Buzz
For years, you've been planning to digitize the piles of photos stored in shoeboxes in your basement. There's no better time than now to start. Several smartphone apps can assist you with this task, eliminating the need to hire someone or use a bulky scanner. Among these, Photomyne and Google's recently launched PhotoScan stand out as the top contenders.
The Competitors
Both PhotoScan and Photomyne share a primary goal: to scan and digitize your physical photos. They are compatible with both Android and iPhone devices. Here’s a brief overview of each app:
PhotoScan: Released this month, PhotoScan has quickly become a strong choice for photo scanning. Using PhotoScan, you position a photo, aim your smartphone camera at it, and follow the app’s instructions to capture four images. These images are merged to reduce glare and enhance quality. PhotoScan also auto-detects photo edges and crops them accurately. If you use Google Photos, your scans can be automatically uploaded to your free Google Photos account.
Photomyne: Photomyne captures a single shot per photo, skipping the multi-shot method used by PhotoScan. However, it allows you to scan multiple photos simultaneously by framing them in one shot. Photomyne offers a free iOS version, but it’s too limited for practical use. We recommend the $4.99 version instead. If you’re curious, you can try the free version, but be prepared to upgrade if you want to back up your photo collection. The Android version, however, is free. Photomyne also offers optional cloud storage for $2/month, though it’s not mandatory to use this feature.
It’s crucial to note that while both PhotoScan and Photomyne provide cloud storage options, neither mandates its use. If you prefer using services like Dropbox or Flickr for photo backups, that’s perfectly acceptable. Now, let’s explore the user experience of these apps in detail.
Photomyne Enables Batch Scanning and Simultaneous Organization
Photomyne’s standout feature compared to PhotoScan is its ability to capture multiple photos in a single shot, allowing for faster scanning.
Photomyne’s process is designed for efficiency, especially when dealing with large quantities of photos. Simply aim your smartphone camera at a group of four or five photos, take a picture, and proceed to the next set. Once scanning is complete, you can crop individual photos and organize them into albums. This method is significantly quicker than PhotoScan’s approach.
PhotoScan, on the other hand, limits you to scanning one photo at a time, and the process is more labor-intensive. After pointing your phone’s camera at a photo and tapping the scan button, you must move your phone to capture four images, which are then merged into one. This method becomes tedious when scanning numerous photos.
Photomyne’s album creation feature simplifies organizing photos on the go. As you create an album, every photo you scan is automatically added to it. You can categorize albums by holidays, years, or any other system that suits your preferences. This functionality is intuitive and ideal for scanning photos already in albums rather than loose in boxes. However, this feature is most beneficial if you remain within Photomyne’s ecosystem, which requires purchasing their cloud storage. If you export photos to your camera roll, the album data is not retained.
PhotoScan lacks built-in photo management tools, relying instead on Google Photos or other third-party organization apps. When you scan photos, they are all saved in a single folder, leaving you to organize them later. This approach is convenient if you avoid Google Photos for storage, but it adds an extra step to the organization process.
For those needing to scan numerous photos quickly, Photomyne’s batch scanning capability significantly speeds up the process. The ability to scan directly into albums streamlines organization, provided you’re comfortable using Photomyne’s cloud storage system.
PhotoScan Delivers Superior Image Quality and More Precise Auto-Cropping
Although PhotoScan requires more time to use, the results are superior. Scanned photos from PhotoScan appear sharper, and its automatic cropping feature, shared with Photomyne, proved more accurate in my tests.
While I’m no photo archiving expert, PhotoScan’s results appear more true-to-life to me. The colors are closer to the original, images look sharper when zoomed in, and the app excels at correcting skewed perspectives if the phone isn’t held perfectly straight. Additionally, PhotoScan effectively removes glare and reflections, which is particularly useful for glossy photos.
Photomyne, on the other hand, doesn’t perform extensive post-processing. It applies some color correction but fails to eliminate glare or reflections. This means you need to be cautious while scanning to avoid capturing unwanted light reflections.
Both apps automatically crop scanned images, removing background elements to focus solely on the photo. While Photomyne’s ability to scan multiple photos at once is impressive, it struggles with accurately detecting photo edges, often requiring manual adjustments. PhotoScan also occasionally needs manual cropping, but far less frequently. Photomyne is faster, but its hands-on cropping process may not appeal to everyone.
PhotoScan is the Superior Choice for Most Users, Though Photomyne Works in a Pinch
In terms of usability and image quality, PhotoScan outperforms Photomyne. While Photomyne speeds up the scanning process, it demands more post-scan effort and delivers less consistent results in terms of visual appeal.
Photomyne frequently prompts you to subscribe to its cloud service. While optional and competitively priced at $2/month for unlimited photo storage, the constant pop-ups urging you to sign up can become irritating every time you use the app.
Photomyne offers a broader range of features. You can create and modify albums, add details like dates and years to photos, and apply various filters. It serves as an all-in-one solution, whereas PhotoScan focuses solely on scanning. Your choice depends on your current photo archiving needs.
If your priority is scanning and you’re okay with a slower process, PhotoScan is the better option. However, if you need speed or a comprehensive photo management tool, Photomyne is the way to go.
