All of us at some point in our lives have scanned physical documents to turn them into digital documents. Still, most of us don’t have a scanner at home. We usually go to a shop to get the job done. However, in the age of smartphones, we don’t have to invest some of our hard-earned money into a dedicated browser. Android and iOS devices have been able to scan documents with the help of third-party apps for years. However, starting with the new iOS 11 update, you don’t even need such an app installed on your phone to do this. Instead, users can scan any physical document locally using the built-in Notes application. While scanning results are below average compared to a dedicated scanner, the quality is still good enough to cut through for professional uses in most cases. Well, if you’re interested in trying this out, let’s take a look at how to scan documents natively in iOS 11:
Scanning Documents Locally in iOS 11
note: I’ve tried this on the iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone 6s, but it should work on the new iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and iPhone X as well as older iPhones.
Scanning Documents Using the Built-in Notes Application
The procedure is pretty easy and all you need is a few seconds to scan a sheet of paper and convert it to a pdf file using your phone’s camera. So, to handle this without any hassle, simply follow these steps:
- Open the Notes app on your iPhone and “Create a new note” The icon located in the lower right corner of your screen. It is actually shown with a pen and paper. Now, tap the icon. “+” icon located just above the on-screen keyboard.
- When done, tap on “Scan Documents”. Now the Notes app will open the camera and you can use it to point to any physical document you want to scan. After aligning the document with your camera, take a photo. You will now be able to enhance scanning by adjusting the corners of the scanned document. If you’re happy with the scan, you can tap on it. “Continue Scanning”. On the other hand, if the quality is not good enough, you can also choose to retake the shot.
- You can now view the scanned document in Notes. It is worth noting that scans are saved as images. However, if you want to extract a PDF file from this scan, it is entirely possible. Select the scanned document and tap the share icon located in the upper right corner of the screen. Now, tap on “Create PDF” To convert to PDF file. Once complete, you will be able to save the file.
That’s pretty much all you need to do to scan your physical documents locally with your iOS device. But in addition to this, you can also take advantage of popular third-party applications such as: Evernote Scannable, Adobe Scan, Intsig Camera Scanner, etc. to scan documents. However, the quality of the scans will largely depend on the camera your iOS device has, so newer iPhones will give you a better result than the older device.
SEE ALSO: How to Record Screen Natively in iOS 11
Naturally Scan Documents with Ease in iOS 11
While you can always scan documents on your iOS device with apps, the ability to do this natively is always a welcome addition to the operating system. Scanning takes only a few seconds and is much more convenient than going to a nearby store just to have a document scanned. So, are you ready to scan documents with the built-in Notes app in iOS 11, or will you stick with the third-party apps you’ve been using all this time? Let us know by shooting your valuable feedback in the comments section below.
