[US Robotics]
Hybrid 56K/ADSL modem
boasts rock-bottom price
By Tim Greene
Network World, 2/17/97
Skokie, Ill. - If 56K bit/sec modems are not wild enough,
U.S. Robotics has something even crazier - a 56K bit/sec
modem with built-in multimegabit Asymmetric Digital
Subscriber Line (ADSL) capabilities.
While it will not be available until mid-1998, the V.Everything
dual modem will only cost $200, the price the company
currently charges for its x2 56K bit/sec modem.
V.Everything will give users an interesting option when they
are in the market for an analog modem but might want to
upgrade to ADSL later.
V.Everything will also let ADSL users take advantage of the
standard analog voice channel that rides the same copper
wires as ADSL. That channel could support dial-up faxing or
access to sites that are not connected via the dedicated
broadband ADSL channel.
For a telecommuter, the price is tough to ignore, said Kieran
Taylor, broadband consultant for TeleChoice, Inc., a
consultancy in Verona, N.J.
''It certainly would make it easier to take the DSL plunge if
you can get the price to that point, and it is clearly aimed at a
business environment. This is not something that grandma
buys,'' Taylor said.
U.S. Robotics is not stopping there. Its assault on the ADSL
market includes other gear that set new lows in pricing:
Viper, a freestanding ADSL modem due next month with an
Ethernet interface for $400 and Cobra, a PC card due in July
that supports ATM over ADSL for $200.
''At prices like this, we're talking about DSL populating the
shelves of CompUSA in 1998, and frankly I'm surprised you
can hit prices this low, this quickly,'' Taylor said.
It is so low that the customer premises equipment (CPE)
modem could become the responsibility of the user, just as
analog modems and ISDN terminal adapters are. Most
service providers had been expecting to own the CPE and
wrap its cost up in the monthly rates because the devices
CPE cost so much - up to $1,500.
U.S. Robotics is working with major ADSL vendors to
overcome another possible shortcoming - interoperability,
according to Asghar Mostafa, vice president of broadband
copper access for U.S. Robotics.
Users that own the modems will want assurances that they do
not have to replace modems when they switch to a service
provider that uses someone else's technology, Mostafa said.
U.S. Robotics' ADSL plans include upgrades for its Total
Control Enterprise Network Hub such as mushrooming its
analog modem capacity from 48 to 336 with new modem
cards.
The central site hub, which is used for remote access by
many Internet service providers, will also be fitted with a
two-port ADSL card next month, followed by a four-port
version in July.
Many of the products will be based on a new digital signal
processing (DSP) chip from Texas Instruments, Inc. that
performs 1.6 billion instructions per second, a tenfold
increase over previous chips.
U.S. Robotics plans to support ATM over ADSL with its
PC card and its freestanding modems, but is waiting for
Microsoft Corp. to install ATM drivers in its Windows 95
and NT operating systems. That support is expected by July.
In other news, a version of cable TV modem that requires a
separate phone line for traffic leaving the customer site is
scheduled out by year-end. A modem that supports two-way
traffic over a cable network is scheduled out by the middle of
next year, the company said.
U.S. Robotics: (800) 342- 5877.
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Mike |
