Comment on USRX and PCMCIA Modems
Someone earlier in the posts requested comments on USRX PCMCIA modems.
Our company standard is USRX PCMCIA modems. Being a laptop user, I got a PCMCIA modem with my laptop. In the last year, I have burned up two USRX 28.8 PCMCIA modems. One modem had a pigtail that would no longer come out. The most recent one has a pigtail that comes out too easily and the whole unit is not sticking together (i.e. the three different pieces are coming apart) Figuratively speaking...It seems like the glue that binds the three major pieces together is eroding.
That is 4 USRX PCMCIA modems in 1 year.
Recently I was forced to add a USRX 33.3 modem to my desktop at work. I figured fine, USRX claims that the sportster is upgradable to X2 technology. But later on I found out at what price...$60. Doesn't seem like a bargain to me.
Anyway, USR also owns Megahertz. I've also gone through four Megahertz P2144 (pocket modems) in 4 years. Fortunately they have/had a 7 year warranty, so I've gotten them replaced every time. These are external modems but still problems with them. My recent decision to replace my external modem on my desktop was based on my aggravation with the Megahertz modem. It is a 14.4 modem that I rarely get better than 9600 out of.
I believe USR is going to use Megahertz to concentrate soley on the PCMCIA market. Based on my experience with the USR PCMCIA modems and the Megahertz desktop modems, if I had to pay for a PCMCIA modem out of my own pocket, I'd buy anything else.
I've only had their desktop modem for a couple of months. I haven't had to return it yet. Does anyone know if USR is ISO certified. Actually, I had to return the first one they sent me. The winmodem is only usable in Windows 3.1 and '95 systems..not NT systems. The box says "Designed for Windows". I guess I should have known, if it doesn't say NT, it's not meant for it.
BTW, My decision to buy BOCI stock recently was based on both the companies fundamentals, my experiences with USR PCMCIA modems and the fact that Hayes seems to charge an exhorbitant amount for their modems.
BTW 2, I've quite enjoyed the thrust and parry in the recent posts. It still does raise
BTW 3, Almost all (hundreds of modems) the USR PCMCIA modems that were shipped to my employer had some problem. Unfortunately, because we can continue to have the "broken" ones replaced under warranty, I/we can't replace them with something else.
BTW 4, As I understand it, 56k modems only work as 56k from the ISP and 33.3k to the ISP. If companies set-up their own dial-in servers (i.e. my employer), what use is the 56k modem. Won't the 56k modems only work at 33.3k anyway? For example, I have a RAS server running on my desktop. If I put a 56k "outgoing" modem on it, will it work at 56k or 33.3k? This is assuming that my remote modem is a 56k modem. Pardon my ignorance in this area. |
