Surfing with the SURFboard Cable Modem...
May 22 '00
I recently signed on with AT&T@Home.com and along with this came my choice of buying a cable modem or using the one they provided and also gain support for it. So I opted for the support using their modem. This way if this 250 to 350 dollar modem was to bite the proverbial dust in 6 months they would replace it not me.
The cable modem that I have is a General Instruments SURFboard SB3100 which provides high-speed access to the Internet at speeds much higher than that of a regular 56k modem or ISDN modems. With is this modem, just open your email, browser, ICQ, or any other online program and you are instantly ready to go. It is always online no more logging off.
It is a very streamline external modem taking up very little space on my desk. It is about 2 inches thick, 6 inches long and 6 inches high. It has a built in surge protector and matches the color of my CPU and Monitor.
On the face of the unit are 5 lights:
1: Power...this light is green and when flashing means that startup diagnostics are being run and when it turns to solid green the unit is on.
2: Receive...this light is also green and when flashing means that the unit is scanning for the downstream frequency. When it becomes solid that means that the channel has been found and locked in.
3: Send...also a green light and when flashing means that the unit is searching for the upstream frequency and when solid it means that the channel has been found and locked in.
4: Online...this light is also green and flashes while searching for a network connection. A solid green light means that the network connection has been found.
5: Activity...this light is amber and when flashing means that the unit is transmitting or receiving data.
On the rear panel of the unit you will find the reset button, power cable, link cable and usb connector.
This modem so far has been trouble free. Twice I lost connection but that was due to the unit being plugged into my surger protector and once I plugged it into the regular outlet all is fine.
I have made about five downloads with this modem since installing it of various sizes and from different sites. Files that used to take me 30 minutes now take me under a minute to just over a couple minutes depending on the site I download from. A 19 meg file takes me 2.15 minutes. A 5 meg file that used to take me 45 minutes to an hour through wsftp now takes me about 5 to 10 minutes. I can live with that.
All in all I have found this modem to be very nice. So in a nutshell this is what you receive from the SB3100: Speeds up to 100 times faster than 28.8 modems. A modem that works with Macs, PC's, desktops, laptops, workstations, etc. A modem that is perfect for setting up home networks or networks for small businesses. Requires no phone line every thing goes through your cable line and it is also very easy to install.
Thanks for reading...
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Epinions.com ID:
tommiles
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Member: Thomas Miles
Location: Mason City, IA
Reviews written: 123
Trusted by: 95 members
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