PRESS RELEASE

August 15, 1999

Plustek Announces Release of The First USB Slim CCD Color Flatbed Scanner Featuring Professional Quality Color Alignment: The OpticPro U12, MSRP $99.99

Livermore, CA Plustek Inc. today announced the release of the OpticPro U12 the first affordably priced scanner to offer professional quality color alignment based on the new universal serial bus (USB) architecture. The U12 features true 36-bit input / output, an optical resolution of 600 x 1200 dpi (9600 dpi maximum) and Plusteks own Pixel by Pixel color technology. The OpticPro U12 ships to major retail locations October 15, 1999 with an expected retail price of $99.

"The U12 introduces many new high-end features to consumers for the first time," said David Chen, vice president of marketing at Plustek USA, Inc. "There is no better value on the market for someone looking for professional-quality scans at an affordable price."

The OpticPro U12 supports 36-bit input and capable of 24bit or 36bit output to supported applications for both the home and professional environment. Additionally, the U12 employs Plusteks own Pixel by Pixel technology. Pixel by Pixel technology produces sharp, accurate images by processing primary red, green, and blue values in one line as opposed to three lines, as with a Line by Line systems. Consequently, users are ensured accurate color alignment and the highest quality images possible.

The OpitcPro U12 also comes equipped with a valuable software bundle. Included with the U12 are full versions of Micrografx Picture Publisher for image editing, Xerox TextBridge Classic for OCR work and Adobe Photo Deluxe 2.0 for different creative imaging projects like red-eye reductions, book marks&etc. Plusteks own Action Manager program has also been added offering users a variety of faxing, copying or scanning options all at the click of a virtual button.

The OpticPro U12 features a USB port design for easy installation and is faster than the existing parallel port designs in transferring image files to your computer. The U12 scans images with a single pass and uses a cold cathode lamp for long bulb life and accurate tonal reproduction. The OpticPro U12 is fully TWAIN compliant and runs on Windows 98 operating systems.

For more information, contact Plustek at 1-800-685-8088, or visit their website at www.plustek.com.

PRESS CONTACT:

Joseph Chan
Director of Public Relations
169 Pullman ST, Livermore, CA 94550.
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