3Com Ships World's Fastest Network PC Card
Superior design delivers greatest performance, lowest power consumption and broadest
compatibility for 32-Bit CardBus laptops
SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 10, 1997--3Com Corporation (NASDAQ:COMS), the industry leader in
enterprise-wide Ethernet and Fast Ethernet solutions, today announced the immediate availability of its Fast Ethernet PC Card
for users of notebook computers with high-performance CardBus slots.
According to an independent benchmark report from LANQuest, the 3Com Fast EtherLink (R) XL CardBus PC Card is the
world's fastest PC Card -- performing with throughput up to 31 percent faster than its competitors while requiring less than half
the power.
LanQuest Labs recently tested the leading CardBus Fast Ethernet products on the market with CardBus notebooks from IBM,
NEC and Toshiba. In these tests, the 3Com Fast EtherLink XL CardBus PC Card outperformed the competing cards by as
much as 31 percent. In addition, the 3Com card was faster than other cards across all packet sizes tested.
Superior Design Results in Low Power Consumption, High Reliability
The 3Com Fast EtherLink XL CardBus PC Card is designed, engineered and manufactured by 3Com, the worldwide leader in
Fast Ethernet NICs. The 3Com Fast Ethernet controller with Parallel Tasking (R) technology is a 3.3 volt chip specifically
designed for CardBus, resulting in the industry's fastest throughput and lowest power consumption.
By comparison, most competitive adapters are based on a lower performance 5-volt PCI chip purchased from Digital
Equipment Corporation (DEC). Products based on the DEC chip require extra circuitry to convert electrical signals from PCI
to CardBus and from 5 volts to 3.3 volts, leading to higher power consumption and increased heat generation which can
adversely impact notebook system reliability. The FastEtherLink XL CardBus PC Card consumes only 130 milliamps (mA)
when operating at 100 Mbps, less than half of the 285 mA drawn by competitive CardBus products. This is due to 3Com's
end-to-end 3.3 volt design.
3Com's highly integrated, single-sided design results in high product reliability while the other cards require a double-sided
design to accommodate extra circuitry. The 3Com card also meets FCC B and CISPR B certification--the most stringent
regulatory standards for electromagnetic interference--and is the only Ethernet CardBus product on the market to pass this
certification. The leading competitors use far more components and still cannot pass these tests.
CardBus Delivers Unparalleled Performance for Notebook Users
The 32-bit CardBus slots now available on an increasing number of notebooks are capable of operating at 1 Gbps, the same
speed as PCI slots on desktops. This new bus opens the door to a broad range of multimedia and other data-intensive
applications, and will allow full 100 Mbps network performance. 3Com's Fast EtherLink XL CardBus PC Card is designed to
take advantage of this high-performance bus.
Since 16-bit PC Card slots operate at speeds similar to the ISA bus on desktops, they cannot provide full 100 Mbps
throughput. The 3Com Fast EtherLink 16-Bit PC Card, available this summer, is designed for those notebooks with a 16-bit
PC Card slot and allows effective throughput in the 20-30 Mbps range.
New PC Card Offers Broad Compatibility
3Com has tested the Fast EtherLink XL CardBus PC Card on a wide variety of CardBus machines shipping from the leading
notebook computer manufacturers. The card is guaranteed compatible with these machines or your money back within one
year of purchase. For a list of certified machines, visit 3Com's web site at www.3Com.com/pccard/.
Pricing and Availability
3Com's Fast EtherLink XL CardBus PC Card supports 10/100 BASE-TX and is available now for a U.S. list price of $179
per card in a five-pack and $189 for a single card. Volume customers can also purchase the cards in a 20-pack for $174 per
card.
For network managers who want to evaluate 3Com's Fast EtherLink PC Cards, single quantity evaluation units will be
available for a U.S. list price of $95 for either card by calling 1-800-NET-3COM, option 4. You may also call this number to
obtain a copy of LanQuest's Fast Ethernet CardBus PC Card benchmark report.
3Com's Ethernet and Fast Ethernet PC Cards will be available through the company's worldwide network of resellers and
distributors. 3Com supports all its network interface cards and PC Cards with a money-back guarantee and an
industry-leading lifetime warranty.
3Com Corporation has helped more than 50 million people gain access to critical information through high-speed networks.
Designed to serve large enterprises, service providers, small offices and homes, 3Com products provide a scaleable
architecture to meet the present and future connectivity needs of today's users. With research and development on three
continents, 3Com is one of the data networking industry's largest and fastest growing companies. 3Com's innovative marketing,
engineering, sales and support simplify communication, optimize network reliability and protect customer investments. For
further information, visit our World Wide Web site at 3com.com or call 1-800-NET-3COM.
Note to Editors: 3Com, EtherLink, Parallel Tasking are registered trademarks of 3Com Corporation. All other brands and
names are the property of their respective owners.
Contact:
3Com
Brian D. Johnson, 408/326-1962
brian_d_johnson@3com.com |
