U.S. Robotics Announces The Last Modem You'll Ever Buy
Provides Migration Path to Forthcoming CCITT 28.8 Kbps Standard
Skokie, Ill. -- June 8, 1992 -- U.S. Robotics today announced an upgrade program for the CCITT-proposed standard of 28.8 Kbps, previously referred to as V.FAST. The Courier V.32bis, Courier HST Dual Standard and Shared Access Modem Sharing Kits are the products currently included in the program. Field upgrades will be available for $299 as soon as the CCITT 28.8 Kbps draft recommendation is completed. Official approval of the standard is not expected until January, 1994.
"The CCITT-proposed 28.8 Kbps standard won't be a reality for most manufacturers until 1994," said Jonathan Zakin, U.S. Robotics executive vice president, sales and marketing. "By offering modems ready for 28.8 Kbps now, we're providing insurance against technical obsolescence. Customers can purchase a Courier high-speed modem or Shared Access Modem Sharing Kit now and take advantage of the most updated technology available. When the 28.8 Kbps standard becomes available later, they'll already have a cost-effective upgrade option and won't have to re-invest in new equipment."
"Key to the 28.8 Kbps program is the fact that the upgrade to the Courier high-speed modems and Shared Access Modem Sharing Kits can be completed by the end user at their worksite, which reduces their `down' time and eliminates excess costs like shipping and handling," continued Zakin. "You may hear about other 28.8 Kbps modems that are available now, but until the standard is defined, no one knows what hardware will be needed to comply. Our unique modem architecture makes future `field' upgrades a realistic and simple procedure."
Because of U. S. Robotics' advanced modular modem architecture, the company's Courier V.32bis, Courier HST Dual Standard, and Shared Access modems are readily upgradable to 28.8Kbps. The modems are made up of a motherboard and a smaller daughterboard, which holds the modems' microprocessors and firmware. The current, high-speed daughterboard can easily be replaced with a new board containing the 28.8 Kbps CCITT standard. U.S. Robotics is the only modem manufacturer to implement this kind of flexible design.
"In the CClTT, the previously called `V.FAST' standard has gained universal support at the 28.8Kbps speed," said Dale Walsh, U.S. Robotics vice president, advanced development and participant in the CCITT committee on the 28.8 Kbps standard, "This is how our modular architecture works. The data pump (which executes the modulation and demodulation of the data), and the key controller functions (which perform the data compression, error control and the AT command set) are on one board, making upgrades simple. We can easily make the data pump faster and upgrade the controller functions to keep up with the new speed. It's all in just one small plug-in card."
Because compatibility with CCITT standards is crucial, U.S. Robotics' availability and implementation of the 28.8Kbps standard will depend on the CClTT's progress. At this time, the standard is expected to define a connect speed of 28.8 Kbps, two times faster than V.32bis, the fastest CCITT standard now available.
U.S. Robotics is one of the first vendors to announce a program for 28.8Kbps compatibility. The company has a history of industry "firsts," including the first CCITT V.32bis modem from a major manufacturer, the first self-managing modem management system and the first portable CCITT V.32 modem.
U.S. Robotics will upgrade any Modem Sharing Kit to 28.8Kbps. Current Courier models, which have the smaller footprint and a higher, 57.6 Kbps DCE to DTE (modem-to-computer) interface speed, are also upgradable. The company's upgrade program does not include WorldPort and Sportster modems.
U. S. Robotics Courier modems offer a wide range of features, including fax, remote configuration, and synchronous capabilities. The Shared Access Modem Sharing Kits, which began shipping in March, 1992, allow for the pooling of modems on a LAN so that a LAN user can access them for dial-in or dial-out communications.
The following products will be upgradable to 28.8 Kbps:
U. S. Robotics, Inc, (NASDAQ:USRX) (800)DIAL-USR voice for more information.