24 bit color vs 48 bit color

I have a Scanjet IICX that I like a lot.

It uses 24 bit color and the newer scanners use 48 bit color. I was
curious as to what the difference is?
Am I missing colors because of this? Are the pictures more grainy? I
understand dpi and the differences there but not this.

Thanks,

Tom.

 

DPI and colour depth where scanners are concerned are largely nonsense. I
seriously doubt the human eye can discern the difference between 24 and 32
bit colour, let alone 48 bit. As for dpi, many figures are manipulated to
make the product more attractive. The dpi is often interpolated rather than
true, and the scanner is capable of much lower actual resolutions than it
claims.

The way to choose a scanner IMO is to pick one which gets the best reviews
for its picture quality. Don't be sucked in by manufacturers claims, they
could claim a million dpi and 128 bit colour but that would be no reflection
on the actual picture quality. Let your own eyes be the judge, or if you
can't see sample scans, trust respected reviewers.

Dave

 

Tom...24-bit color uses nearly 17 million colors. Since we can only
differentiate about 1 million colors...save your money and memory.

HTH
b_d

 

Marek,

Tho not exactly wishful thinking, replacing a IIcx with a 6100c is a bit of a
crapshoot in software. After all, you are dealing with two companies which have
a reputation for flaky and unreliable software: Microsoft and HP. HP scanner
software can be a major struggle to get up and running.

In other words, if you try replacing a IIcx with a 6100c, be ecstatic if it
works, and don't be surprised if it does not... Ben Myers

 

If you are worried about losing all your custom scan settings, these are
kept in a file in your deskscan folder called (IIRC) deskscan.ini.

You may be able to save this and overwrite the new one when you reinstall
your deskscan drivers, though it may contain configs which don't work with
the 6100C. At least back up the new ini file so you can put it back if it
goes wrong.

I own the 6100C, (with the deskscan 2.9 software) and it's a great scanner,
if rather large! However, it's getting rather old now, unless this one
you're after is very cheap indeed I'd look for something newer.

Dave