By Ben Pate

Introduced to the market in 2003 but no longer being manufactured, the Sharp UX-CD 600 Communications Center with Sharp UX CD600 toner is what you wanted if you were looking for a combination fax machine, text-only copy machine, two-line expandable multi-user phone console and answering machine.

It is no longer being manufacture, but several thousand units are still in operation and there are those (primarily home office operators) who love the Sharp UX-CD 600 Communications Center with Sharp UX-CD 600 Toner.

The copier function can be set to run up to 99 copies. This is somewhat strange considering that the paper tray can only handle half that amount. Copy quality at 392 lines per inch resolution is acceptable. Some users find the 50 sheet maximum input paper tray to be too small.

It has an automatic feed tray that can handle documents up to 10 pages in length and either letter size or legal size paper. The fax printer is also what works as the copier. This is not a photocopier. It is for text and uses the same toner cartridge as the fax machine component. With 448 KB of RAM, the fax machine stores up to 24 pages of incoming data. The fax function prints at 6 seconds per page thanks to a 14,400 bps modem.

The UX-CD 600 Communications Center has a cord handset on the unit itself and comes with a 2.4GHz cordless phone (and charging base). The Center can handle up to 7 additional cordless lines, but they have to all be 2.4 Gig spread spectrum types. As you can see, this is a clever design - using the UX-CD 600 Communications Center as the hub for a cordless phone network.

The cordless phone and charger that comes with the Center is of exceptional quality, delivering business class vocals at ranges as long as 90 to 100 feet, depending on the type of intervening walls. It has a handy low battery light right on the handset. It delivers 8 hours of in service time without a recharge and holds a charge for 2 full days when someone gets forgetful about putting it on the charger.

As far as smart phone service goes, I don't think this unit enables conference calling. The manufacturer's product specs mention that it can deliver caller ID and call waiting (assuming you subscribe to these services with your carrier), but nary a word about conference calling. There is a speaker in the console that can be used for hands free conversing. The answering machine that is fully integrated into this multi-line console has a 20 minute limit and can be set up for as many as 8 mailboxes, making it ideal for a small office. Be sure to use Sharp UX CD600 toner.

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