Frecom Fax96. (evaluation)
by Joyce Sides

The fax has come of age! No longer must you wait in line at the fax machine. With the Frecom Fax96 board from Fremont Communications installed in your computer, you can send faxes at your leisure.

The Frecom Fax96 software lets you send several faxes to one person or broadcast a fax to several people selected from the online phone book. You can even schedule a fax to be sent when you're out of the office and the phone rates are lower.

A special feature included with the Fax96 is the ability to send TIFF or PCX file formats, or if you use a scanner, you can send images directly from the scanner as well as scanned disk files. Another handy feature is the log that automatically records the faxes you send. The quality of the graphics faxes I received could compete with graphics from any fax machine I've ever used. The printout of the PCX file (640 X 350 resolution) transmitted almost to the dot resolution of the original.

Demo and tutorial modes take you through procedures step by step. There's also online help availab,e but you won't need these aids if you've used a fax machine. The control panel buttons make it easy to use the program even with limited exposure to the manual.

The documentation is relatively easy to follow as far as the installation of the board and the software goes. The manual is straightforward and easy to read, but some topics aren't easily found because some of the new features are not in the original operator's manual. An addendum describes the new features.

The positive features of the Frecom Fax96 move this board to the top of my list of favorite peripherals, but there are several options that I would like to see added in the next software update. The background receive option is accessible either from the command line or from the Exit menu. You should be able to toggle this command from any menu in the program. Custom fonts and mouse support would also be welcome additions.

Fremont Communications offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on the product as well as a one-year warranty. If one year isn't adequate, you can add a second year for 10 percent of the current price. As a convenience, you send you warranty through the fax board to test its installation.

If you're constantly sending faxes and you'd like to improve your productivity, a fax board is the way to go. The Frecom Fax96 provides this convenient, timesaving way to transmit faxes for a reasonable price.