Scanning

How scanning works

Scanning is fast, but it always keeps you in control of the final identification.

Step 1

Frame the card

An on-screen guide helps you line the card up flat and fully in view. Good framing is the single biggest factor in a clean scan.

Step 2

Image-quality gates

Before we try to identify anything, the capture is checked for blur, glare, exposure, and coverage. If quality is too low, you are asked to retake rather than getting a shaky result.

Step 3

Ranked candidates

Recognition returns a ranked list of likely matches. You confirm the correct one — the tool does not silently assume.

Step 4

Manual search fallback

If nothing looks right, search the catalog by name, set, or number and pick the exact card yourself.

Why confirmation matters for look-alikes

Many Pokémon cards share nearly identical artwork across printings that carry very different values. We surface these differences and ask you to confirm rather than guessing, including cases like:

Reverse holo vs. standard printings
1st Edition vs. Unlimited
English vs. Japanese and other language variants
Promo and set-specific stamps or symbols

Requiring a quick confirmation keeps your collection data accurate — which matters when values and grade estimates depend on the exact printing.

Next: how Grade Potential works