First, the good news: The FAX-575 desktop fax machine from Brother is less than $60, making it a tantalizing option for those who are especially budget conscious. But the benefits of the unit's low price begin to pale when you look at the FAX-575's list of low-end features.

Unless you rarely receive faxes, you'll quickly become annoyed by the FAX-575's use of thermal-transfer ribbons for printing. When using thermal-transfer, you only can print in black, you only can print text sharply and you must replace the ribbon after about 150 prints, which gets expensive ($15-$20 apiece). For anyone who receives a few dozen faxes per month, the cost of replacement ribbons quickly eats away at the initial savings on the low cost of the machine.

The FAX-575's best transmission speed is well below average at only four pages per minute. If you have high-volume faxing needs, this machine's slow sending speeds will become a quick source of frustration.

This desktop fax machine can hold up to 50 sheets for printing, but because the FAX-575 doesn't include a paper tray, the unit suffers from occasional paper jams. The FAX-575 also has only 512 KB of memory (about 0.5 MB), which means it can store only about 25 pages in memory when the unit is out of paper.

The FAX-575 does include a telephone handset, and it's a small, sharp-looking machine that's easy to use.

The bottom line for the FAX-575 is that despite its low price tag, its drawbacks are too severe for it to be useful in most SOHO environments. If you need a fax machine, but you rarely send or receive faxes and are looking to spend as little as possible up front, the FAX-575 will work in your situation. For those with busy fax needs, you'll want to look elsewhere.


Pros: Low initial cost, sleek-looking unit, good for those sending very few faxes
Cons: Replacement ribbon costs add up quickly, very slow transmissions, unit is susceptible to paper jams

Warranty
1-year limited