Pros & Cons
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- Small, light, and portable chassis
- 7-inch color touch screen also serves as a digital gallery
- Scans slides and filmstrips in 35mm, 126, and 110 formats
- Saves scans to SD memory cards
- Lets you vary the slideshow display time and order
- Mini-HDMI port for mirrored TV output
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- Scans could be sharper
- Poor support for portrait-mode shots
- No bundled SD card or HDMI cable
HP FilmScan 7-Inch Touch Screen Film Scanner Specs
| Film Scanning | |
| Maximum Optical Resolution | 2889 pixels |
| Maximum Scan Area | 36mm by 24mm |
| Mechanical Resolution | 3932 |
The HP FilmScan 7-Inch Touch Screen Film Scanner is an inexpensive film scanner that can handle slides or filmstrips in several popular formats. For $259.99, you get a substantial upgrade over the HP FilmScan 5-Inch Touch Screen Film Scanner, which not only increases the size of the color touch screen but also lets you tilt the display for a better viewing angle. And there's more: You can also vary the display time and sequence order of the slide shows, and this model has a mini-HDMI port that lets you mirror the touch screen’s content on a TV.
The 7-inch screen makes it easy to evaluate and edit your scanned images before you save them to an SD card, while the Gallery mode turns the FilmScan 7 into a digital picture frame for automated slideshows. On the downside, the device doesn’t handle portrait-mode shots very well, and while its scanned images are about average in quality for a low-cost film scanner, they aren’t as sharp or detailed as they could be.
If image quality is especially important to you, consider paying substantially more for the flatbed-style Epson Perfection V800 Photo, our top pick for scanning a variety of film formats. The Plustek OpticFilm 135i Ai is also worth considering if all you care about is scanning 35mm media.
Design: Better Display Capabilities Than Before
At 4.6 by 6.9 by 4.7 inches (HWD), the FilmScan 7-Inch is slightly larger than HP's previous FilmScan 5-Inch model (3.5 by 5.7 by 4.7 inches), but it's compact enough to fit inconspicuously on a desk or table. Both FilmScans are positively minuscule next to the competing ClearClick QuickConvert 2.0 (which comes in at 7.8 by 12.1 by 9.3 inches). Likewise, the FilmScan 7-Inch weighs just 16.9 ounces, a tad heavier than the FilmScan 5-Inch (13.4 ounces) but a lot lighter than the QuickConvert 2.0, which tips the scales at 4 pounds.
(Credit: David English)Small and lightweight are great for optimal portability, but they can also limit the usefulness of the display—so kudos to HP for upgrading this model to a 7-inch color touch screen from the previous model's 5-incher. Just as important, unlike with the old display, you can tilt the new screen for a better view of the panel’s content. (HP doesn’t specify the tilt range, but I would estimate about 50 degrees.) You can position the screen almost straight up, or swing it up and back until it's nearly parallel with the top of the unit.
With its larger, adjustable screen, the FilmScan 7-Inch works even better than the FilmScan 5-Inch as a digital gallery for your scanned images. It not only looks good on a table or desk, but the tilt screen makes it more suitable for a bookcase or shelves.
Meanwhile, the new FilmScan's display positively blows away the QuickConvert 2.0's 2.4-inch color LCD, which is not a touch screen and is fixed in place.
(Credit: David English)Connectivity and Media Handling: Three Formats to Try
The QuickConvert 2.0 does offer an internal battery, though, which isn't an option for either of the two HP FilmScan models. Instead, they draw power through an included USB Type-C-to-A cable: the Type-C connector plugs into the scanner, and the Type-A fits into a desktop, a laptop, or a spare charging block. (You'll need a block rated for at least 5 volts.) I used an AC power surge protector with a charging port available.
(Credit: David English)Like the FilmScan 5-Inch and the QuickConvert 2.0, the FilmScan 7-Inch has a built-in SD-card reader that lets you save your scanned images to a card (not included). Take note, though: HP says the FilmScan 7-Inch is compatible only with SD and SDHC cards up 128GB capacity, and it won't work with SDXC cards. I tried a variety of spare cards, including a 6GB microSD card inside an SD adapter, and they all worked fine—even the 256GB SDXC card. Still, it might be best to stay within HP’s recommendations; an SDXC card might work well initially but create problems later.
The FilmScan 7-Inch can scan media from a variety of film formats—135 (35mm), 126, and 110—and those can be slides or filmstrips, negative or positive, color or black and white. To accommodate all of those options, HP provides a slide holder and three film adapters.
(Credit: David English)The QuickConvert 2.0 uses a similar configuration with separate holders, but it also lets you scan 4-by-6-inch photos via its removable base. That’s a very useful feature that neither of the FilmScan models has.
Also new to the FilmScan 7-Inch: a mini-HDMI port for displaying the unit’s control panel and gallery images on an HDMI-equipped TV or monitor. You’ll still need to use the FilmScan 7-Inch’s touch screen to navigate or control the scanner, and HP doesn’t include an HDMI cable or a mini-HDMI adapter. You should also set your larger display to 16:9 to match the aspect ratio of the FilmScan 7-Inch’s built-in screen.
Using the HP FilmScan 7-Inch: Simple Interface, Limited Options
Before you can operate the FilmScan 7-Inch, you’ll need to insert a compatible SD card. That sounds simple, but it may be a bit confusing (and counterintuitive) at first. With most SD readers, you insert the card with the label facing up and the contacts facing down. With the FilmScan 7-Inch, it’s the other way around: contacts up, and label down.
When you've loaded the card, press the power button on top of the unit. The touch screen will light up, displaying a homepage with four options. Capture lets you make adjustments before you scan your slide or filmstrip, while Gallery allows you to play back the scanned images that you’ve saved to the SD card. Rounding out the options, USB Upload lets you transfer scanned images from your SD card to a connected computer via cable, and Settings lets you adjust, you guessed it, settings.
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(Credit: David English)You also use the touch screen's Capture option to select the film type, film size, and image resolution (13 megapixels or 22 megapixels). Be aware, though: The FilmScan 7-Inch has a 13-megapixel color CMOS sensor, so that 22-megapixel setting is an interpolated higher resolution. I found it to be only marginally better than the 13-megapixel setting, and, as you would expect, the 22-megapixel images will take up considerably more space.
Next, load your slide or filmstrip. When using an adapter, ensure that the four small pins are aligned with the corresponding holes on the slide holder. Once the adapter is in place, close the holder until it clicks shut. If that doesn’t work, you may have to reopen the holder and reposition the adapter.
From this point on, the process is essentially the same for all the formats. You insert the slide holder (either by itself or with an adapter) into the right side of the unit; the arrow markings on both the FilmScan 7-Inch and the holder make it easy to align the holder with the scanner. Then you put a slide or filmstrip into the right side of the holder. With a multi-image filmstrip, you keep pushing it through until you’re done. With a slide, you insert additional slides one at a time, with each slide pushing the previous ones through.
(Credit: David English)As you push the film media through the scanning mechanism, you can use the touch screen’s Preview mode to help center the image and adjust its color, contrast, or brightness. You can also crop the image, if needed. When you’re ready, press the large scan button on top of the unit. The scanned image will then be automatically saved to the SD card.
After you’ve saved some images to the card, you may want to try out the Gallery mode. You can manually view the scans by scrolling through the saved images using the on-screen left and right arrows. Or you can press the Slideshow icon: Each image is displayed for 5 seconds, then automatically moves to the next. Once the slideshow reaches the last image, it loops back to the beginning and keeps playing.
Unlike the FilmScan 5-Inch, the FilmScan 7-Inch lets you vary the slideshow’s display time from the default 5 seconds to either 30 or 60 seconds. And where the FilmScan 5-Inch always displayed slideshow images in a set order, the new model lets you sequence them in Newest First, Newest Last, or Random order.
Portrait Mode Images: Still a Trip-Up
Unfortunately, the biggest flaw with the FilmScan 5-Inch persists in the FilmScan 7-Inch. Neither model provides adequate support for portrait-mode shots compared with landscape mode. If you insert a slide that’s correctly oriented for portrait perspective, the top and bottom of the image will get cut off. You can use the on-screen crop tool to select your preferred portion of the image, but you can’t alter the system to accommodate a portrait shot. After all, the screen itself is shaped for landscape mode.
As a simple workaround, you can insert your portrait shot as though it were a landscape shot. The image will show up sideways, but you can rotate it later on your computer. Unfortunately, there’s no simple workaround for portrait mode in the Gallery feature. The tilted images you saved to the SD card will also appear sideways in your Gallery slideshows.
How about manually rotating your portrait-mode scans using your computer, then writing them back to the SD card for a more consistent slideshow? I tried that, and the results were somewhat disappointing. The Gallery mode did show everything with its proper orientation, but the portrait images were noticeably narrower and shorter than those in landscape mode.
Testing the HP FilmScan 7-Inch: Snappy-Enough Scans, With Mixed Results
Once you press the scan button, the FilmScan 7-Inch takes about 2.2 seconds to save the scanned results to the SD card—about the same amount of time that it takes the older FilmScan and QuickConvert 2.0. What really matters, though, is the time that gets eaten up between scans. You’re dealing with a device that can handle only one slide or filmstrip at a time, so you want to be able to swap one item for another as quickly as possible.
On the plus side, you can scan a bunch of slides or filmstrips relatively quickly with the FilmScan 7-Inch, because you don’t have to remove the holder each time you finish a scan. (You simply push the media through.) On the downside, the slide or filmstrip is only loosely secured as you're pushing it through, compared with other types of scan mechanisms. And given the very small dimensions involved, it doesn’t take much divergence to slightly throw off the focus.
The FilmScan 7-Inch delivers average image quality for this category of low-priced film scanners. It didn't produce especially sharp or detailed pictures, and the colors didn’t always match the tones or hues of the original source material. For many potential buyers, that will be an acceptable trade-off for the price. After all, those old slides or filmstrips of your great-granddad might never be viewed otherwise, without some kind of analog-to-digital conversion. Better to have a so-so digital image than nothing at all.
If you want sharper, more accurate scanned results, consider a higher-priced film scanner, such as the Plustek OpticFilm 135i Ai. It has a 7,200dpi optical resolution, compared with 2,889dpi on both the FilmScan 5 and FilmScan 7. That's like watching a movie on a Blu-ray disc versus a VHS tape. In addition, the OpticFilm 135i Ai can scan four 35mm slides or a six-image 35mm filmstrip at a time, and it can handle portrait shots just as easily as landscapes. That said, it’s limited to 35mm slides and filmstrips.
If you’re looking for a more versatile scanner, and you’re willing to spend considerably more, you might consider the Epson Perfection V800 Photo—our Editors' Choice for a top-quality film scanner. The V800 can accommodate both positive and negative film (including slides), in sizes ranging from 35mm to as large as 8 by 10 inches. And it can scan up to 12 slides or three six-frame filmstrips at a time.