4. Conclusion

All the fax services tested had good inbound and outbound fax notification via email. They all had 1800 numbers and easily handled the actual sending and receiving of faxes with ease, without error or omission. All three had working email to fax capabilities and easily allowed for the viewing of faxes online.

Where the services differ widely is in the tools they offer that actually make the online faxing experience more worthwhile. TrustFax offers the best online fax manipulation of the three tested services. The ability to manipulate a document online, add a signature and otherwise mark it up is incredibly useful. Sure, eFax has that function too, but you need a separate download application, which just won't cut it when it comes to being a truly mobile solution.

MyFax with its scheduled faxing and group faxing capabilities offers features that could also prove very useful. The easy integration with Microsoft Office application and the import/export of contacts certainly makes MyFax an interesting choice.

Then there is eFax. Though eFax is a decent working online fax service, it falls short in comparison to TrustFax' simplicity and online power to manipulate and pales against MyFax' robust contact and integration features.

Pricing across the three different services also varies widely (see our features table for more information) and really just comes down to the volume of faxes received or sent.

So will an online fax service replace the old fax clunker in your office? For mobile workers, online fax services offer something that a physical piece of hardware cannot: always on and available functionality. For fixed environments where mobility isn't a concern, it's likely just a matter of convenience and cost.