A4Norm: frequently asked questions

What the A4Norm scanner costs, whether it works offline and where the photo goes, passports, cards and oversized PDFs, how to mark a copy, black out data and sign, how to install the scanner and open it in Telegram.

Updated 2026-09-30

Short answers; where it takes steps, a link to the guide. The scanner itself is on the A4Norm page.

The basics

What does it cost?

Nothing. No payment, no limits, no account — and this is not a promotion. The processing runs on your own device, so it costs me nothing.

How long does it take?

Usually about a second a page, up to a few seconds on slower devices. Pages appear as they are made: if the first one came out wrong, stop and retake it without waiting for the rest. The very first time the page needs a little longer to load the processor; after that it comes from the cache.

Does it work offline?

Yes, after the page has been opened once. Everything needed for processing is kept in the browser, and from then on a scan works in airplane mode too. It also shows that the photo really goes nowhere.

Where does the photo go?

Nowhere. The server only delivers the processing code; the photo and the finished PDF stay on your device — not a single byte leaves it. The browser runs the open A4Norm pipeline in Rust, built as WebAssembly; there are no recognition models in it that call out anywhere. The last scan and a saved signature sit in this browser's local storage; "New scan" erases the scan. The code is open, MIT licence, everything on GitHub.

Documents

What about passports and cards?

Yes. A passport spread lands on one page and stays a colour copy: the tint, the security print and the photo are not whitened. An ID card, a driving licence or a bank card comes out at its real size, both sides on one sheet, front on top. You can take the back later. More in the ID card guide.

And if the document is not A4?

The page is A4 anyway — the format upload forms ask for. A wide document lands on a landscape page: the page is turned, not the content. A long till receipt is found by its outline, even when it is greyer than the desk. With no sheet in the frame, nothing is applied: the photo is simply laid onto the page, so ordinary photos make a PDF too.

My PDF is too big — what can I do?

On the scanner's first screen, tap "shrink a finished PDF" and choose the file: it is rebuilt as a light A4 at 200 dpi; in a test, 88 MB became 962 KB. Pages that are really photos get the same treatment as a photo, the others are simply saved again; the text turns into an image on the way. Need it smaller still? "Change size" under the result offers "Smaller" and "Minimum", each with its exact file size. Up to 50 pages at a time; for a PDF with a password, remove the password first in the program that made it. Which files and sizes the Jobcenter expects is in a separate guide.

How do I get the best quality?

Get the whole sheet into the frame: its edges are how the page size is read. Even light, the phone roughly parallel to the sheet — the smaller the angle and the shadow, the cleaner the result. More in the guide to taking the photo.

Editing

How do I mark a copy of my ID?

Tap "Edit" under the finished PDF. For an ID card or a passport the "Note on the copy" field already says "KOPIE" — add who the copy is for, say "KOPIE für Jobcenter"; A4Norm adds today's date itself. The note goes next to the document, not over it, and can be dragged elsewhere. The same panel makes the copy black and white, but leave that off when a colour copy is asked for. When a mark gets in the way (a bank, a notary) is in the ID card guide.

How do I black out data — and why black, not blur?

Under "Edit", tap "Cover a field" and drag the box over a number or a line of a bank statement; you can also draw it by holding a finger on the page, and zoom the page with two fingers. The box is filled solid black in the page image itself: nothing is left under it in the file. Blurred text can sometimes be read, and a rectangle drawn in a PDF program often sits over the page as a separate layer. Step by step in the guide.

Can I sign a document?

Yes, "Edit" has "Signature": sign once with a finger, a stylus or the mouse, in blue or black, and the button puts it on any page. The signature moves and resizes like a box and is kept on this device only. It becomes part of the page image, like ink on paper — it is not an electronic signature; whether such a scan is enough is up to the recipient.

Can I erase a stain or a finger?

Yes: the "Eraser" under "Edit" paints over a stain, a shadow or a finger in white or in the colour of the paper around it. It works on empty spots — it does not bring back text under the stain.

Can I crop an edge or rotate a page?

Yes, in the same place. "Crop" puts what is inside the frame in the middle of a clean A4 at the same size. "Rotate" turns the page a quarter turn per tap; covered fields, erasing and the crop turn with it. If the document is cut in the wrong place, "Corners" lets you set the four corners yourself. Step by step in the guide.

Can I keep the colour or the photo as shot?

Yes. "Filter" under "Edit" changes how a page looks: "Clean white paper", "Colour" (paper evened out, colours kept) or "Original" (only straightened and framed). A filter can go on one page or on all of them.

Can I change the page order or remove a page?

Yes. Before the scan, press and hold a photo thumbnail and drag it. In a finished PDF, pages are reordered under "Edit", in the strip of thumbnails; the × on a thumbnail removes a page.

Is the original scan kept?

Yes. The edited PDF takes the scan's place, and the scan without edits stays alongside: "Original" brings it back, "Change" opens the settings again.

I forgot a page — do I start over?

No. Tap "Add page" under the finished PDF ("Add pages from photos" for the gallery), then "Add to the PDF". The new photo goes at the end; the other pages are not processed again.

Is the scan lost if I close the tab?

No. The scanner remembers the last scan, edits included: close the tab, reload — the result is still there until you tap "New scan". It is kept in this browser only.

The app and Telegram

How do I send the finished PDF?

On the iPhone, "Send" opens the system share sheet: mail, messengers, Files. On Android and on a computer "Download PDF" comes first, with "Send" next to it where the browser can hand the file on.

Can I install the scanner as an app?

Yes. The app page can be added to your phone's screen or installed on a computer: the scanner opens in its own window, without the address bar, and works offline. How to do it in each browser is in the guide.

Send the link malahov.io/a4norm. The app has a "Share" button on the first screen and a "Share the app" icon under a finished PDF: both show a QR code for a phone's camera and send or copy the link. The QR code is drawn on the device, so it works offline too.

Does it work in Telegram?

Yes. In the bot @a4norm_bot, tap "Scanner" at the bottom left — the same scanner opens, and the photo stays on your device there too. The bot itself does not process photos. Where the system share sheet exists, the scanner offers it first. "Send to chat" puts the finished PDF into your chat with the bot: only then does the file pass once through my server in Germany, which sends it and keeps nothing; the scanner asks before the first send. The legally precise text is in the privacy policy, section 12.

Where do I report a problem or an idea?

Under every result and every error message there is "Send feedback": the link opens the bot @a4norm_bot, which asks for your message; /feedback in the bot does the same. I read every one and may answer you there. What is stored is in the privacy policy, section 12. No Telegram? Write to georg@malahov.io.