IP Fax Machines
Sales of fax machines is on the decline. Fewer models are available and fewer machines line the shelves of business supply stores. While demand for fax capability still exists, the move from the traditional stand-alone fax machine to Internet fax has caused the demand for fax machines to shrink.
Two protocols were developed in an effort to allow the convenient all-in-one fax machine to co-exist with computers, VoIP and the Internet. T.37 and T.38 are the protocols embraced by the ITU in the late 1990′s for sending and receiving faxes over networks using the Internet Protocol.
The T.37 protocol provides for the fax machine to scan a document into a TIF file, then email that document to either a fax server or directly to an email recipient.
The T.38 protocol provides guidelines so a T.38 equipped fax machine, or a traditional fax machine attached to an adapter, could send and receive faxes over an existing VoIP network.
Hardware manufacturers responded positively to both of these protocols, and marketed devices that were compliant with them. Ricoh and Oki produced IP fax machines, but many of them are now discontinued. Based on the lack of available information on the web, it seems there are not many choices if you are looking for a stand-alone machine capable of faxing using T.37 or T.38.
Office technology is such that the office copier acts as scanner, copier and possibly even fax machine. The low cost of decent multi-function printers also makes it easy for anyone who needs fax capability to have a scanner at their desk, or at least nearby. If you have a scanner, a computer and an Internet connection, you have a fax machine. It just doesn’t look like a fax machine in the traditional sense.
See also:
Why Fax at All?
What is Online Faxing?
Traditional Fax Machines: On the Road to Obsolescence?