Scanning is SoHo easy with Brother

Manchester-based Brother is trying to take the bother out of sending faxes with its low-end multifunction image scanner.

The Brother IC 100 can be used to scan, copy and send faxes when connected to a PC, fax modem and printer.

According to Brother, the product is different from other scanners because it does not need a separate PC I/O port nor does it need a card on a PC motherboard.

The IC 100 costs u129 and weighs 4lbs, with a footprint of 12.7in x 7.3in x 5.1in. It offers up to 400dpi resolution using 64 grey scales and can scan four A4 pages per minute.

Output is available in Tiff, PCX, BMP and EPS formats with Windows Twain compatibility. Its automatic document feeder allows up to 20 originals to be copied at one time and has an LED copy counter.

John Carter, MD of Brother subsidiary Kyodai, which is marketing the product, said: 'The Brother IC 100 will appeal to the SoHo user as well as the business user that wants the ease and convenience of copying, faxing and scanning original documents on the desktop.

'At that price, we anticipate large volume sales of this ingenious Brother product.'

For those with more cash to spend, an upgrade to Brother's high-end MFC 6000, the MFC 9000, will be available later this year. It will include a scanner, copier, printer, PC fax modem and laser fax and will offer a higher resolution than the existing model for less than u1,000.

The Brother IC 100 is available to dealers direct from Kyodai. The MFC 9000 will be distributed by Brother partners such as Micro Peripherals, Midwich Thame and Northamber.

Contact: 01279 416888.