UPDATE 01.08.2023: The Youdao Dictionary Pen 3 has been added to the best pen scanners and digital highlighters list 1. ScanMarker Air

Like other reading pens, the Scanmarker Air is really built around OCR (optical character recognition) technology. As you scan a sentence, the device sort of takes a picture of the text and then software works to convert that picture into digital text that can, for instance, be translated or read out loud. RECHARGEABLE BATTERY: features a rechargeable battery that provides hours of continuous use without the need to frequently charge The C-Pen Reader is one of the three available devices from the same manufacturer (the other two being the Exam Reader and the Dictionary Pen, which have a larger library with more languages), all of them sharing the same dimensions and weight (measures 5.3 x 1.3 x 0.7 inches and weighs 1.7 ounces) and the main differentiating design factor is the colour: the case of the C-Pen Reader is all white. Because of the small form-factor, the device can be used by adults, but it is also suitable for children, especially because it is reasonably lightweight and it allows for a comfortable grip even with smaller hands. The Scanmarker Air is a scanning pen made by Topscan Ltd. It attaches to a computer (either Windows or Mac) or connects to your mobile device (iOS/Android) and then, once set up with its app, can scan text and read it out loud to help dyslexic students and those with other reading difficulties.The Scanmarker Air can also read and translate text in a variety of languages, supporting about 50 languages as of writing: English, Spanish, French, German, Hebrew, Russian and more. From Austrian Standard German to Zulu, basically. I know that some other devices offer the option to take a picture of the math formula, but this is not supported with this pen scanner. As for the battery life, the Youdao Dictionary Pen 3 pen scanner will work or about 5 hours if you use it continuously – the charging port is USB-C which is excellent. 4. IRISPen Air 7 TEXT-TO-SPEECH: reads words and full lines of text aloud to help promote independent reading for those suffering with learning difficulties We recommend holding the pen at a steady 60 degrees or so because it is a bit more fidgety than some other, more expensive, brands.

The C-Pen Reader follows the same concept as the other pen scanners (it allows you to scan various paragraphs from books or any type of documents and, using the Optical Character Recognition technology, it converts the data and ports it into a digital format, which can later be read or edited), but it’s main audience consists of people that suffer from dyslexia or other types of reading difficulties and for users with visual impairments. The battery life of the IrisPen is rated to last for up to 4 hours of continuous use, while to charge it, it will take about two and a half hours (the first time, you will need to recharge the battery for 5 hours). Note: Inside the case, the C-Pen Reader is equipped with a 600 MHz CPU and 4 GB of internal memory life. Use your pen scanner to scan editable text directly into any computer application e.g. Microsoft Word. Students younger than that may not have the dexterity yet or might just get too frustrated and give up. How do I know if my student is ready for this scanning pen?Memorize and gain a clearer understanding of the scanned material using the read aloud feature – hear the text out loud whilst scanning. This also turns Scanmarker into an effective assistive device used for dyslexia and other disabilities, helping every student achieve academic success. The device seems sensitive to jitters and users report having to spend time learning to scan with it properly (lining up text in the center of the tip, holding the pen and such), although like us once they learned how they saw fairly good accuracy in scanning. If you have or are a parent of a student who has reading difficulties, such as dyslexia, chances are you might be looking for ways to help make reading easier. These days, there are a few companies that make reading pens for people with dyslexia and other reading difficulties, scanners that fit into highlighter-sized devices and that can read scanned text out loud. At a minimum, for desktops and laptop computers, it needs a system running Windows 7 (or higher) and Mac OSX 10 (or higher), so it will run on many older systems. ULTRA-FAST SCANNING: the Scanmarker Air enters text 30 times faster than typing, saving you valuable note taking time

But the most interesting feature is the Interactive Reading which seems to be able to animate what’s written in certain books. By certain books, I mean those specifically designed for Interactive Reading and at the moment, they’re available just in Mainland China.To reliably use the Scanmarker Air accurately, we feel your child should be able to do the following: The device is equipped with 1GB of RAM which does ensure that the transition between windows (on the display) is smooth and it also makes use of 16GB of storage for both the software and the dictionary – more than enough. The way you need to use the Youdao Dictionary Pen 3 pen scanner is by making sure that the head is almost vertical (with a very slight angle) and then by pushing it, the LED should light up and the scanned words should appear on the display.

The choice depends on your specific needs – if you use a scanner from time to time and typically work with short text fragments, that speed isn’t of such great importance. But if you need to scan huge piles of documents almost every day, that using a slow device can have negative consequences. Battery LifeOverall, we feel the Scanmarker Air is an affordable and pretty accurate reader pen. If you don’t mind working alongside your computer or mobile device, and don’t mind needing a bit of practice, given the price we think it can represent a good value as an assistive device to students with dyslexia and other reading difficulties. Hit the little blank spot before a word begins and then scan a text from side to side without jittering too much The Scanmarker Air is compatible with any application, including Word, Excel, Gmail, Facebook, Outlook, Cloud Drive and more. Text will be scanned wherever you want it to, making it easy to scan and share without needing to type.