printer and another guide

Brother Intellifax 2820

While not the best looking machine in the Brother stable, the Intellifax 2820 is a solid performer.  There are a lot of features in this little package.

If you’re in the market for a fax machine, you can’t really go wrong with the Intellifax 2820.  It offers everything you would expect from a fax machine and more.  It replaces the older 2800 and improves many of the features while eradicating many of its faults.

The new paper feeder is very good, and prevents the frequent jams that plagued the 2800 when printing or faxing.  The fax and print cartridges last much longer, making the per sheet cost much less than previous models.  Combined with the lower purchase price, the total cost of ownership of the 2820 is significantly lower than other equivalent machines on the market today.

As a fax it works very well.  It can transmit up to 15 pages per minute and has an 8 megabyte buffer which can store up to 500 pages.  The paper tray is large enough to hold 250 sheets of paper.  It would be unusual indeed to receive a fax longer than 250 pages, but the buffer is big enough to store twice that if it were to happen. 

Other features include automatic error correction, document resizing, useable phone, fax scheduler, and store and fax.

As well as being a standalone fax, the 2820 can also work as a printer.  The same laser that produces the quality faxes can also produce decent quality print.  It isn’t as fully featured as a dedicated printer, so would be more suitable as a backup machine.  The reproduction is decent enough for text and diagrams, but doesn’t really handle images too well.  But then it isn’t designed to.

The Intellifax 2820 works out of the box.  Just plug it in, configure it and then let it do its work.  If you want to use it as a printer, you will need to connect a computer to it, via the built-in USB port.  It comes with a cartridge to get you started which will last for around 1500 pages.  Replacements are reasonably inexpensive and can be ordered online quite readily from places like Quikshiptoner.

The Intellifax 2820 is designed to be a fax first, and multifunction second.  The laser fax is great, is quick enough for most demanding users, accurate enough for important documents and has enough memory and capacity for all but the busiest offices.  The printing is okay, and once connected via USB to a computer is a respectable alternative to a standalone printer.  While the toner isn’t the cheapest on the market, it will last longer than the competition due to the Brothers efficiency.

Those who work in a small or home office, looking for a dedicated fax with a few extras can’t go wrong with the Intellifax 2820.