Brother Fax-575

Bottom line

The Brother Fax-575 is one of the least expensive fax machines on the market. Reviewers say it is fine for occasional use, but those that fax frequently will be better served by other fax machines.

Performance

A small, simple fax. The Brother Fax-575 is one of the least expensive fax machines on the market and is also one of the most popular, generating hundreds of reviews at user-review sites. On the upside, users say the Fax-575 is easy to set up and reliable; it's also compact and lightweight. However, the low upfront cost comes at a price. The Brother Fax-575 is slow compared to other well-regarded fax machines, such as the Brother IntelliFax-2840 (Est. $145) , with a per-page transmission speed of 15 seconds.

It also uses thermal-transfer technology. While that means that it can print on plain paper, printouts aren't as long-lasting as with laser fax machines, and consumable costs can mount up if you fax a lot. That makes the Brother Fax-575 thermal fax machine most suitable for businesses and homes that only fax on occasion.

Features

What you see is what you get. There aren't a lot of extras with the Brother Fax-575. It can do some light copying, and there's a handset that can be used for making regular phone calls. It has a 50-page tray (for both letter and legal), a 10-page auto document feeder and a 25-page fax memory.

Value

Cheap for occasional use, otherwise, not-so-much. The low upfront cost of this machine is its biggest allure, but owners say that those savings can be eaten up in short order if you do a lot of faxing. The thermal-transfer ribbon cartridge only costs around $25, but it is only good for around 150 pages. The high-capacity cartridge for the Brother IntelliFax-2840 will set you back around $55 but is rated for 2,600 pages.

In addition, the Fax-575 ships with only a starter ribbon cartridge, which is rated for just 30 pages. Still, the price of the Brother Fax-575 is unbeatable, and the performance of this thermal-transfer fax machine is better than anything at or near its price point.