Aggressive scan engine, flexible cable options, competitive pricing

Though not a new product, I am reviewing the HHP 3800 series scanners as well as their sister scanner (the 3900 kiosk model). Having worked with these model scanners for the past several years, I wanted to document my options for others to benefit from.

The scan engine

The HHP 3800/3900 both have the same optical imaging scan engine. The optical engine has no moving parts reducing the chance of damage due to mechanical agitation (dropping). This may not be overstated enough, as even though several laser based scanners on the market have the same 5 year warranty the 3800 does, a broken scanner still reduces productivity until it is replaced. A reduced chance of breaking in the first place ensures increased productivity in the long run.

Reliability is not the only advantage that the optical scan engine provides. For instance, the scan engine allows for aggressive scanning of degraded barcodes. An optical scanner looks at large 2D picture several times per second. Where as a laser scanner only gets a 1D representation of what it is scanning. This allows the HHP 3800 to quickly piece together the readable portions of a barcode. To get better reading of degraded barcodes, with a laser, I have had to move to a scanner with “fuzzy logic”, at a much higher price.

The final advantage of the optical engine I would like to point out is in ergonomics. The optical engine does not have to be held such that a laser tracks across the target barcode in its entirety. The 3800 can be skewed at a much grater angle than a laser based scanner. The 3800’s wide viewing angle, combined with a fast decode engine, minimizes the amount of human zoom required to scan barcodes of various sizes.

Available kiosk model

Personnel do not even have to hold the HHP 3900. The HHP 3900 has all of the features of its handled cousin the HHP 3800, but is intended to be mounted or placed in the HHP adjustable stand. Both the HHP 3800 and 3900 can be triggered by software, through a serial cable; or, the 3900 can be placed in presentation mode. Presentation mode turns on the scanner whenever something that looks like a barcode enters its field of vision.

Flexible cable options

The HHP 3800 is available with a wide variety of interchangeable cables; including serial, keyboard wedge and USB. With the exception of the long reach cables, all of the cables pull power off of the keyboard port on a PC and do not require an external power supply. This is a nice feature that could prevent you from having to call in an electrician to pull additional power to the deployment location.

As with most muti-cable capable scanners you will need to scan a few configuration barcodes from the users guide, but this is very straight forward. Additionally, the users guide includes configurations to enable or disable barcode types, add prefixes/suffixes and enable/disable check digits.

What’s missing

The HHP 3800 does not ship with an integral tool balancer attachment (a tool balancer allows personnel to hang the scanner at an ergonomic height on a “bungee” like cord). A cover with a tool balancer attachment is available as an accessory to remedy this. Realistically, if you need a tool balancer you should probably move up to a more industrial scanner.

Conclusion

For POS or warehouse situation, the HHP 3800/3900 is the best entry level hand held scanner we have reviewed. Its scan engine is aggressive and impressive. The only thing more impressive is the price when compared to other entry level POS/warehouse scanners.

Best Way Technologies is pleased to offer the HHP IT3800 and IT3900. If you are interested in purchasing either of these scanners contact our sales department for pricing.