and MSN Messenger). It feels well made (it won't fall apart on you), its battery life is very good, the software is easy to use, the tech-support (which I really didn't need) responds quickly, its accuracy is usually at 95%, and in general it is a good product for MY purposes. I wouldn't buy this item if I intended to scan whole pages or work super-fast, because it would definitely disappoint. And also, READ THE MANUAL! I'm really glad I did. It also does take a bit of time to get used to using.
  
  The SuperPen is worth buying as long as you have reasonable expectations. I would rate it a 7.75 out of 10. Faced with the question to buy it again, knowing what I know now, I would still buy it.
  
  Toodles,
  
  Beth
  
  
  
• Not real good!
  By A1TSWN73VMFT8B on 2007-01-15
  Install and set up was a bit confusing. Had to contact tech. support (not real friendly or warm). We were looking to save time for data entry. We realized with much frustration typing was faster and more accurate. When scanning e-mail addresses the error rate was about 40% on a font size 6. Scanning 8 and above error rate went down to about 25%. Correcting the errors the pen made took more time then it was worth. The concept is great but does need allot of improvement.
  
  
  
• Rather Disappointed
  By A3C5TD9HR6SSQ0 on 2006-11-07
  Pen doesn't work as fast as I thought it would have. Very slow to upload text to computer. I bought this for a law student and it turns out to be more of a burden to scan and proof the text as you go. If you can type at a decent speed I would strongly discurage purchasing this product for note taking.
  
  
• SuperPen Review
  By A9MFKIHW0AXC0 on 2007-01-15
  This superpen is great - once you learn how to use it. There aren't any real instructions for use. We've done it by trial and error. We were very frustrated learning how to use it. Once we have it figured out, it works great. It really needs to come with a users manual and the whole process would go much smoother; I would recommend it though.
  
  
  
• just alright
  By A2FORMA65HGR4F on 2005-08-09
  this is a good item if you have poor handwriting but take notes from books. Some what difficutlt to operate initially but with practice is helpful if you like to keep track of small passages. Is it worth it. depends on how much you use it.
  
  
• Super Pen
  By A1ZZH6FT5STJ34 on 2007-01-14
  The pen is slow and fails in about 15% of the intents. I had initial problems with the synchronization with my computer. I received technical help from customer service but the person (male) was disrespectful in tone and attitude.
  
  
• Saves a lot of time from typing!
  By A2QDPJRVXL7P4F on 2007-08-22
  I really find this product very useful and time-saving. I read a lot and always highlight important passages in my books. The process of going back and typing all the highlighted passages was very tedious and time consuming.
  
  With the Superpen, scanning the passages is now a breeze. However, one must get used to it first. For example, there is a certain way to hold the pen (a certain angle) and certain speed to scan your text. If you do it right, you might get a 100% correct output. However, if you do it wrong, you might get an output as low as 30% of the intended result. Take time and experiment and in no time you'll find yourself an expert at scanning text with this device.
  
  One problem I found in the beginning was the synchronization process between this device and my computer. The pen just couldn't synchronize with my computer, and I spent hours going through the support web pages and installing and re-installing the software a couple of times. At the end, the problem turned out to be the USB cable not fully snapped inside the SuperPen. Make sure you hear the snap when you insert the front end of the USB cable into the SuperPen. This can easily be overlooked as the cable will seem to be snuggly inserted into the device.
  
  If you need for any reason to change the properties of your USB driver to hardware flow, do the following in Windows XP:
  
  Start / control panel / system / hardware / device manager
  
  When you are at the device `manager screen' click on the `+' sign next to `Ports (COM & LPT)'. Make sure your USB cable is plugged into your computer. Then right-click on `Prolific USB-to-serial COMM port', and click on properties. Go to the `Port settings' tab, and in the `flow control' menu, select hardware.
  
  If you often take notes and find it time consuming to type the passages you highlighted, this pen will be a required item that you won't be able to live without.
  
  This pen also has other features such as reading a word aloud (it even comes with headphones), and giving you a definition of any word you scan. You can also scan passages in different languages, such as French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, and Finnish.
  
  I really recommend this product, but keep in mind that you have to be patient at first and be willing to spend time learning how to use this product. Once this is done, you won't believe how you ever lived without it!
  
  
• Accuracy = Decent when I know how to use it
  By A1OATO6B44G90X on 2007-08-08
  ** Update **
  
  I have had the SuperPen for a year now and I think I need to do this pen some justice. At some point after my first review I got the pen to work. Here are a few tips:
  
  1) It is useful on non-laminated and non-glossy paper.
  
  2) Scan in the speed as if you are spelling the word. You need to give the pen some time to read the text. I was scanning too fast and mumbo-jumbo comes out.
  
  3) It doesn't work as well on words that are red or pink highlighted. I guess it is because the color is too close to the infrared.
  
  4) One of the better features is the scan to PC. You can see it pretty quickly and you get to correct or make paragraph on PC.
  
  It has general and medical dictionary built in. This pen has helped me through graduate school and not much problem ever since I knew how to use it.
  
  
  
  This Wizcom SuperPen Professional is bogus. I tried to scan this sentence "Constant rededication is more important than the initial..." and this is the output:
  
  "Constnnt rc~eelicntion Is -vore irnl)ortntlt tl) nn talc lnit~n"
  
  I gave it another chance and scanned this sentence,"Thinking alone these lines, the student should become far more serious..." into the pen and the pen spit this out:
  
  "'along tilde lincs, lh~ student siloalcl bcl~me inr ml1re"
  
  Do not buy this pen. This pen is a failure and not to mention the clunky software.
  
  
• superpen was temporarily awesome
  By A2S6A4QZQ1WBOD on 2007-02-09
  This product is awesome but was temporary. The first couple of weeks I used the pen, it was like as if there was a dictionary right at my fingertips. All of the sudden, it started not working. It could turn on, but the screen was unreadable because there were black splotches. I have yet to fix the problem. I've had it for a month but it only worked for three weeks.
  
  
• Wizcom Super Pen Professional
  By ACINX6IYNSZH9 on 2007-02-16
  I've been using the Super Pen for about two months. I'm in school and I've been using it to take notes from textbooks. Overall,I'm happy with the product. It does what it supposed to do for the most part. However, it is a bit slow, and if the background is not white, it does not pick up very well.
  
  
• Great product for a scholar
  By A3IYVFDUS0GL0V on 2006-10-28
  Very good tool to have if you do a lot of reading.
  
  
• Superpen satisfaction review
  By A2MUARNVZHLPJ1 on 2007-09-08
  The product seams good but instructions on user manual are incomplete and technical support in WizCom Technologies (supplier) has been terrible, now I know why are so many used products of this on sale. I do not recommend the product.
  
  
• I wish I had not bought it. So far not working. No return call to help from tech support. Tech support? Zip, none, nada
  By A3QTWHBVMMJUR8 on 2007-11-21
  I wish i had not bought it. Complicated and unwieldy install onto xp machine. Tech support. Could not get thru. Said they would call back.
  Two days later? Nothing. Lets just says service/support rhymes with buck. Save yourselves! Don't buy this product!
  
  
• Once you get it to work it is very useful
  By A1LU38WKSD9YZS on 2008-04-01
  As many others, I wasted 2 hours before I got this device (synchronization) to work. As someone said the whole product seems as if they stopped developing 5 years ago. But keep in mind that devices produced some years ago can still be very useful ;) Plus the age is reflected in a fair price.
  
  I'm looking forward for such a scanner to be part of every mobile phone but until then this is the product to buy.
  
  Especially as you can avoid waisting the mentioned 2 hours if you are lucky enough to stumble apon this review :}
  
  I really find this product very useful and time-saving. I read a lot and always highlight important passages in my books. The process of going back and typing all the highlighted passages was very tedious and time consuming.
  
  With the Superpen, scanning the passages is now a breeze. However, one must get used to it first. For example, there is a certain way to hold the pen (a certain angle) and certain speed to scan your text. If you do it right, you might get a 100% correct output. However, if you do it wrong, you might get an output as low as 30% of the intended result. Take time and experiment and in no time you'll find yourself an expert at scanning text with this device.
  
  One problem I found in the beginning was the synchronization process between this device and my computer. The pen just couldn't synchronize with my computer, and I spent hours going through the support web pages and installing and re-installing the software a couple of times. At the end, the problem turned out to be the USB cable not fully snapped inside the SuperPen. Make sure you hear the snap when you insert the front end of the USB cable into the SuperPen. This can easily be overlooked as the cable will seem to be snuggly inserted into the device.
  
  If you need for any reason to change the properties of your USB driver to hardware flow, do the following in Windows XP:
  
  Start / control panel / system / hardware / device manager
  
  When you are at the device `manager screen' click on the `+' sign next to `Ports (COM & LPT)'. Make sure your USB cable is plugged into your computer. Then right-click on `Prolific USB-to-serial COMM port', and click on properties. Go to the `Port settings' tab, and in the `flow control' menu, select hardware.
  
  If you often take notes and find it time consuming to type the passages you highlighted, this pen will be a required item that you won't be able to live without.
  
  This pen also has other features such as reading a word aloud (it even comes with headphones), and giving you a definition of any word you scan. You can also scan passages in different languages, such as French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, German, Dutch, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian, and Finnish.
  
  I really recommend this product, but keep in mind that you have to be patient at first and be willing to spend time learning how to use this product. Once this is done, you won't believe how you ever lived without it!
  
  It even worked on my MacBook with BootCamp. Use Quicklink to synchronize! I never got InfraRed and AddOns to work, but thats not important.
  
  After I found out that synched files are automatically saved as text files (.doc extension but plaintext, not only .qnt files as stated otherwise) I readily gave it 4 stars.
  
  
• Please, people, take these negative reviews seriously
  By A2NU257X8ZSPDG on 2008-04-26
  This product is almost impossible to configure with your PC unless you have a PhD in computer science. NOTHING works out of the box...I've tried to follow some of the suggestions that other reviewers have posted with no result. There is little if any documentation that comes with the pen and I'm not sure that I'm getting great reliability with the scanning device itself presuming if I can ever figure out how to upload the scanned information into Word.
  
  I rarely resort to using all caps in any message I write BUT DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE BUY THIS PRODUCT! The posted technical advice from users should have been the warning to me not to buy this and the negative reviews are accurate. This product just doesn't seem to work well and in 2008 if an intelligent but not professional computer user cannot get an electronic product to work out-of-the-box, or close to it, then the device is very badly designed...and this device IS very badly designed.
  
  
• What a great tool!
  By A2J1PXH51MAR3L on 2007-05-12
  Can't imagine how i survived without this. Really saves time. So easy to use. Almost as fast as typing and a heck of a lot easier.
  
  
• Great dictionary tool on the run
  By A1WGL0ZEPRM0PP on 2007-08-28
  After I got used to how the scanning works, I've found the dictionary pen to be very useful. More convenient than carrying a dictionary around when I know your reading material will require me to look up some of the words.
  
  
• Works as advertised - takes a little getting used to
  By A9BC4YI6ZHL3H on 2007-10-03
  There is a knack to using it - which just takes using it. It really does not take that long - if you will just begin. I have not used it for any graphics and dont intend to. If I need to scan graphics - will just do it on a regular scanner.
  
  I do most of my scanning - directly into the program I want it. Referred to as "Scan Text to PC" in the device menu. In doing so - I need to remember to run the desktop program first (or if I forget - then run it - and rescan a line or two).
  
  I suspect I could have it run at start up but dont want to clutter things up.
  
  Everything installed okay - however I am not sure how it would be on the new Windows Vesta. More and more software seems to work fine on it. (most of all my use is XP).
  
  Overall - I would have to say it works just as advertised and is pretty slick!
  
  
• Scan to PC function is Good
  By A1JOPPGLDP2UY on 2007-10-19
  Just got the pen and so far the scan to PC function is great. Have not used the other functions in full but from what I've tested the Quicktionary function and portable note scan functions are okay. Lighting has to be just right and scanning the individual lines from a textbook takes some getting use to but its pretty much like using a highlighter.
  
  As a nursing student this has saved a lot of time and I don't have to type as much and shift focus from what I am reading. I recommend this to those in the same situation.
  
  One more thing! I have Windows Vista and setting up the CD/Program on the computer worked just fine. Just follow the directions.
  
  
• Works great
  By A3BTXZ30C2NRR4 on 2008-02-22
  I purchased the superpen mostly for my kids to able to conveniently look up words while reading to help improve their vocabulary. The pen works great at this task and even pronounces the word. The scanning is fairly reliable - most scans work on the first try but occasionally you will need to scan again. It's not a big deal to do so since you aren't required to do anything other than place the pen back on the paper and rescan - you don't need to hit any buttons. I have found it works best when you start your scanning on the last few letters of the prior word and go a little past the word you are scanning.
  
  The only issues I have noticed are:
  
  1)I have not been able to figure out how to scan hyphenated words (split between two lines of text)
  2)I have had problems scanning words when they are on a darker background because there is not enough contrast with the text.
  3)I set the option to automatically pronounce the word after it is scanned. The pen has a built-in speaker and also comes with an optional headset. If not using the headset (I don't) you will need to quickly move the speaker to your ear after scanning to hear the pronunciation because the volume is fairly low even on the highest setting. The voice definitely sounds computer generated, but pronounces the word correctly.
  
  I have not used any of the software that it comes with and have not tried to connect it with my computer so I can't speak to those issues. Also, I really didn't read the manual so there may be ways to overcome some of the issues above that I'm not aware. Overall I've been pleased with the purchase.
  
  
  
• great scanning, good IR connectivity
  By A160RGARQLLB05 on 2005-04-07
  I've had it for a day and have not even attempted to connect via cable to the PC. BTW, the unit came with serial cable, and Wizcom is sending a USB cable for free. I am hapy with IR. I beam scanned text to my PDA and the PC. I can also receive text files from the PDA and the PC.
  
  It has two main functions Dictionary/Thesaurus and scanning text to be trasfered. I bought it primarily for the first option and i order to hear pronunciation of and meaning of words I do not recongize. Its speaker is not too loud, so you need to bring it closer to the ear, but it has regular L/R earbuds with volume. I set the options to automatically pronounce a word after I scan it and show definitions. Medical, Computer, Wall Street, etc dictionaries are alredy pre-loaded. You can select in which order they interpret the word. It can scan and pronounce entire sentences.
  
  The text scanning feature is good too, and accuracy is decent. Great for the road/airplane, particularly with a PDA.
  
  It has "information" option where you can check remaining memory and battery life (in volts).
  
  Before buying, I read the manual online at www.wizcomtech.com
  
  

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