Canon MX 850 - Fax Needs Special Wiring

Author's Rating:

Pros: Printing, scanning, fax sending are of good quality, but not outstanding.

Cons: Unattended receipt of fax requires special phone setup.

Author's Review
Have MX 850 installed about a month. If unattended receipt of fax is important, avoid this All In One.

The MX 850 must be first in sequence on the telephone connection. All other devices, extension phones, answering machines, etc. must be in serial sequence behind the MX 850. Most modern homes / offices have non PBX extension phones in parallel. Further, most answering must be first in line after the MX 860.

This unique characteristic is not spelled out in the advertised specifications. It is however buried in the 182 page user manual.

Solution is to rewire home / office, subscribe for a distinctive ring service from phone company or install an intelligent fax sensing switch like the ComSwitch 3.0