In case you missed it, we’ve just released the unboxing of Alliedstar’s new intraoral scanner: the AS 200E.
You can watch the video below, but if you’re short on time or just prefer to read, we’ve condensed everything into this short blog.
Who is Alliedstar?
Alliedstar is a digital dentistry company based in China. The company was established in June 2019. Interestingly, their founder & CEO has had previous experience as the R&D director at Carestream Dental for almost ten years. The company is headquartered in Zhangjiang City, Shanghai, China, with production facilities in Sichuan.
AS 200E Unboxing Overview
I reviewed their previous generation scanner the AS 100 last year and found it to be one of the best low-cost scanner options. It is fast, economical and accurate.
Now the company has released its second generation product, the AS 200E, a wireless version of that scanner. Interestingly, a lot of R&D went into this wireless tech and it seems that wireless scanner technology is going to be the next big market trend.
The recommended retail price of this scanner is 16,000 USD. This means it's much cheaper than other wireless scanner options currently on the market, like 3Shape Trios 5, Trios 4, Medit i700 Wireless and the Dexis CS 3800.
At a cost of 16,000 USD. It is quite an attractive option for those looking for an economical wireless scanner. Remember that the non-wireless version, the AS 100 is 12,000 USD, so you are paying $4,000 more for the wireless capability.
The scanner is more than just a wireless version of the previous generation model. The company has advised me that the optics engine has been redesigned to improve stability, and the scanner circuits have been significantly changed to improve image quality and accuracy. But that's enough talk. Let's crack open the box and see what we find.
AS 200E Travel Case
The AS 200E comes in a handy hard shell travel case, this is where you can store all the components and accessories that come with the scanner. There are the usual user manuals and technical specifications that you can flick through if you want to.
AS 200E Scanner Design
This is the Alliedstar 200E and I have to say, it looks like quite a futuristic and sleek product by all accounts. When you compare it to the previous generation AS 100, you can see that it has a much sleeker and more sophisticated design.
The AS 100 was always touted as an economical scanner, it looked quite industrial. The AS 200E moves away from this and looks like quite a premium product.
AS 200E Scanner Buttons
The scanner itself has two buttons. One is the scanning button at the top, and the other one is a mode button, which has this M on it. Now, this mode button is to shift through or pass through the workflow in the scanning software.
This means that if you're scanning the upper arch, you press this mode. It'll take you to the lower arch and then to the bite. Apart from that, that's pretty much it.
Just like the previous generation scanner, we have two scanner buttons on both sides, which is a really cool feature.
It means that regardless of which way you're holding the scanner, you are always within reach to start the scanning process.
There are also two indicators near the bottom of the scanner. One indicator is used for battery power. You also have an indicator that informs you of the connection status.
AS 200E Scanning Tips
With the Alliedstar 200E, just like the previous generation scanner, you have this protective cap, and with the scanner, you get four scanning tips.
The company tell me that these are the exact same scanning tips as the previous generation scanner, they are just a different color.
These scanning tips cost 20 USD per tip, and they can be autoclaved up to 60 times. That means about 33 cents per patient, just like the previous generation AS 100. These scanning tips can only be put on one way.
AS 200E Intraoral Scanner Size and Weight
The scanner itself is quite small and lightweight, and the scanner weighs in at 245 grams, which makes it one of the lightest wireless scanners on the market.
It is a bit heavier than the AS 100, which was around 198 grams, but obviously, it's gonna be heavier because of all the wireless technology in the scanner.
AS 200E Docking Station
Here we have a docking station. So this is the Alliedstar AS 200E docking station. And you might be wondering, how does the scanner fit onto this?
All you have to do is use the second part, which doubles as the docking station for the scanner and is also the wireless charging station.
So just slide the wireless charging station into this mount. And just like that, if you sit this down, you can place the AS 200E into its charging station.
AS 200E Charging Cable
The AS 200E uses a USB-C charging cable, like many other intraoral scanners. It’s pretty easy to fit it into the charger, just plug one end into your laptop and the other end fits into the wireless charging station.
AS 200E Batteries
With the Alliedstar 200E, you get two batteries with the scanner. The company tells me that you can replace these batteries for 60 USD.
To replace the batteries, you just open the battery lock at the back and slide it in. It’s super simple.
AS 200E Wall Mount
The last thing in the box of the Alliedstar 200E is a wall mount. It’s blue and matches the docking station, which is a cool little feature.
AS 200E Wireless Adapter
Now, the last piece of the puzzle is how does this scanner actually talk to your laptop? And this is where this wireless adapter comes in.
The company sent me a wireless adapter because it’s not actually included in the box. Dealers and end users are actually expected to buy this themselves because the adapter changes from region to region based on the consumer's local power wattage and plug.
Now, this wireless adapter will just plug into your laptop and this is what's gonna basically create that connection between the wireless scanner and your laptop.
AS 200E Unboxing Conclusion
And that's basically everything you get with the Alliedstar AS 200E. And I have to say, when you look at the scanner, this is not exactly something that you would expect to come out of China. In the past, a lot of the Chinese scanners have looked pretty economical.
The AS 200E looks stylish. It’s also worth noting that it’s one of only four wireless scanners on the market.
It is incredible how the price of intraoral scanners keeps decreasing due to market pressure, which is undoubtedly beneficial for dentists globally. As you can see, the Alliedstar AS 200E is a big step up over its predecessor, and once again, it's only 16,000 USD.
For those of you who may have read my Alliedstar AS 100 scanner review, the previous generation scanner, you would know that I thought it was a great scanner, but the software let it down somewhat.
The company has informed me they've taken this on board and they're working hard on releasing a new software platform that will introduce things like patient management, case management, and software apps.
It will be interesting to see how the market responds to these low-cost scanners because Chinese companies are catching up.
What do you think about the AS 200E? I’d love to know your thoughts. Leave your comments below!