The Development History of EasyScanner - Version of EasyScanner

Easy Scanner started as a simple way to turn paper into files on your phone, and it has picked up a lot along the way. This is the short history: when it launched, what each round of updates added, and where the app is now.

The birth of EasyScanner

The first version of Easy Scanner came out in 2016.

It was a basic release, but it set up everything that came after.

The idea was simple. People and small businesses had too much paper and no easy way to find anything in it. Desk scanners were slow and stuck in one place, and phones already had good cameras.

So the team set out to build a scanner app that was easy enough for anyone to use and good enough to replace the machine in the corner of the office.

Key development stages - version of EasyScanner

The big steps so far:

• 2019: A better user experience, document sync across devices, and minor fixes.
• 2022: Better scan quality, a spirit level while scanning, and bug fixes.
• 2023: Scanning for ID cards, passports and QR codes, plus visa photos.
• 2024: Faster scanning using AI, and a fix for crop points being displayed in the wrong place.

Each release added a little more, and over time a simple scanning app became a place to keep and manage all your documents.

Minimum required operating system: Android 6.0

Latest version on iOS: Easy Scanner Camera to PDF 4.2.13

Here is the version history of EasyScanner App Scanning on iOS, newest first:

• 4.2.10 (Jul 9, 2024): Fixed crop points being displayed inaccurately.
• 4.2.2009 (Jul 7, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2008 (Jul 7, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2007 (Jul 5, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2006 (Jun 30, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2005 (Jun 24, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2004 (Jun 18, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2003 (Apr 9, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2002 (Mar 23, 2024): Improved scan performance using AI.
• 4.2.2001 (Apr 27, 2023): ID card, passport and QR code scanning; visa application photos; automatic update reminders.
• 4.2.2000 (Dec 18, 2022): ID card, passport and QR code scanning; visa application photos; automatic update reminders.
• 4.1.2009 (Nov 9, 2022): Better scan quality; automatic update reminders.
• 4.1.2008 (Jun 5, 2022): Spirit level while scanning; automatic update reminders.
• 4.1.2007 (Mar 18, 2022): General improvements.
• 4.1.2006 (Mar 10, 2022): General improvements.
• 4.1.2005 (Mar 6, 2022): Minor fixes.
• 4.1.2004 (Mar 4, 2022): Minor fixes.
• 4.1.2003 (Mar 2, 2022): General improvements.
• 4.1.2002 (Feb 25, 2022): General improvements.
• 4.1.2001 (Feb 25, 2022): General improvements.
• 4.1.2000 (Feb 24, 2022): General improvements.
• 4.0.4 (Oct 23, 2019): Minor fixes.
• 4.0.3 (Oct 16, 2019): Better user experience, with document sync across devices and document collaboration.

Technological innovations

The technology behind those releases, roughly in the order you'd notice it:

• Image processing that cleans up scans and makes text easier to read
• OCR (optical character recognition) to pull text out of a scan
• Cloud storage, so your files are backed up and reachable from your other devices
• Scanning with the phone camera instead of a desk scanner
• AI and machine learning for sorting documents and pulling out data

Most of this is invisible when it works. You point the phone at a page and get a straight, readable PDF.

Impact on the industry

We're a small team, so we'll keep this modest. Here's where we think apps like Easy Scanner have made a difference:

• Showing that scanning software can be simple enough for anyone to pick up
• Helping offices move away from paper
• Saving time on paperwork in fields from law to healthcare
• Adding competition to the document scanning market, which keeps everyone improving

Every update since 2016 has been about the same thing: making a phone a decent replacement for the office scanner.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

When was Easy Scanner first released? In 2016. The first version did basic scanning and was built to be easy to use.

What major features have been added over time? OCR, cloud sync and backup, scanning with the phone camera, and AI-based document sorting and data extraction. The iOS app is now called Easy Scanner Camera to PDF.

How has Easy Scanner affected document management? It's one of the apps that made scanning simple enough for anyone, helped offices go paperless, saved time in many lines of work, and added competition to the market.

What technology does Easy Scanner use? Image processing, OCR, cloud storage, mobile camera scanning, and AI and machine learning.

Is Easy Scanner available on mobile devices? Yes. It runs on phones and tablets and scans with the device camera. At the time of the version list above, the latest releases were 4.2.10 on iOS and 4.1.9 on Android.

What's next

As the version list shows, most of the work since 2016 has been small fixes and steady improvements rather than big redesigns. If something in Easy Scanner annoys you, tell us. Feedback like that is exactly what the next "minor fixes" release is for.