High-Tech Copier Blog

All business, if they want to be serious, need to have some faxing capability. Someone somewhere will eventually want to send you a fax or get one from you, and you will look like a fool if you say it can’t be done. When you decide on a fax machine, which one to you buy? Sharp (an appliance and electronics company) makes several models that run the gamut on printing technologies. They have the older models that run on Thermal Roller toner (like Sharp’s UX 1300) or new models that send faxes and emails on the internet or laser copiers that have fax capabilities.

How your machine prints on paper will greatly affect the choice you make. The technology your machine uses will influence how good the copies look once their printed and how much the toner costs. One type of fax machine, usually the cheap dedicated versions use thermal transfer rolls, like the UX 1300 does. They don’t make great copies, but they can get the job done like they always did and the toner doesn’t cost too much.

A newer version of fax machine is the type that prints using Inkjet ink. These run just like Inkjet printers people use at home, in fact some of those have fax capabilities now. They also tend to make better quality prints than the thermal rolls, although you shouldn’t assume that all Inkjet printers are the same. Some dedicated Inkjet faxes might not print as well as an Inkjet photo printer. Sharp makes an Inkjet fax, the UX-B20, that uses black Inkjet ink.

Laser machines are often considered to be the best way to print on paper. They use those toners and drums like those regular copiers do. Laser machines tend to be much more expensive, however, and are not always the choice for home or small business. They are also very expensive for color copies, compared to Inkjet printers. Since they are more expensive, make sure you get a nice one that will have all the functionality of your main printing source if you get one of these.

When choosing a fax machine or any printing device, be sure to look at how much the toner will cost you. Thermal transfer replacement toner can be found for the UX 1300 for just over $35, for example. Since this technology isn’t as popular anymore, it may get more difficult to find these types of toners lying around office supply stores. It printed about 510 pages on a full roll.

Inkjet printers are much more common now. Fax machines that use this technology use the more readily available (and more easily installable) Inkjet cartridges. When I compared the cartridge for Sharp’s UXB20 to the thermal roll, the price was exactly the same. The website said the cartridge produces a “max” of 500 pages, so you might not get as much mileage with an Inkjet. The quality, however, will probably be much improved.

Toner for Laser Copiers and printers will be much more expensive, but also be able to last for many more copies. While the toner for these machines run into the hundreds, they will last for thousands of printed pages. When you factor that in, plain toner might be cheaper than the other options. It will certainly still be much more expensive to get starting with one of these machines.