Fax Answers

Kevin: I’m currently away from the office, so I don’t have access to a fax machine or a scanner. Is it possible to send a fax using my digital camera as the input? You know, take a picture of the page that I want to fax, then fax that picture?

As a matter of fact, there’s a new service that lets you do exactly that: after you take a photograph of paper or a whiteboard with your digital camera or cameraphone, you can upload it to the scanR web site or e-mail it to them. From there, scanR will let you send the document via fax to any number in the U.S. or Canada. (It also lets you send it via e-mail, but I don’t see the point to doing that — a third-party service isn’t necessary to e-mail an image file.)

To try it, take a photo and send it to doc@scanR.com (for documents) or wb@scanR.com (for whiteboards). You will receive an activation code on your phone or in your email account. The hardest part might be getting a nice, clear shot of the paper that you want to transmit: be sure that you know how to use your camera’s macro mode, and turn off the flash so you don’t overexpose the image.

The basic service is free, although premium add-on services are planned.

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This entry is filed under Internet Fax Services.