Brother Products
Fax Machines
Buying Guide
What is a fax machine?
A fax machine is a telecommunications tool with which you can send and receive documents and graphics via a telephone line. All Brother fax machines can send documents quickly and clearly, and are packed with a lot of versatile features, including copier functions.How to choose a fax machine?
Your choice of fax machine will depend on the kind of work you expect to do, how many users your fax machine will need to accommodate, the volume of your faxing and copying, the speed at which you need your fax machine to send a document, and how much it will cost to keep your fax machine equipped with consumables.1.Print Technology
a) When is a laser fax machine recommended?
A laser fax machine is recommended:
- If you have a high volume receiving requirement (100 or more pages per week) or frequently produce multiple copies of the same document. Plain paper laser fax machines are still much faster than other printing technologies. The cost per page will also be less for laser toner than for other conventional printing methods.
- For corporate or government business applications where archiving documents for a long time is paramount.
b) When is an entry-level plain paper fax machine recommended?
An entry-level plain paper fax machine is recommended:
- If you have a small initial budget.
- If you have a low volume receiving requirement or rarely produce multiple copies of the same document. The cost per page will also be more reasonable for carbon ribbons than for other conventional printing methods such as inkjet technology.
- For SOHO applications where archiving documents for a long time is paramount.
c) When is a thermal fax machine recommended?
A thermal fax machine is recommended:
- If you have a small initial budget.
- If you have a low volume receiving requirement or rarely produce multiple copies of the same document. The cost per page will also be more reasonable for thermal fax machines than for other conventional printing methods such as laser or inkjet technologies.
- For SOHO applications where the running cost is paramount and document archival is not required.
2.Fax Capability
a) Fax modem speed
- Not all faxes have a high receiving speed. This means that when you send a fax at high speed it will only send data as fast as the other end can receive it.
- The higher the fax modem speed, the less it costs to send faxes interstate and overseas.
b) Capacity of the automatic document feeder
- A higher capacity Automatic Document Feeder (ADF) will give you the ability to copy/fax documents unattended.
c) Memory presets (one touch/ speed dials)
- Storing frequently used numbers in the fax means you will not have to spend as much time typing in fax numbers.
d) Broadcasting
- Allows for fax numbers to be pre-programmed into groups, and for the one document to be sent to multiple locations.
- Most Brother fax machines offer manual and group broadcasting.
3.Copy Capability
a) Stand-alone copying capabilities
- Stand-alone copying equates to convenience.
b) Reduction and enlargement capabilities
- Documents can be reduced or enlarged to 150% or 200%.
c) Multi-copying
- Brother fax machines can print up to 99 copies of a document.
4.General Considerations
a) Consumables
For Laser Faxes
- The drum should be separate from the toner cartridge. This prevents the problem of throwing away a still-usable drum when the toner is exhausted.
For Plain Paper Faxes
- The cartridges should be separate from the carbon ribbon. This prevents the problem of throwing away a good cartridge if the carbon ribbon runs out.
b) Cost Per Page
- The cost per page is the overall operating cost to produce one page. The cost per page includes the cost of the machine purchase, the toner/drum, the carbon ribbon, plain paper, and thermal paper.
c) Paper handling
- How many pages can the fax machine hold in its paper tray? If you print or receive large-sized or many documents simultaneously, look for a fax machine that can hold many sheets of paper. This reduces time spent refilling paper. Also, ensure that the machine can handle a range of paper sizes, and media.
d) Ease of use and maintenance
- Ease of use and maintenance is vital to small companies who do not employ system administrators or IT support personnel. The main issue here will be how easy it is to change the toner/drum, carbon ribbon and other consumables.
- Brother offers support 24 hours, 7-days a week through http://solutions.brother.com.