Brother DS-640 Compact Mobile Scanner Review and How to Use

Brother DS-640 Compact Mobile Scanner Review and How to Use
Link to the Brother DS-640: amzn.to/3qqx8RM
Link to the Brother DS-940DW (Wireless + Duplex): amzn.to/3ek8O1w
In today’s video, I’ll be reviewing the Brother DS-640 Compact Mobile Document scanner. The DS-640, as its name suggests, is a very compact and portable device, measuring in at about 12 inches wide by 2 inches deep by 1.5 in tall. The device is also very light, weighing in at just over 1 lb. And because of this compactness, it fits in most laptop bags designed for laptops larger than 14 inches.The ds-640 is also pretty simple to hook up and use. It plugs straight into a PC, Mac or even a linux computer via the provided USB cable and allows you to scan documents on the go. I have a separate setup video that walks you through the entire setup process, so feel free to check that out. The device is also powered via USB, so there are luckily no batteries to remember to charge and no other power adapters to carry with it. Brother does sell fully wireless scanners, but the DS-640 isn’t one of them, it needs to stay connected to your computer all the time. If you’re looking for a wireless document scanner, I’ll leave links to a few wireless options below. Once plugged in and set up, the scanner’s main interface is the Brother iPrint and Scan app. The app seems to work very well on both Windows and Mac computers. It’s a rather simple app but works reliably. To scan a document, adjust the sliding paper guide to the size of the item you’re scanning. Then simply insert the document into the scanner. The scanner then pulls the page in a bit. Go into the app, click on Scan, check your settings and then hit the scan button. The ds-640 pulls the page through and scans it pretty quickly. The ds-640 can handle pages as wide as Letter or A4 and can scan documents as long as 72inches. It also easily handles business cards, id cards, envelopes, store receipts and even credit cards. It will struggle and jam with anything any thicker than that or with pages that have staples in them. However, if it does jam, a compartment in the center of the device can be opened to quickly clear the jam. In terms of print quality it can scan at a maximum resolution of 1200 x 1200dpi, which is more than sufficient to scan most documents and photos or graphics. The scan quality is pretty decent; about the same as what you’d get from the scan bed on an all-in-one printer. However, it is much faster than a printer at scanning documents, and Brother claims a maximum scan speed of 16 Letter size pages per minute. The DS-640 can only scan single sided documents, so if you need to scan double sided documents, you’d have to flip it over and scan it again. If you do scan a lot of double sided documents, I can leave links to some duplex scanners, right below the video.So, should you buy the Brother DS-640? Well, that all depends on what you plan to use it for. If you’re looking for a simple, compact, inexpensive portable scanner to carry around in your laptop bag, this is a great option. But if you plan to scan a lot of double sided documents and need the functionality of a wireless scanner, I recommend paying a little more and getting the equally compact, Brother DS-940DW. I’ll leave links to both these scanners below. So feel free to check those out. And if you own one of these scanners, leave me a comment below. I’d love to hear about your experience. Hope this video was helpful. If it was, please hit that like button and subscribe for more reviews, unboxings and how-to-videos. And if you’re already subscribed, please click that bell icon to be notified when I upload new videos. Thanks for watching and I’ll see you next time.

[@Monix9000]

I just bought mine yesterday and I'm loving this little device.

[@MichaelMadlock]

I appreciate the simplistic and straight to the point review.

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks for the comment

[@raymondsalazar2585]

I used to use an Epson ET-2550 kzbin.infoUgkxciSwynMJ7PnUvvx11rewiu-yFBkZTl53 , an early model of the ink tank style. It worked well, but had one nuisance that drove me up the wall; if you didn't put it in high quality print mode you'd get a streak across the page. I'm happy to say I have yet to see this with this printer. The print quality has been fantastic so far, the set up was super easy. All in all I'm very happy with this printer.

[@tinamarieschaffer-sick4456]

Thank you for your thoughtful review and set up (previous video) of this product. It has helped me decide to go ahead and purchase the scanner. I'm using this for a photo project - scanning all our family photos (1000s) to put in Shutterfly books and discarding the photos themselves. The process seems very straightforward.

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks for the comment. And good luck with the project

[@darlenebailey1929]

I bought DS-640 scanner, I watch your video you explain how to use so well, thanks you so much.

[@Reviewlamp]

You’re welcome. Thanks for the comment

[@sarahswango6634]

I thought the scanner wasn't working until a very quick part of your video showed me that the sizing thingy needed to be pushed to the RIGHT, lol. No wonder the app wasn't detecting the page. Thank you!! My frustration was mounting. . .

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks for the comment. Glad it helped. Please subscribe

[@Lexfinity]

Thanks man. I'm looking for a scanner for phones. Like a Bluetooth connection

[@sebasneutron]

Great review!!! i'll buy it

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks! Please subscribe

[@BrooklynAlien]

Thank you! I refuse to read directions and this helped! 😊

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks for the comment. Glad the video helped

[@fabiettopiras]

Thank you!

[@Reviewlamp]

You’re welcome. Please subscribe

[@hullopillow4853]

Just bought DS-640 today, the top part let out some loose part sound when i shake/tilt the unit, is it normal ?

[@michabradnock8365]

Thank-you for your very informative video! Is there any chance you may know if it is possible to scan numerous single paged documents directly into the one folder (Not a mutlipage. As separate documents) - like the DS-940DW, or if you have to scan each document and save it each time? Thanks in advance

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks. You can definitely do that. You would just have to manually feed documents in to ensure the pages are right next to each other. That way the scanner thinks it’s a single long document

[@MoonDirectedTarot]

thank you

[@Reviewlamp]

You’re welcome

[@hirquiticke3220]

can it scan legal size?

Thanks for the review. Most of documents I need to scan are either stapled or very thick so this would not work for them. I hoped it can adjust to thicker things. I'd rather avoid having flatbed but it seems that it's hard to get something compact that will work for thick and stiff things or stapled documents.

[@Reviewlamp]

Yes, unfortunately thicker things are a bit of a challenge for these types of scanners. You could try this scanner which is better at thicker documents and can do multiple pages: amzn.to/3ykpQ73

[@stevewindsenergy]

@@Reviewlamp ok

[@michaelmach5748]

*It prints like no other **Bestt.Digital** printer. i have always loved Epson for the colors they produce.*

[@sheeplord4976]

lol, does epson make bots now?

[@SSUKBD]

What's the difference between DS 620 and DS 640

[@Solarstormflare]

thanks mate, my boss bought it for me and i couldnt figure out how to open it to unjam the paper

[@Reviewlamp]

Thanks for the comment. Please subscribe

[@Zuchinni93]

Would it be enough to scan photos in good resolution? I have a lot of old photos I would like to digitalize in quick way and I wondered if the scan quality of this device is enough?

[@Reviewlamp]

Yes. The scan quality is good enough for digitizing photos

[@carlafreeze2861]

Is there a way to set this scanner for continuous scan

[@horseymusiclover]

I have been looking for a way to do that. I also have a DS-720d scanner, and the software for it is way simpler and seems to be automatically set for continuous scan. I've been looking for how set my DS-640 the same way, but no success.

[@xelario]

Supposedly the software does OCR and can save scans as searchable PDF. How well does that work in practice?

[@Reviewlamp]

It works fine. Not perfect but good enough

[@xelario]

@@Reviewlamp Thanks!

[@carmichaelrecto8512]

Hi. Can I used this scanner for tablets? (Ex. Samsung tab s6) I have an adaptor for it.

[@Reviewlamp]

No. It doesn’t have drivers for tablets

[@mrbigh95838]

Can you use this on an Android phone with OTG cable

[@Reviewlamp]

No. It doesn’t have drivers for Android

[@dragandragan6469]

Hi, how to save save in JPEG, it wont let me. Also, dpi scan larger than 300x300 wont accept. Whats solution? Thanx.

[@Reviewlamp]

What software are you using on your computer?

[@karynhutchinson6892]

Just unboxed mine today and for the life of me we cannot get it to scan. Any help that you can offer?

[@Reviewlamp]

Have you tried following my step by step setup video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4qnf42vp5h2nJo

[@d5whilmer]

I have this scanner and it works well. Today I attempted to scan a word doc. to file as a pdf and it refused to scan like normal saying the memory is full. I see nothing on the home page about clearing memory and there is no slot for SD mem. card. How do we clear the device memory?

[@Reviewlamp]

It’s probably referring to the memory on your computer. Have you checked how much disk space is available on your computer? The scanner doesn’t store anything internally

[@andreeamociran2360]

Can you print docs using bluetooth?

[@Reviewlamp]

No. You cannot scan wirelessly to this scanner. For that you would need this model: amzn.to/3vJTXEu

[@tulamosio]

Will this scanner work with my IPad?

[@Reviewlamp]

No. It only works with Macs and Windows computers

[@monikam.8183]

Hello. I bought one of these a few days ago but it keeps reporting 'paper jam' although there's no paper inside. It's been doing this since the beginning. It's really annoying as I spend more time fixing the problem than scanning documents. Do you have an idea what the problem could be? Thank you. M. Otherwise the machine is brilliant as it's small and fast.

[@Reviewlamp]

I would recommend exchanging it, since it is probably within its return period. It sounds like you have a defective unit.

[@monikam.8183]

@@Reviewlamp Thank you for your reply. I'll return it.

[@ramonturingan6401]

Can scan legal size paper?

[@Reviewlamp]

Yes it can

[@meighme8540]

does anyone know if this scanner works with a Macbook pro 12.3.1 and has the correct usb fittings for a mac?

[@Reviewlamp]

Yes. It will work with that Mac

[@AnnaOtieno]

Yes, it works on mine BUT you need to get a USB to Thunderbolt Adapter (about 10 bucks on Amazon)

[@muhammadhaikal3395]

How to overcome document jam ? Scan not working

[@Reviewlamp]

You have to clear the jam as shown in the video

[@trevsweb]

What's the quality of photos being scanned?

[@Reviewlamp]

As good as any all-in-one printer’s scanner

[@gregorywinters8891]

Wrong. Not even close. My 10-year-old Samsung CLX-6250 will scan 24-bit color 8x11 with no "out of memory" issues. This toy? Stops less than a fourth through.@@Reviewlamp

[@sergeyv83]

Can it scan a passport? Would it feed it thru?

[@Reviewlamp]

No, it will not scan a passport

[@NorielChan-sb5ej]

the app is essential here.. where to get the god damn app

[@lfidarraga]

does it work in chrome os?

[@Reviewlamp]

It does not

[@lfidarraga]

@@Reviewlamp 😩 thanks for your reply

[@dustup2249]

"Has to be plugged into your computer all of the time..." is absolutely a deal breaker. Why does it have to remain plugged into your computer all of the time? Why can't you unplug and store in a dust free container to keep it's optical pickup dusfree? Worse review ever.