Show HN: Open Scanner, an open-source document scanning app for iPhone

[nesk_]

Not sure how this compares to the scanner in the native Files app? https://www.macrumors.com/how-to/scan-documents-ios-files-ap...

[macrolime]

I think the fact this made it to the front page shows how many were unaware of the scanner in the files app. I have multiple times looked into ways to scan on iPhone and have only found the Notes app, which is kinda klunky, and Microsoft Lens.

[nrabulinski]

TIL it’s in the files app. I always use the notes app for this. You can either long-press on notes and tap scan document or go into a random note, scan a document, and export it as pdf from there

[mrunseen]

I did not check the source code but scanning UI and outcome is exactly the same as native iOS scanner.

[taco_emoji]

In case anybody was wondering, you can also do this in Android via the Google Drive app. Click "New" and then "Scan".

[dinnouti]

There is a shortcut for the native scan within Files. I usually add to the Home Screen.

[ornornor]

I had no clue there was a scanner in the files app.

[miles]

Thanks so much for crafting and sharing this app. Was just chatting with a friend about scanning via Notes[1], which is a little clunky for quickly and seamlessly sharing a scan.

A few feature suggestions:

* Allow setting default color mode (having to switch manually to B&W every time adds another step)

* Allow setting setting type (PDF, JPG, TXT) and size (Original, Medium, Small) in Sharing Options à la Scanner Pro[2]

* Allow sharing immediately after scanning rather than first having to tap Save then opening the image again

[1] https://support.apple.com/en-us/108963

[2] https://readdle.com/scannerpro

[chazeon]

You can actually directly scan in the Files app from the triple dots menu in the upper right corner, this will allow you to directly scan as a PDF file.

[zamadatix]

Apart from being clunky Apple's Notes app has some just... odd limitations. E.g. you can only scan 24 pages in a note, because reasons?

[theogravity]

Congrats on the release. Open Scanner looks like a good alternative to the paid TurboScan (it's what I've been using for over 5+ years):

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/turboscan-pro-pdf-scanner/id34...

[AiAi]

Also have been using this for years (even knowing that there's this feature built-in in the Notes app).

[bbor]

Looks incredible! As someone preparing a large iPhone-based scanning project, this couldn’t have come at a better time. I’m a longtime CamScanner user, but will happily move to something open source if it delivers on its promises. Will try it out asap!

Re:the common “why not just use the native functionality” questions, I think the simple answer is scale. If I want to scan a random receipt I’d use Apple, but as we all know well, Apple rarely caters to power users — someone scanning multiple times a day or for hours at a time will almost definitely be better served by a dedicated app.

Side note: these (two!!) devs are killing it. Great communication (their privacy policy is top-notch), great styling, and they have a whole roster of neat apps lined up, including an Apple Vision release. Thanks for putting them on my radar, OP! https://pencilresearch.com/

[darknavi]

I am partial to QuickScan[1] as it is free and has no ads. It does not seem to be open source though.

[1] https://www.quickscanapp.com/

[miles]

QuickScan looks great and has loads of features, but it might be more accurately described as "nagware" since a donation request is shown on every export until a donation is made (after which point it can be disabled via Settings > Other settings > "Do not show donation request"). Nothing wrong with that; if I were a user I'd certainly donate, just wanted to let other potential users know.

[sandreas]

Does it support page dewarping[1] and 1bit color Palette PNG in PDF so shrink filesize[2]? I would love to See these features...

1: https://github.com/LittleTrickster/PDF-Doc-Scan/issues/17#is...

2: https://github.com/LittleTrickster/PDF-Doc-Scan/issues/7#iss...

[dmd]

This functionality is already built into the iPhone - in the Notes app, and also in the Files app. What does your software add?

[thefourthchime]

Why is my first thought that this has a clever backdoor to find passwords and crypto keys?

[ein0p]

Integrated, single purpose app. Most people don’t even know Notes has OCR. I didn’t until late last year, even though I’ve been iPhone user since the original came out.

[andrei-akopian]

For Android I recommend "OSS Document Scanner" it is just as good as MS Lens and CamScanner in my experience.

- https://github.com/Akylas/OSS-DocumentScanner

- https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38848423

[ryankrage77]

Awesome that it's free, open-source, and ad-free. My understanding is you have to pay to publish even free apps on the App store - are the devs providing this at their own expense?

[ductionist]

Dev here - we already have a developer membership from our other (monetized) apps, so releasing this doesn't cost us any additional money.

[ThrowawayTestr]

I thought it was only $100 a year

[dxbednarczyk]

What benefit does Open Scanner have over using the "Scan Document" iPhone shortcut? For sync/sharing I usually just AirDrop the scan to my Mac.

[Starmina]

Nothing if you like it that way.

[yosito]

iOS has built in document scanning. I never understood why I should install a third party app for that.

[slaven]

If you scan a lot of documents you would

[nashashmi]

“Hey siri, scan document”.

I guess you can provide an alt for people who didn’t activate siri.

[october8140]

Just long click on Notes app. Or click the … in Files.

[weinzierl]

I will certainly give it a try, because I am not 100% happy with SwiftScan anymore.

The biggest threat to these kinds of apps is getting bought by one of the big app boutique shops and being neglected.

SwiftScan started as an ambitious project by a small shop of dedicated people, but since it has been sold it started to show some cracks.

[chrisweekly]

Related tangent: IF you already use Dropbox, FYI the Dropbox iOS app's scan feature is excellent.

[tmaly]

When it says it saves it to its own library, does this mean scans will not appear in Photos? Is there a way to clean up older files in the library?

[ductionist]

That’s right, scans don’t appear in Photos. You can delete pages or scans with the usual iPhone controls (swipe left to show the Delete button, etc.)

[zeagle]

I don't have an iPhone but thinking of switching from Android and my work flows. Can this sync saving to a SMB network folder so paperless-ngx imports it?

[mmmlinux]

iOS can connect to SMB and scan documents out of the box with the built in files app.

[teeray]

I would love paperless-ngx export support for this

[0XAFFE]

There is Paperparrot[1] which allows to directly scan documents or add existing documents to your paperless instance from your phone.

[1] https://apps.apple.com/us/app/paperparrot/id1663665267

[draugadrotten]

A workaround is to export the PDF to a network folder which is configured as the paperless-ngx "consumption" folder.

[october8140]

Document scanning is built into Files and Notes.

[wincent]

1.3 MB download.