Being asked to sign, scan, and transmit a document if you don’t have one of those fancy all-in-one printers with a scanner might seem difficult. However, you may already have a scanner in your pocket: your iPhone.
I don’t mean taking a picture of a document and then cropping it; that’s more work than it’s worth. Nowadays, all you need is your iPhone to scan a document. Using a number of applications, you may scan documents directly from your iPhone.
Make use of the Files app
Scanning papers and saving them on your phone is a breeze using the Files app. You may also scan receipts and papers, as well as sign and scan them. Simply ensure that your iPhone and PC are both linked to iCloud and that you can access your iCloud Drive. Here’s how to get going.
- On your phone, look for the Files app. You may access all of your iCloud files from there. Select the iCloud Drive location while the programme is active.
- Tap the three-dot More symbol by swiping down on the screen. Choose New Folder, give it a name like Scans, and then press Done.
- To activate the camera, scroll down again to press the three-dot More icon and choose Scan Documents from your new Scans folder.
- Place the document on a flat surface and hover the phone over it until the Camera app recognises it. A blue highlight has been added to the document. The software will capture the shot most of the time, but there is a shutter button if it doesn’t catch your document right away.
- When you press the Save button, your scan will be saved in the Scans folder, where it will be accessible from any device that can access iCloud. You may then rename the document by tapping it.
Scanning many documents in a row
- Arrange your documents in a stack so that they may be scanned one by one.
- The app reads the first page when the camera shoots it. Prepare for the following scan, which will be around the bottom. Remove the first page so that the second may be captured.
- Repeat until you’ve completed all of the scans.
- All of your scanned pages will be saved to a single document if you tap Save. The number of pages contained will be indicated by a badge.
- Don’t worry about getting the scanning angle quite perfect; the software will adjust the view to flatten the scan automatically. The completed scans will be properly aligned with a high-quality depiction of the contents when you examine them.
Make use of the Notes app
The Notes app on the iPhone includes a scanning capability that you may use anytime you create a new document. Here’s how to go about it.
- Create a new note or open an existing one.
- Select Scan Documents from the Camera icon.
- Hover your smartphone camera over your document and place it on a flat surface.
- If your smartphone is set to Auto Mode, the app will scan your document for you and highlight it in yellow. Depending on the lighting circumstances, the app will use flash. If the camera does not automatically record your document, you may manually capture it by hitting the shutter button.
- If necessary, drag the corners to resize the scan to suit the page or to scan only a portion of the page.
- Keep Scan.
- If you’re scanning many pages, add more scans to the document and save when you’re through.
Utilize the Continuity Camera
Continuity Camera is a built-in feature in both MacOS and iOS that allows you to control the camera on your mobile device straight from your Mac. You may also easily upload photographs and scans directly from your smartphone to a computer document.
To utilise Continuity Camera, make sure your Mac and iPhone are on the same Wi-Fi network and that Bluetooth is turned on. Ensure that both devices are signed in to the same iCloud account and that two-factor authentication is turned on. Here’s how to use TextEdit to scan with iOS 14 and MacOS Big Sur.
- On your Mac, open any of the compatible apps.
- In the Mac document or window, control-click or right-click and select Scan Documents from the pop-up menu. You may also use the menu bar to access the scanning feature by selecting File or Insert.
- Wait for the scan to complete by pointing your iPhone or iPad’s camera lens at the document. By pressing the shutter button or one of the volume buttons, you can manually take a scan.
- Drag the corners to trim only the area of the scan you want or adjust the camera’s location to match the page. Then press the Keep Scan button.
- To add more scans, repeat the procedure, or hit Save to complete.
