How to scan a document with an iPhone

Trending 2 weeks ago
The iPhone 16 and nan iPhone 16 Plus broadside by side
(Image credit: Apple)

Scanning documents is simply a awesome life accomplishment to person for a assortment of reasons, immoderate individual and immoderate professional. Saving older documents, signing documents, stock files pinch family, and galore different tasks are made easier by scanners.

While nan iPhone 16 and its astonishing camera is caller connected everyone's minds, Apple has been building unthinkable iPhone cameras for years, meaning that their expertise to prime up mini specifications connected documents is getting amended and better.

Today, we're going to look astatine immoderate of nan champion ways to scan a archive utilizing your iPhone camera, including Google Drive, Apple's Notes app, Adobe Scan, and Microsoft Lens.

Taking advantage of Optical Character Recognition, aliases OCR, these apps tin construe documents of astir kinds, including JPEGs, to other applicable data.

Tools and requirements to scan a archive connected an iPhone

  • A archive to scan
  • An iPhone
  • A scanning app

Steps for scanning

  • Make judge nan archive is fresh to scan
  • Open nan scanning app
  • Scan nan archive and stock it

Step by measurement guideline for scanning

1. Prepare nan archive

A photograph scanner successful action.

(Image: © Shutterstock.com / Ja Crispy)

Since we're utilizing an iPhone camera, nan archive needs to beryllium well-lit connected a level aboveground and free from smudges and different blemishes. While nan caller iPhone 16, and moreover nan iPhone 15 and iPhone 14, person powerful cameras, nan meaning is ever going to beryllium somewhat little than a scanner aliases printer.

  • The best location printer and best scanner correct now

2. Use Apple Notes

Apple

(Image: © Apple)

The built-in Notes app connected iOS and iPadOS is possibly 1 of nan astir slept connected features fixed really powerful it tin be.

Case successful point: nan Notes app tin really scan documents without nan request for immoderate different software. First, unfastened nan app and click nan Camera icon, and past pat Scan Documents. Place nan archive and nan archive will automatically scan successful Auto mode. Press nan shutter fastener to seizure much scans, and resistance nan corners to set them.

Your scans tin past beryllium saved to a Notes document, earlier being sent to others, saved to iCloud, shared via AirDrop, and truthful on.

3. Use Adobe Scan

Adobe

(Image: © Adobe)

If Notes isn't doing it for you, aliases you want much features, past a third-party app is nan measurement to go.

We really for illustration Adobe Scan, a free app that not only scans documents but besides has powerful devices to stitch them together and execute different edits that mightiness beryllium useful successful a business context.

The app itself is beautiful self-explanatory. Prepare nan document, unfastened nan app, scan nan document, and past set immoderate settings you want to.

There are plentifulness of export options, for illustration Google Drive and Dropbox, and this is possibly wherever Adobe Scan thumps retired Apple Notes.

4. Use Google Drive

Google Drive class characteristic leak

(Image: © TheSpAndroid)

Google Drive is different free option, and immoderate of you will already beryllium linked up good pinch Google's ecosystem and salary for a larger retention plan.

Scanning a archive is again beautiful similar: unfastened nan app, pat Add and past nan Camera icon, and your archive should get an automatic bluish statement to show wherever it will beryllium cropped.

Once you're happy, pat Done and prevention and stock nan document.

5. Use Microsoft Lens

Microsoft

(Image: © Microsoft )

Finally, Microsoft Lens. Like Google Drive, this 1 will activity champion if you're portion of Microsoft's business app ecosystem – and let's look it, who isn't? – and offers galore of nan aforesaid features arsenic nan supra apps.

Open nan app, take what to seizure retired of Whiteboard, Document, Business Card, aliases Photo, and return nan photo. Each of these modes caters to somewhat different things, and it's a neat instrumentality for agency work.

The app lets you edit captured photos, specified arsenic by cropping them. It tin moreover uses images taken astatine flimsy angles (such arsenic a whiteboard successful class) and construe nan information successful nan graphs.

After you've taken and edited your photo, location are a immense number of export options and record formats disposable to save. Naturally, Microsoft Lens useful good pinch nan Microsoft 365 suite.

FAQs for scanning documents pinch your iPhone

Which 1 is nan champion of these examples?

The reply really depends connected what you want to scan and for what reason. For most, we'd opportunity that Apple's Notes app will do nan job, particularly if you don't want to download and group up third-party services.

In master contexts, though, things are different and nan prime comes down to which ecosystem – Google aliases Microsoft – your organisation exists in, pinch Adobe Scan acting arsenic a bully mediate crushed that useful pinch both.

Is a smartphone camera enough?

The iPhone 16 has a fabulously powerful camera that tin return images astatine ace precocious resolutions, which is perfect for scanning documents. Of course, nan iPhone camera is ne'er going to beryllium arsenic meticulous arsenic an existent scanner fixed nan benefits of really a scanning tray holds nan archive adjacent to nan scanner, and truthful on.

For photo scanning and different master uses, we'd urge a scanner, aliases a printer pinch a built-in scanner, but for everyone other an iPhone 16 pinch a archive successful bully lighting will beryllium enough.

Final thoughts connected scanning a archive pinch an iPhone

Scanning a archive pinch an iPhone is simply a speedy and elemental solution if you don't person a scanner aliases printer astatine your location aliases office. The cameras connected nan newer iPhone models are truthful bully now they almost scope nan aforesaid clarity arsenic a scanner.

We dream this guideline was helpful, and convey you for reading.

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Max Slater-Robins has been penning astir exertion for astir a decade astatine various outlets, covering nan emergence of nan exertion giants, trends successful endeavor and SaaS companies, and overmuch much besides. Originally from Suffolk, he presently lives successful London and likes a bully nighttime retired and walks successful nan countryside.

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