Pros: Works reliably for typical web surfing and email.
Cons: Mine wouldn't automatically install with Windows XP. (Some Windows "Control Panel" tweaking proved necessary.)
The Bottom Line: IF you're not comfortable installing "new hardware" (i.e., both this modem PLUS its problematic software drivers), you MIGHT need a "geek's" help. But, once successfully installed, this modem performs reliably.
henry_thoreau's Full Review: Creative Technology Blaster Analog Modem (70000000...
The other night a freakish lightning storm came out of the proverbial blue and knocked out my eMachines “desktop” (i.e., “mini-tower”) computer. The following day I took it into my neighborhood Best Buy store’s “tech” counter, and explained that I’d like them to take a look at it before I buy a new computer. Well, after about five minutes of diagnostic examination, the “geek” explained that it was specifically the MODEM that had been knocked out by the storm, and as long as it was removed the computer would boot up and run fine. He said that virtually any internal modem could serve as a replacement.
Hence, I proceeded to the back of the store and bought this “Blaster V.92 PCI” unit for approximately $41. (Note: its box slightly differs from the photo above; nonetheless, its “product part number”--7000000003079—on the box does precisely correspond to this Epinions listing.)
When I got home and physically installed the modem, I noticed that the “geek” had neglected to give me the tiny SCREW back that had held my old modem (card) in position. Moral: always be sure to retrieve such seemingly trivial “mounting hardware” when you’re in a comparable situation. There’s just no substitute for being able to properly tighten one of those modem cards securely into position inside the computer.
In any case, once I’d installed the card (modem) itself and attempted to boot up Windows XP, the usual, expected, “new hardware found” bubble appeared at the lower-right portion of the screen. HOWEVER, partway into that “bootup” process, the system mysteriously rebooted. Allowing it to reboot merely led to the same result (still more mysterious rebooting).
Thus, not being in any mood to mess with the installation myself, I took my computer (with new modem card still installed) back to Best Buy’s “tech” counter and let them fiddle with things. The young, somewhat irritatingly taciturn “geek” proceeded silently to somehow use Windows’ “control panel” to sort of “override” the “automatic” installation of the modem’s software. Using the modem’s “install” disk, after a small handful of tries (accompanied by even more mysterious, on-screen interruptions that were clearly beginning to tax his patience), he FINALLY succeeded in getting everything to work okay, and, with that, I took my computer home again, relieved that I was “back in business.” (Only later was I to discover that not only the original modem but also an attached, flatbed scanner had been knocked out by the prior night’s storm—but that’s another story. [See my review of my nice, new Lexmark X2350 scanner/printer for only $59.39!])
Other than the initial, installation glitches discussed above, this new “Blaster V.92 PCI” modem has caused me no headaches. Oh, if I wanted to nitpick, I could mention that its own speaker is a bit noisier than that of its predecessor; then again, the “difference” scarcely makes a difference!
Some of the “V.92 features” listed on the product box include the following:
--V.44 Compression reduces the time it takes to download, load web pages, etc..
--PCM Upstream makes it up to 40% faster to send emails with attachments, etc.
--“Quick Connect” cuts dial-up time by as much as half…
--“Outgoing Modem-On-Hold” works with your Three-Way Calling service…
--“Incoming Modem-On-Hold” works with your Call Waiting and Call Waiting ID service…
I’m using this modem with a very typical, 56K, dial-up connection, and its speed is about as good as it gets for such lowly data transmissions. It performs well with my Juno email and web-surfing functions. Since I myself am far from a “techie”, I frankly have nothing to relate regarding the abstruse features of this device. All I have to say is that it’s a “run of the mill” (or perhaps marginally faster than average) modem that should serve the needs of the average computer user, assuming he knows how to handle any potential installation snafus as described above.
Sorry I don’t know more “technical stuff” about modems. But, frankly (like most folks), I just want an internal modem to function “seamlessly” and “reliably,” and, since this unit is now doing those things, that’s all I need or care to know! ;-)
PLEASE NOTE - Your ISP (Internet Service Provider) MUST support this new v.92 technology for you to reap the benefits. Call your local ISP before purc...More at Amazon Marketplace
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