You needn't shell out the big bucks for a scanner that produces high-quality scans of photo prints and strips of film. The Canon CanoScan 5600F is an easy-to-use flatbed photo scanner that will produce results pleasing even to a serious amateur photographer. Its main downside is that it's relatively slow, particularly when scanning transparencies, for which it foregoes the LED light source it uses to scan prints for a traditional cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL). Although you can scan office documents with the 5600F, the absence of an ADF (automatic document feeder) makes this a laborious process, its real forte is photo scanning. The CanoScan 8800F is a bit faster and has slightly higher resolution, but costs about $50 more.

For the price you pay, the 5600F can't be beat, and is deserving of its status as the new PCMag.com Editors' Choice for a low-priced photo scanner.