Modem Reviews

I bought this modem based on its low price...turned out to be a mistake. it generally connects at 40K but within a few minutes of usage, the throughput drops so much that it isn't worth staying online. Maybe it is just my piece, but I wouldnt buy this again, even at that price.

Having gone through Winmodem hell using a number of inexpensive V90 modems I happened to try one of Jatons Wincomm II modems.
I had an effortless installation and the product connected well, usually at 49,333 0r 50,666kbps. I have been using these modems now for over 2 years and have installed 12 of them in different systems. EVERY installation went flawlessly and everyone I have installed them for has been happy with their stability and performance. I think this is the BEST Winmodem available at any price.

The newer Linksys products including the WRT54G v.2 use a 12 volt power supply and will not work with the WAPPOE. Linksys lists on the product page for the WAPPOE that it will work with the WRT54G but in reality it will only work with the v.1 and v.1.1 that use a 5 volt power supply.

The last review saying this product will not work with Linksys's 12volts products is incorrect. The general rule of thumb is NOT to supply a HIGHER voltage than the device specification recommends because you will definitely damage your device, including make it smoke. For example, never input 12volts into a device which requires 5volts. However, if you input 5 volts into a device which requires 12 volts, the device will usually be OK. The Linksys POE works perfectly with all my 5 volts access points, some which are not even Linksys.

I purchased this unit based on another reader review, unfortunately, my experience was not as positive as his. To start off, the instructions are very vague, leaving you to figure out how to use the unit. The software, which basically performs all of your mapping functions, is spread out across 4 CDs with little direction, so again, you're on your own to try to figure out how to get a map and directions into your Palm Pilot and working with the GPS. And after waiting for 90 minutes for the unit to lock into a satellite, it never happened. Even standing out in the open with no obstacles. Plus the Palm processor is too slow to correctly run the maps. Save your money is my advice. I have already sent my unit back.

What an excellent GPS. It's mount holds the palm quite well and it tracks the satellites quickly (as short as 15 seconds). The software could use a few tweaks. But all in all it is easy to use. The quality of the hardware is outstanding and it comes with everything. The car power adapter, the windshield mount and the charger are included. The maps don't take up too much space on the palm. And I like the feature where you can select what items of intrest you want to store on your map. (Banks, Resturants, Hotels, Hospitals Etc.) It helps to keep the maps small.
If you have a Palm and you travel get a Navman it's a bargan!

Suffice it to say, if you are really into using databases effectively, puchase ThinkDB or HanDbase and a memory upgrade. You will be miles ahead of this overpriced, exceptionally poorly designed database. The biggest detriment is that tables can ONLY be designed on the desktop and then downloaded (hotsync'd) to the PDA. You can NOT design on the fly.

I love this product! It's easy and intuitive to use - I've created lots of personal and business databases. The reference databases provided with the product are quite useful.

This product IS NOT backwards compatible with 56KFlex or V.90 service providers even though US Robotics claims "V.90 56K and x2 technology compatible". It may function correctly if your service provider has upgraded to the new V.92 digital service but, if not, you'll be very disappointed and very lucky to connect as high as 28Kbps. US Robotics admits the modem has problems connecting at advertised speeds with V.90 service providers and I would not recommend purchase until US Robotics can prove they have fixed the flaw.

Never had a problem with ANY US Robotics modem. Always a strong-man in the modem arena. A real modem (i.e., hardware; not a software "Win Modem").

This antivirus does not work well with windows xp. After downloading windows service pack 1 scanning slowed to a crawl half way thru and caused a major power drain on my system. Also causes banging and clanging of hard drive on disc defragmenter and causes slowdown problems at shutdown. I removed it from my computer and switched to Safeworld anti-virus and have no problems at all..

I just bought this a few days ago, and can say it is very good. It only takes a few minutes to install (like 5) and it scans really fast. Before I used this I used vexira anti-virus, which was ok, but this one gets updates to you easier and has virus definitions more often, to keep you up to date. I haven't needed it yet, but phone support is free (except long distance). It has an easy interface, and can even cure your pc of viruses that overwrite the boot sector (make it so you cant start up windows). I would reccomend this to anyone who needs an antivirus scanner for less of the cost and just as much ease of use and functions as the other more expensive ones.

I purchased this item from Amazon, and have had problems with it. If I run it at the defaults, with no firewall enabled, things are ok, altho I suspect it as being the cause of occassional dropped connections. But I want to enable the firewall, and not being familar with hardware firewalls, I called Motorola Tech Support. Well, they DON'T SUPPORT THEIR FIREWALL!! So, this product is going back.

... The cable modem portion (through an ethernet cable) works seamlessly and I got connected to my comcast.net net account with in 15 minutes of being out of the box (10 of those minutes were spent getting to a human with Comcast...I received my wireless card 4 days later (Macsense WPE-700 AEROCARD PLUS WIRELESS PCCARD). I did not have to load any software for the Motorola (gotta love a Mac) and made sure to have the most current software from Macsense for my wireless card. I followed the VERY simple instructions from Macsense. A quit reboot (and inserting my wireless card)...Poof it worked.

Another major concern of mine was going through floors and walls. My wireless system works great through 4 walls and one floor without any loss in signal...just like CNET said. I have not yet hooked up the print server and I am not completely convinced that I can do that for my USB printer, but otherwise it lived up to its expectations.

I've had 3 of these atrocious modems foisted on me by Dell.
I don't ask for a lot from a modem. It needs to not break
down, and to be able to handle somewhat noisy lines without
losing too much throughput. The CBM56WBG fails in both regards.

The longest I've had one work was 3 months. They've failed for
various reasons, so I have to believe there is a real quality
issue here with Xircom.

Even a small amount of noise will really crimp your downloads
with this modem. It seems to be really intolerant of line
noise. I can rarely connect at any speed highly than 45.3Kbps,
and my effective throughput is usually 60% or less of that. Since
we live like gypsies, I've been able to test this modem from
a number of locations, both urban and rural, and the result
is similar in all cases.

Finally, you get a XJack connector with this modem. Be
prepared for inadvertent log-offs as you adjust the position
of the laptop and the cable disconnects.

To the reviewer before me, I challenge you to find any modem that connects consistently at rates much above 45Kbps. The issue is not with the modem but with the line itself, and you can read exactly this detail on Xircom's web site.

This card is made by a respected name in the business. It is older than most models on the market now, but it does perform up to expectations, does not drop connectons, and is a great choice for a budget PCMCIA modem card.

3com has a good repution for reliability and it will probably carry over to this product, but why restrict yourself with an INTERNAL cable modem.

Keep your options open with an external one. This way if you want to add a hardware firewall or a hardware firewall/switch made by Linksys or one of their competitors, you will not be left out in the cold.

This retractable cord is advertised as "automatic", but you have to release the extended cord with a button. Also, the plug is too big for a phone jack, so check what you order it for.