This Modem Got My iMac Up to Speed
Written: Jan 07 '01
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Reliable connections at high speeds, status lights on front show activity, audio lets you know it's connecting
Cons: No USB model for new Macs - needs adapter
|
|
|
| johnshepler's Full Review: 3Com U.S. Robotics Faxmodem 56K Analog Modem (81-0... |
I was likely to break my leg drop kicking our iMac DV Special Edition in sheer frustration. The computer would almost never log on using the internal modem and V.90 script. When it did, it then almost always disconnected within an hour. Only when I crippled it with the Apple supplied V.34 modem script would it reliably log into any ISP…at a blazing 24Kbps. Apple said "it’s your phone line, we can’t do anything." The ISPs echoed "it’s your phone line, we can’t do anything." But sitting in the other room was the evidence that they were all wrong. Macs can talk at 50K or more on my phone line and probably yours. What’s more, you don’t need to break a leg to make it happen.
I had the solution before I knew it
I’ve always held U.S. Robotics modems in high regard. They were touted in the computer magazines before the Internet was even cool. I bought my first one when we switched from the classic Prodigy service running at 2400 baud to real Internet service supplied by a local ISP. That USR modem looked almost identical to this one, except it ran at 28.8K. I got an upgrade to the incredibly fast (at that time) 56K X2 Sportster. That 56K modem is on its second Macintosh, and it’s logged-in right now at 49333bps. It will run at that speed or higher for hours on end, all day if you need to. What’s more, it’s connected to that same phone line everybody says won’t support 56K.
I was so happy with U.S. Robotics that when I bought a Toshiba 430CDT PC laptop three years ago, I selected a U.S. Robotics built Megahertz XJ5560 56K PC card modem to plug into its PCMCIA slot. It has run reliably at 48 to 50K every day since. Same phone line, too.
I should also mention that I have not one, but two, standard telephone lines. Over the years, both have gone dead and needed service work (the latest due to a mouse allegedly building a nest in the junction box and biting through the wires). These are in-town lines, not something out in the boonies. Neither is pristinely clear of noise, but what real phone line is? Anyway, my two U.S. Robotics modems, the one on the Mac and the one in the PC laptop run just fine on either line and don’t need a V.34 script to make them work. In fact, I use the USR High Speed modem script that came with OS9 on my Power Macintosh G3 and none of the software that came on the disc with the modem.
In fact I never suspected that I would ever have a modem problem, until we bought the iMac DV Special Edition last year. You can read more about this sad saga in my review entitled "iDisappointed," which can be found at: http://johnshepler.epinions.com/cmd-review-7573-6F40477-39AD32EB-prod2
After running out of luck trying to resolve this problem with Apple and several ISPs, I got to thinking that maybe all the iMac needed was a better modem…and I knew just the one.
Selecting a New External Modem
I couldn’t buy the exact modem I’d been using, because in the intervening years a new standard, V.90, had been established as the standard for 56K modems. Prior to that, there were two competing standards. U.S. Robotics had developed one called X2 (pronounced times two, meaning twice as fast) and Motorola and Rockwell had developed a competing but different technique called K-Flex. After some negotiating, a new international standard incorporating technology from both techniques but compatible with neither was established. That’s the V.90 ITU standard that every modem you buy today complies with.
What I was able to buy was the next upgrade to my Sportster modem. It is called the 3Com U.S. Robotics 56K Faxmodem Model 5689 for Macintosh. It looks identical to what I have been using, but now includes both the V.90 56K standard and the X2 technology. In addition, it is compatible with ITU and Bell standards from 56Kbps down to 1200bps, including the V.34 standard for 33.6kbps. Will you use those other standards? Probably not, but they’re available for really, really bad phone connections, or on the odd chance you’ll be dialing into some ancient bulletin board system.
You’ll notice that the modem is called a Faxmodem. It is compatible with Class 1 and 2.0 Group III fax machines at 14.4Kbps. That’s the standard used by the fax machines you’ll likely buy for home or office use. 3Com U.S. Robotics supplies a CD with software so you can use your PC to send and receive faxes, but I’m not using that feature. I have a separate fax machine.
Getting Connected With an iMac
The first thing you’ll notice is that the data plug on the modem has no place to go on the iMac. That’s because Apple switched dramatically from their 8 pin standard serial port for modems and printers to USB ports. They’ve stuck with the USB-only decision for all their newer computers, so this discussion will likely pertain to any Macintosh you’d buy today. Unfortunately, the last time I looked there was no 3Com U.S. Robotics modem with a USB interface. What to do?
The answer comes in the form of a third-party interface called uConnect. It is a USB to serial adapter. You plug the USB cable into one of the two iMac USB ports. You plug the round serial data plug from the modem into the front of the uConnect adapter. You also need to load some software supplied by uConnect so that the iMac will automatically recognize the adapter. That’s it. It takes only a few minutes to add this device and, it costs about $70. It’s self-contained and doesn’t even need external power. I got mine from Outpost.com, where I also bought the modem for $85. I’ve not tried this adapter with printers or other serial peripherals, but it should work for those also.
How hard is it to get the modem working? It’s just as simple as taking it out of the box, plugging in the power supply, connecting the serial cable from the back of the modem to the uConnect adapter that was installed first, setting the modem script from the iMac internal V.34 to "U.S. Robotics High Speed," and then dialing into your ISP using Remote Access. You don’t need to install any of the software that comes with the modem unless you want to use the FAX features. Amazingly, the iMac connected to Earthlink on the first try at something like 49K.
What’s Not Quite Perfect
I’d love to say that this is the end of the story, problem solved, that’s it. But, communication with the iMac is still not perfect. The new modem does log in reliably to either of our two regular ISPs and FreeInternet, when it was available. The speed varies anywhere from 48K to 50,666bps, just like my other modems. I’m convinced that the modem is doing exactly what it should. But, we still have system crashes and silent disconnects from the services. When the modem disconnects, you have to unplug the uConnect Adapter from the USB and plug it back in to reset it.
I think the 3Com U.S. Robotics modem is working just fine as advertised. My Power Macintosh G3 also crashes and hangs like crazy since I made the "bright" move of installing OS9, but that’s another woe. The fact that I had to kludge up something to get around the poky iMac modem problem means there is more equipment that needs resetting when the operating system bombs. It’s really more of a darned annoyance than anything. The system can run reliably for hours on any given day.
I’m guessing that one other weak link is V.90. When you dial-in with the new modem, you hear the same hisses and beeps as with the old modem, but with one new twist. The last set of tones is a bell-sounding "bong, bong, bong." I suspect that this is establishing V.90. The V.90 standard is probably just fine for a lot of people, but it may be too fussy for my questionable phone lines. I almost NEVER have problems with speed or random disconnects using the X2 modems on the laptop or PowerMac. They seem to run fast with every ISP I try, including the free ones, and hold the line for hour after hour. If I get too annoyed someday, I’ll spend some time digging into the modem standards and try to write a script to force the new modem to connect at X2 and not V.90. Isn’t progress great sometimes?
For PC Users Too
If the internal modem that came with your personal computer is exhibiting some of the same problems that I’ve had with the iMac or your old modem has fizzled, I enthusiastically recommend the 3Com U.S. Robotics 56K Faxmodem. You’ll need to buy the model that connects to a PC serial port instead of the Macintosh. Otherwise they are identical. Since few PC makers have discontinued the standard serial port connection, you probably won’t need any other interfaces. U.S. Robotics is a very popular maker of modems, and this particular model is becoming a classic for good reason. It works and it works really well.
Recommended:
Yes
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
johnshepler
|
|
Member: John Shepler
Location: Rockford, IL
Reviews written: 18
Trusted by: 14 members
About Me:
Hey, I hope that big guy behind me only sinks his teeth into these reviews!
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.