Microtek

Microtek International Inc. is a Taiwan-based manufacturer of digital imaging products and other consumer electronics. Among its current product line are Microtek branded plasma and LCD TVs, LCD flat panel monitors, LCD and DLP projectors, and digital cameras as well as their flagship line of affordable scanners that include flatbeds, film scanners, and document imaging scanners. In 2007, Microtek launched Cineon, a premium line of HDTVs.

Microtek's products are used in a broad range of applications and environments, from small office, home office, corporate, education and government settings to high-end professional publishing, printing and pre-press service providers.

The company was founded in 1980 by Dr. Bobo Wang and is based today in Hsinchu, Taiwan (Hsinchu Science Park). Its United States subsidiary, Microtek Lab Inc., is currently headquartered in Cerritos, California.

Microtek first entered the industry in 1983, when scanners were little more than expensive tools for hobbyists. In 1984, it introduced the MS-300A, the world’s first desktop halftone scanner. At about the same time, the company realized a need for scanning software for mainstream users and developed EyeStar, the world’s first scanning software application. EyeStar made desktop scanning a functional reality, serving as the de facto standard for image format for importing graphics before TIFF came to fruition. Continuing its leading-edge approach to the scanning industry, Microtek proceeded to develop the first OCR, or Optical Character Recognition, program for text scanning, once more successfully integrating a core function of scanning with its machines.